Experience the best of Poggibonsi

Poggibonsi lies in the Val d'Elsa, on the road and railway that join Florence and Siena, and it is Tuscany's working crossroads rather than its prettiest corner. Heavy wartime bombing destroyed much of the old centre, so the town is mostly modern, but it keeps the thirteenth-century Fonte delle Fate, a medieval fountain of arched basins, and the convent church of San Lucchese.

On the hill of Poggio Imperiale, above the town, the remains of a Medici fortress overlook the valley, and an archaeological park has rebuilt an early medieval village. The hills around are the real draw: the towers of San Gimignano are a short drive west, the walls of Monteriggioni rise to the south-east, and the vineyards of Chianti Classico begin to the east.

Tuscan staples fill the local tables: ribollita, a soup thickened with bread, pici pasta with garlicky tomato, grilled steak, and Vernaccia white wine from San Gimignano beside Chianti reds. Summers are hot, winters are cool, and the vineyard hills turn red and gold at the autumn harvest.