★★★★★
The cellar hour under the old town
Not to be missed. A properly interesting walk through the old subterranean rooms, and then a tasting you have been taught how to do.
Thomas J · Couple · United States · September 2026
Montepulciano Wine Tasting and Cellar Tour
Vino Nobile pouredStarts in Montepulciano
An hour under the street, and five wines at the end of it. You meet in the centre of the old town and walk down into rooms cut in tufa, where the casks stand in rows. A guide takes you through them, then pours five DOC and DOCG Montepulciano wines with pecorino, bruschetta and crostini. You are back on the Corso an hour later.
Five wines, one hour, one cellar
One hour, start to finish
Short enough to slot into a day that already has a lunch booked.
Five DOC and DOCG wines
All five are Montepulciano wines, and all five are in the fare.
Pecorino, bruschetta and crostini
Pecorino of several ages, bread with extra-virgin olive oil, typical crostini.
A guide pours and explains
Somebody walks you through the rooms and tells you what is in each glass.
4.8 from 659 reviews
The second-busiest listing in our capture, and the busiest that starts in town.
What an hour under the town buys
Montepulciano has no gate and no ticket, so the thing you pay for here is the pour. This is the shortest way to get at it properly. You are not standing at a bar on the Corso with a glass and a menu; you are under the street, in the rooms where the wine has been kept for centuries, with somebody explaining what you are drinking.
That matters more than it sounds. Vino Nobile di Montepulciano is Sangiovese, called Prugnolo Gentile here, and it must be at least 70 per cent of the blend and spend two years ageing, one of them in wood. Rosso di Montepulciano is the same grape with one year behind it. Tasting five of them in a row, in order, with the rules explained as you go, is how the difference stops being a label and starts being something you can pick out. Still weighing it against a vineyard visit or a coach day? Montepulciano Tours sets every fare side by side, with the pour marked on each one.
Slavonian oak, French oak and the tufa
The listing's own description is specific about the wood. You pass rows of big Slavonian oak barrels, where the Nobile is aged, standing alongside barrels of French oak. The two woods do different things to the same wine, and the cellar is where that argument is easiest to follow.
The rooms themselves are cut into the sandy tufa the hill is made of. Fossils have been found in it, which is the operator's way of saying the ridge was under water a long time before anybody planted a vine on it. The temperature down there barely moves, which is why the cellars were dug in the first place and why an August afternoon is a good time to be in one. More of the geology and the ageing rules sit on the vineyards page.
How the hour runs
- Meet in the centre. Your confirmation names the door; it varies by the option you book.
- Down into the cellar. Out of the street and into the rooms under it.
- The barrels. Slavonian oak for the Nobile, French oak alongside it, and the tufa behind both.
- The tasting begins. Five DOC and DOCG Montepulciano wines, poured and explained in turn.
- Food with the wine. Pecorino of several ages, bruschetta with new olive oil, typical crostini.
- Back up to the Corso. About an hour after you went down, with the afternoon intact.
Who this suits: an hour in a cellar, not an afternoon in a vineyard
Book this if
You are already in town, you have a couple of hours, and you want the wine explained rather than just poured. It works well as a first stop on the hill, and it works for couples, friends and anyone travelling without a car: the cellar is inside the walls and you walk to it.
Book something else if
You came for a view over the vines. This is a cellar with no windows, and you should choose a vineyard instead: the winery visit a kilometre below the walls costs $35 and puts you among the rows, and the e-bike day out of Via Ricci spends five hours out there. If you want the town explained as well as the wine, the private guided walk from Piazza Grande runs two hours. Every tasting on the hill is on Montepulciano wine tours.
What the fare covers
In the fare
- Guide
- A selection of pecorino cheeses of various ages
- Bruschetta with extra virgin olive oil and typical crostini
- 5 DOC and DOCG wines from Montepulciano
Not in the fare
- Transportation
Finding the cellar, and where to leave the car
Your meeting point moves with the option you book, because this operator uses more than one door in the centre. Read your confirmation the night before rather than the morning of, and put the address into your phone while you still have signal.
The old town is a no-car zone. Two operators on this hill name the same answer for drivers: leave the car at Parking San Donato or Parking P8 below the walls and walk up. Every car park is below the town and the cellar is inside it, a few minutes short of Piazza Grande at the top. It is a climb, and it is the part most visitors underestimate. The car parks, the zone and the walk from each one are set out on the Montepulciano parking map.
Know before you go
- Transport is not in the fare. You make your own way to the door, on foot or from a car park below.
- The meeting point moves by option. Check the address on your confirmation, not a search result.
- The old town is closed to cars. Park at San Donato or P8 and allow time for the climb.
- It is cool down there all year. Take a layer in summer; the cellar does not care what August is doing.
- The hour runs in English or Italian. Pick your language when you book the slot.
- Free cancellation to 24 hours. Cancel a day ahead for a full refund; inside that, the fare stands.
What travellers say about the cellar hour
★★★★★
The cellar hour under the old town
We were taken room by room through the cellar and every wine was explained before we tasted it. Relaxed, informative and worth booking.
Andrea · Canada · September 2026
★★★★★
The cellar hour under the old town
A strong guide and a remarkable place with real history behind it. Good wines, though the food bites were on the basic side.
George · Couple · Romania · September 2026
Frequently asked questions
How many wines do you taste?
Five, and the listing is specific that all five are DOC and DOCG wines from Montepulciano. They come with pecorino of several ages, bruschetta with extra-virgin olive oil and typical crostini. Nothing is left to pay at the end.
Is Vino Nobile di Montepulciano one of them?
Yes. The appellation's wines are what this cellar keeps, and the Slavonian oak barrels you walk past are where the Nobile is aged. The ageing rules behind it are on the vineyards page.
Where exactly do we meet?
The meeting point depends on the option you book, so the address on your confirmation is the one that counts. All of them sit in the centre of the old town, inside the walls. There is no pickup and no transport in the fare.
Can I do this on a day trip from Rome or Florence?
Not on the coach days, which run to their own timetable and bring their own tasting. If you are coming for the day from either city, book one of the days that already includes a pour, such as the Rome day with lunch and wines, or compare the lot on Montepulciano tours from Rome.
Is an hour long enough?
For five wines and the cellar, yes. If you want a vineyard and a view as well, add a second stop rather than stretching this one. Several people do the cellar in the morning and ride or drive out in the afternoon.
What if I need to cancel?
You get the full fare back if you cancel at least 24 hours before the start time. Inside those 24 hours the booking is not refunded. Changes inside the same window are not accepted either.
Other ways to drink Montepulciano wine
Ready for an hour under the old town?
Check the times still open for the cellar tour and its five DOC and DOCG wines, with free cancellation up to 24 hours ahead.
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