Last updated: October 2026
Everyone knows Chianti. Hardly anyone visiting Lucca realises there’s wine country right on the doorstep. The hills north and east of the city are covered in vines, and the little walled village of Montecarlo has had its own wine for centuries. Further east, Pescia and the Valdinievole make Vin Santo, and the hills towards Pistoia have small family farms that will pour you a glass and tell you their whole history.
This is a trail through all of it. It’s not a famous wine route, which is the point. Tastings are friendly, prices are fair, and quite often the person pouring is the person who made the wine.
The trail at a glance
- Where: the hills around Lucca (Colline Lucchesi), Montecarlo, Pescia and the Pistoia side of the Valdinievole.
- The wines: Colline Lucchesi DOC, Montecarlo DOC and Valdinievole DOC, including Vin Santo.
- How long: one full day for Lucca and Montecarlo, two if you add Pescia and Pistoia.
- Booking: book every tasting ahead. Most are small family places.
- Getting there: you need a car, and a driver who isn’t drinking. One winery is reachable by bus from Lucca.
- Best time: spring to October. September is harvest time, and Montecarlo holds its wine festival around then.
Prices, hours and contacts below come from each winery’s own website, checked 30 October 2026. They change, so confirm when you book.
The wines in a nutshell
| Wine | Where | What to expect |
|---|---|---|
| Colline Lucchesi DOC | The hills around Lucca and Capannori | Sangiovese-based reds and fresh whites. Recognised as a DOC in 1968. |
| Montecarlo DOC | Montecarlo, plus parts of Altopascio, Capannori and Porcari | The white is the unusual one: Trebbiano blended with French grapes such as Sémillon, Sauvignon, Roussanne and Pinot. Reds are Sangiovese-led. |
| Valdinievole DOC | Pescia, Montecatini and the comuni around them | Trebbiano whites, Sangiovese and Canaiolo reds, and Vin Santo. |
Why French grapes in Montecarlo? The local story is that a landowner, Giulio Magnani, brought them in during the 1800s, and they stayed. The DOC rules for Montecarlo Bianco still require at least three of them in the blend. (Montecarlo Bianco became a DOC in 1969, the red in 1985, according to the comune’s own wine pages, checked 30 October 2026.)
Lucca and the Colline Lucchesi
Start in Lucca. The vineyards begin almost as soon as you leave the walls, on the hills to the north (towards Carignano and San Martino in Vignale) and north-east (towards Capannori and its hamlets). These three are all within about 20 minutes’ drive of the city.
Fattoria Al Dotto
Carignano, north of Lucca · Website
- Tastings of olive oil and five or six wines, each paired with a different local dish: €35, €40 or €45 per person.
- Open Monday to Saturday: 12.30 to 16.30 from 6 October to 15 April, and 13.00 to 18.30 from 16 April to 4 October. Closed Sundays and holidays.
- Booking always required. For same-day visits, book by midday. Tel. +39 366 417 2704 or info@fattoriaaldotto.it.
- No car? It’s the winery closest to Lucca’s walls, and the winery says bus line 53 runs from Piazzale Verdi to the Carignano stop.
Fattoria Maionchi
Tofori, Capannori · Website
- A 17th-century farmhouse with its old cellars. The tour is in Italian or English and takes about an hour and a half.
- Tastings run from 10.00 to 18.00. The basic one is olive oil plus four wines with a platter of local cured meats and cheese, €55 per person, minimum four people. Bigger lunch-style options cost more.
- On set evenings in season they do aperitifs in the vineyard. Dogs are welcome.
- Tel. +39 0583 978194 or info@fattoriamaionchi.it.
Fattoria di Fubbiano
San Gennaro, Capannori · Website
- An estate that feels like a tiny village of its own. Guided tastings of the DOC wines and olive oil, with local cheese and cured meats.
- Tours run all year, except Sundays, by reservation.
- The shop is open May to September, Tuesday to Saturday 9.00 to 18.00, and October to April, Monday, Wednesday and Friday 9.00 to 18.00. You can taste there without booking.
- Tel. +39 0583 978011 or fubbiano@fattoriadifubbiano.it.
Lucca hills to Montecarlo in Google Maps. Roughly 20 minutes from Lucca to Tofori, 12 minutes on to San Gennaro, and 20 minutes from there to Montecarlo.
Montecarlo
No, not that Monte Carlo. Tuscany’s Montecarlo is a little walled village on a ridge between Lucca and Pescia, about 25 minutes’ drive from Lucca, with its fortress at one end and vineyards falling away on every side. Walk the main street, look out over the plain, then go and taste. I’ve written more about staying here in my where to stay near Lucca guide.
Tenuta del Buonamico
Cercatoia, just below Montecarlo · Website
- One of the best-known estates in Montecarlo, founded in 1964. Guided cellar tours for groups of 2 to 80, in Italian or English, followed by a tasting of wines and olive oils.
- The wine shop is open every day: Monday to Friday 9.00 to 19.00, weekends 10.00 to 19.00. Book tours ahead.
- There’s a restaurant on the estate as well.
- Tel. +39 0583 22038 or buonamico@buonamico.com.
Fattoria del Teso
Montecarlo · Website
- Surrounded by pines and cypresses, with an old cellar full of barrels and a Vin Santo room.
- Visits and tastings every day at 11.00, 14.00 or 17.00, by booking only.
- Tel. +39 392 606 5139 or fattoriadeltesomontecarlo@gmail.com.
