The Italian region of Campania is filled to the brim with incredible locations to visit, places to discover, local delicacies to taste and activities to engage in if you want to have a comprehensive, well-rounded, immersive travel experience. Discover many beautiful towns and cities on your way from Naples to Salerno, and once you’re there, tour the Amalfi Coast for a stunning, breath-taking visit of some of Italy’s most beautiful beaches and landscapes. But the fun doesn’t end here, because the area is also known for its production of wines. If you’re staying near Naples, remember to discover Mount Vesuvius and while you’re touring those parts don’t forget that excellent wines are produced there as well, and nothing says “Italy” quite like a wine tasting tour of Southern Italy. Let’s discover two wine tours along the Amalfi Coast and the Vesuvius.
Coastal Tour to the Tenuta San Francesco Winery.
This coast tour will bring you from stunning Positano to the town of Tramonti in little under an hour of travel. In the town you’ll be able to see, along quaint streets and squares, many churches and chapels as well as castles and monasteries. The area is known for its vineyards and you’ll be able to visit the Tenuta San Francesco, a small family-run winery built in an 18th century farm and located in the regional park of the Lattari Mountains, the backbone of the Amalfi Coast. Here, halfway between sea and mountain, you’ll tour the estate and vineyards, discovering the production process and the features of the grapes used to achieve the local DOC wines. The immersive experience will include a wine tasting and a lunch, where the Tramonti wines will be paired with excellent traditional dishes typical of the region.
The Tenuta San Francesco winery also has a joint “B&B Tenuta San Francesco” with a few cozy rooms and, with a distance of 10 minutes by car from the sea, it would be a great location for your stay near the Amalfi Coast. While you’re in Tramonti, enjoying the wines produced by the winery (the most praised by visitors are the “Per Eva” and “E’ Iss” varieties), the Tenuta also offers cooking classes where you can learn local recipes from the cuisine of Campania, so be on the lookout for those!
Tour Around the Vesuvius to the Cantine del Vesuvio.
The Vesuvius is definitely a place to visit, as are the nearby towns and cities. The area is also known for its production of DOC wines. With this tour, you’ll be brought along the volcanic slopes of the Vesuvius to the Cantine del Vesuvio. Founded in 1948, the winery supplied local merchants and its wines found their way on the tables of homes and restaurants throughout the countryside. But 18 years ago, the founder’s son Maurizio Russo decided to make the winery take a different turn, transforming the establishment into a place that could provide an exclusive, unique experience. The quality of wines was improved and the production was limited, to ensure quality and achieve a precious wine. The winery’s doors were opened to welcome visitors seeking to tour the facility and taste the excellent wines produces by the Russo family. Now, the Cantine del Vesuvio sells directly from its own shop and through their online store, and offers tastings and other immersive experience to visitors. At the winery, you’ll find the unique Lacryma Christi wine in red, white and rosato varieties, as well as many other products such as other wines, spirits and even extra virgin olive oil. Stop by for a tasting experience, and the wines will be paired with local produce and dishes such as cured meats, cheeses, bread and bruschetta prepared according to Neapolitan recipes as the appetizer; spaghetti of durum wheat flour with a sauce made with heirloom Piennolo tomatoes as the main course; Pastiera Napoletana, a traditional local dessert made with ricotta cheese, candied fruit and wheat berries, will close the meal along with the Acquavite di Albicocche del Vesuvio, an apricot distillate. With this tasting menu, you’ll have a comprehensive immersion in the local cuisine and the possibility to sample every different variety of wine produced at the Cantine del Vesuvio, all made with local grapes.
The winery also offers cooking classes where you’ll learn how to make several local dishes by yourself: ravioli, eggplant parmesan, almond cake with Sorrento lemons. The winery hosts two cooking classes per day and they last for 3-4 hours. The shop is open every day of the week and tastings will take place from 11am to 4pm (Monday to Friday) and from 11am to 3pm (Saturday and Sunday). Check out the winery’s website to know more about the excellent experiences the Cantine del Vesuvio has to offer.