Geography of Chianti The territory of Chianti is made up of a broad hilly area situated in the centre of Tuscany , between Florence and Siena , closed to the east by the Chianti mountains and to the west by the velleys of the Pesa and Elsa rivers . It takes in, partially or in their entirety, the municipalities of San Casciano Val d`Elsa , Tavarnelle Val di Pesa, Barberino Val d`Elsa, and Greve in Chianti ( in the Province of Florence ) and Castellina in Chianti, Radda in Chianti, Gaiole in Chianti and Castelnuovo Berardenga ( in the province of Siena ) . You can visit many tuscany villas in the Chianti .

TERRITORY OF CHIANTI Famous the world over for its excellent wine, the Chianti landscape is characterised by a continuous alternation of valleys and gentle hills cloaked in vines and olives but also of harsh peaks covered in woods of oaks, cypresses and pines. The entire area is scattered with ancient hamlets, churches and abbeys, turreted castles and fortresses, farmhouses and tuscany villas .

It is an architectural landscape made up of simple and warm materials such as limestone, pietra serena and terracotta, which has adapted itself to the natural landscape over the centuries, producing effects of breathtaking harmony. Inhabited since ancient times by the Etruscans, who it appears were the first to grow the vines and many archaeological traces of whom survive, the area also underwent a significant domination by the Romans, in the mediaeval period it was at length the scene of violent clashes between the rival cities of Florence and Siena, which only ceased in the mid sixteenth century with the definitive defeat of the Sienese of the Sienese Republic. This is by now past history, but it is no mere coincidence that, after centuries of antagonism and rivalryl, the eight municipalities of Chiantihave symbolically underwritten an agreement - the "Patto di Pontignano" - which lays down common rules for protecting and valorising their respective identities in a unified manner.

In 1932 the borders of the territory in which Chianti wine could be produced were defined by a Ministerial Decree, which extended these to include most of the Tuscan provinces, well beyond the traditional area of production. The same Decree also delimited the production area for Chianti Classico , both by defining it as the "most ancient area of origin", and by awarding it a certificate of primogeniture which acknowledged a specific historical-cultural identity. To distinguish it from the Chianti which came later, produced in places other than the territory of origin, the wine produced in this area was therefore endowed with the additional nomenclature of "Classico", signifying "the first", "the original". Chianti, like the entire Province, possesses an extremely valuable cultural:and artistic heritage, housed largely in the local museums which, although often small in size, are nevertheless very important in terms of the value of the works on display and above all of the cultural identity of the territory. They are authentic gems gathered within the diffused museum system promoted by the Florentine Provincial Authority and metaphorically entitled "the string of pearls" ... from `Chianti` (Apt Florence)