Fattoria Valdrighi
Montecarlo · Website
- Small and family-run, founded in 1939. You start in the vines, see the cellar, then sit down in a little tasting room.
- Four wines with local food and an espresso, with the chance to try the Vin Santo: €40 per person, groups of four to six at most.
- Book at least 48 hours ahead. Tel. +39 348 385 7281 or info@fattoriavaldrighi.com.
Montecarlo’s wine festival
The Festa del Vino di Montecarlo fills the village every late summer. In 2026 it ran from 28 August to 8 September, with tastings and masterclasses in the squares, music, and the candlelit procession on the last night. Check the comune or the Lucca tourist board for next year’s dates. More festas in my sagre month by month guide.
Pescia and the Valdinievole
Ten minutes on from Montecarlo, you cross into the province of Pistoia and the Valdinievole. Wine has been made here for a very long time. In 1685 the poet Francesco Redi wrote about happily knocking back Pescia’s wines by the handful, and the Valdinievole DOC’s own rules quote him. The DOC started in 1976 as a white-only Bianco della Valdinievole and added reds in 2010.
The thing to look for here is Vin Santo, the amber dessert wine made from grapes dried for months before pressing. Dip a cantuccio in it, or drink it as it is.
- Azienda Agricola Marzalla, Pescia (website). Makes a Vin Santo DOC called Tre Chiodi from grapes hung to dry in its vinsantaia, the drying loft, and sells wine and oil from its cellar, where the oil is still kept in old terracotta jars. The estate includes Villa Guardatoia, which opens its garden on set days. There are no published tasting hours, so ring first: +39 0572 490751.
- Fattoria di Pietrabuona, below the village of Pietrabuona (website). Invites visitors to stop at the cellar and taste. Again, ring ahead: +39 0572 408115.
Pescia itself is worth an hour: the long Piazza Mazzini, the Duomo, and lunch. See my Pescia page, and if you have time, head up into the ten castle villages above it.
Towards Pistoia
East of Pescia, the hills between Montecatini and Pistoia are dotted with small farms.
Le Pòggiola
Serravalle Pistoiese · Website
- An organic farm and agriturismo making wine and olive oil.
- Thursday afternoon is the set day for visitors who aren’t staying there. Ask about other days.
- Tastings are led by an AIS sommelier. Their site says from €10 for guests, depending on how many wines you try.
- Their shop opens Tuesday to Saturday mornings, 8.30 to 12.30, but hours vary with the season. Tel. +39 329 797 1398 or info@lepoggiola.com.
From Serravalle it’s about 15 minutes to Pistoia, whose Piazza del Duomo is a lovely place to end the day. Remember Pistoia’s old centre is a ZTL, so park outside it.
Montecarlo to Pistoia in Google Maps. About 10 minutes to Pescia, 25 on to Serravalle, and 15 to Pistoia.
Two ways to do it
One day from Lucca
Morning at Maionchi or Fubbiano, lunch in Montecarlo, an afternoon tasting at one of the Montecarlo wineries. Back in Lucca by early evening. Or, with no car at all, take the bus to Al Dotto for a long lunch-time tasting.
Two days
Day one as above, sleeping in or near Montecarlo or Pescia. Day two: Pescia in the morning, Vin Santo, then on towards Pistoia, timed for a Thursday if you want Le Pòggiola. It also slots straight into my 7-day northern Tuscany road trip.
Practical tips
- Book everything. These are working farms. Turning up unannounced at harvest time is a good way to find nobody home.
- Sundays are tricky. Al Dotto is closed and Fubbiano doesn’t run tours. Buonamico and Fattoria del Teso list visits every day.
- Someone has to drive. Italy’s drink-drive limit is 0.5 g/l, and zero for drivers who’ve had their licence less than three years. The hill roads are no place to test it. Spit, share, or buy a bottle to take home.
- Lucca’s ZTL. Don’t drive into the walled centre at the end of the day. My driving guide explains.
- Shipping: several wineries will ship, but ask about costs to the UK before you buy a case.
- Combine it with olive oil. Most of these farms press their own oil. Come in late October or November and you might catch the olive harvest and the new oil.
Frequently asked questions
Can I go wine tasting near Lucca without a car?
Yes, at Fattoria Al Dotto. It’s the winery closest to Lucca’s walls, and it says bus line 53 runs from Piazzale Verdi to Carignano. For the others you’ll need a car, a taxi or a driver.
Is Montecarlo in Tuscany the same as Monte Carlo in Monaco?
No. Montecarlo is a small walled village in the province of Lucca, about 25 minutes’ drive east of the city, with its own DOC wine.
Do I need to book wine tastings near Lucca?
Yes. Most are small family estates and every one listed here asks you to book. Valdrighi wants at least 48 hours’ notice, and Al Dotto asks for same-day bookings by midday.
What wine is Lucca known for?
The local DOCs are Colline Lucchesi, from the hills around the city, and Montecarlo, whose white blends Trebbiano with French grapes such as Sémillon and Sauvignon.
More food and drink from the hills
- What to eat in the Lucca and Pistoia hills
- Tuscan recipes and local food
- Tordelli lucchesi, the dish to drink this wine with
- The olive harvest and olio nuovo
- Tuscany’s better-known wine villages: Chianti, Montalcino and Montepulciano
- Villages near Lucca worth the trip
Susan
Photo credits: as captioned, via Wikimedia Commons (licence: CC BY-SA 4.0). No winery paid to be included, and there are no affiliate links on this page.
