The five tastings actually worth your afternoon

You can't visit them all, and you shouldn't try. Book these — and know which one to drop if you're short on time.

Everyone arrives wanting to 'do the wineries,' as if Chianti were a checklist. It isn't. Three good visits, unhurried, beat six rushed ones — and most estates need booking anyway. Here's where we'd send a friend.

Fontodi, in Panzano's Conca d'Oro, for organic farming and the benchmark Flaccianello. Castello di Ama, near Gaiole, for wine and world-class contemporary art in the same walk. Castello di Brolio for the history — this is where the recipe was written. Castello di Volpaia for the sheer romance of a winery hidden inside a medieval hamlet. And Antinori nel Chianti Classico for the architecture, even if you're not usually a big-name person.

If you're down to a half-day, drop Antinori — it's a production to get to and around — and keep Volpaia, because the drive and the village are worth as much as the wine. Book everything at least a few days out; the good rooms fill, especially in autumn.