Just D.I.N.K.ing Around: Dinner with a view.

We walked into town this morning for some quick souvenier shopping. We walked a different way to avoid the hill and passed by a few new houses and sites.

Once we got near the main square, we stumbled on this little shop that sold wine in true Italian style. The employee didn't speak any English and the shop had vats that ranged from white to rose to olive oil to taste test. Once you made a selection, they filled a bottle and corked it for you at the princely price of 2,50 and 3,50 Euro! The white was good and the sangiovese merlot blend was excellent.

They would poor up to 5L in a box if needed as well.

With a fresh supply of wine in hand, the crew hit the pool. A funny story developed over the course of the week. The following picture is the winery on top of the hill behind the pool at our villa.

The path to this winery for visitors and workers was adjacent to our property. Tourists on walking tours would venture up the road to a clearing right beside our pool and it was at this point that they could see the remaining hill climb that was needed to reach the winery. The expressions of "excitement" that we heard while hidden behind a wall of bushes was rather entertaining.

On a recommendation from a wine shop acquaintance that coincidentally has an apartment in the triangle in Greve!?!?!, we asked our driver Monika something along the lines of, "have you heard of a great restaurant in a nearby town with a great view of Tuscany".

She immediately rattled off "Ristoro Di Lamole in Lamole". I said that it sounded right and, of course, she knew the owners and said that she could line up one of the best tables for us if we wanted to go there.

I sent her a text the next day and requested an 8:00 PM reservation for the following night and I also asked for a taxi service recommendation, because the only way to get there for dinner was a car.

A few hours later, she texted us back and said that we were all setup and the driver would pick us up at 7:45 PM! She is incredible.

You've seen the restaurant, now check out the view as the sun begins to set.

We were welcomed as family when we arrived. I could tell that we had an "in" with the owners. They offered "a little Prosseco to start."

I quickly grabbed the wine list and ordered the first bottle... one of my favorites, Ca' Marcanda Magari, an IGT Super Tuscan.

It never takes long with six people at the table to empty a bottle of wine, so Davin and Christal ordered another bottle to let it start breathing.

And then the appetizers began to arrive.

And then the food.

And my bistecca alla fiorentina that I love so much. I shared a little of it, but it was over 2 lbs. of bliss and the homemade potato chips were quite good as well.