Tuscany: Farm-to-Table Cooking Class & Wine Tasting Day Trip

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Free cancellationExcellent quality

1/28

Duration7h 30m

GroupUp to 12

LanguagesEN · IT +2

Mobile ticketAccepted

Organic Tuscan estate cooking class with vineyard strolls and lunch

You’ll leave Florence behind for a day on an organic Tuscan hilltop farm—gathering fresh ingredients from gardens, tasting local wines and olive oil, cooking alongside friendly hosts, then relaxing by the pool or wandering vineyards before heading home full and happy.

7h 30m

Step-by-step itinerary

Farm visit and Tuscan cooking experience

Meet at Florence Santa Maria Novella Station
Buy train tickets to San Miniato
Take 40-minute train ride to San Miniato
Walk around vineyard and olive groves
Gather ingredients in garden for lunch
Prepare traditional Tuscan lunch together
Taste red and rosé wine with olive oil
Relax in garden or swim in infinity pool
Stroll to nearby remote little church

The Experience

“Here, we don’t rush—vino first, then everything else,” said Paolo as he handed us little glasses of something bright and citrusy (limoncello?) before we’d even set foot in the kitchen. We’d just stepped off the train from Florence to San Miniato—Paolo had helped us buy tickets back at Santa Maria Novella station, which was honestly a relief because those machines always throw me off. The ride was about forty minutes, enough time to watch the city slip away and let my brain slow down. I noticed the air changed as soon as we arrived at Agriturismo Tenuta Chiudendone; it smelled like cut grass and wild herbs, sharp but sweet.

I didn’t expect to be gathering lunch ingredients myself, but there we were—me awkwardly trying to tell Li (our guide) that I’d never picked wild asparagus before. She laughed and showed me how to spot them poking up between the vines. My hands got a bit muddy but I didn’t care; it felt good to do something simple. The garden was buzzing with bees and I could hear someone’s radio playing faint Italian pop from an open window nearby. We wandered through rows of olive trees while Paolo explained how their extra virgin olive oil is cold-pressed right here on the estate—he made us taste it on bread, grassy and peppery at once.

The actual cooking part was less formal than I thought—lots of chatting, a little chaos (I nearly dropped a tomato), nothing too precious. Lunch ended up being three courses: fresh pasta with whatever we’d just picked, some roasted vegetables, and these little cookies dipped in sweet wine. We tried both red and rosé wines from their own vineyard; honestly I still think about that rosé when I see pink sunsets now. After eating way too much, some people swam in the infinity pool (salt water—softer on your skin) while others just sprawled out under fig trees or wandered up toward a tiny old church at the top of the hill.

If you’re looking for a polished chef’s table thing, this isn’t it—and that’s kind of why I loved it. It felt like being invited into someone’s home rather than ticking off another “Tuscan day trip” box. Even after heading back toward Florence with my shoes still dusty from the farm path, I caught myself smiling at nothing in particular.

What’s included

Your day includes help buying train tickets from Florence to San Miniato, a guided walk around an organic hilltop estate with vineyard and garden visits, hands-on ingredient gathering and cooking alongside locals, tastings of three different wines plus spirits like limoncello, cold-pressed extra virgin olive oil served on bread, a traditional three-course Tuscan lunch prepared together, plus time to relax by the salted infinity pool or explore more of the property before returning to Florence in the evening.

Good to know

Moderate physical levelStroller friendlyPets welcomePublic transport nearbyNot for heart conditionsInfants must sit on laps

Operated by Impresa Agricola Pier Delle Vigne