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The two Tuscany mini-guides are packed with just the sort of detailed wine tourism information likely to be missing from a mainstream guidebook. Author Michèle Shah has an impressive pedigree in Italian wine, and shows it off with plenty of winemaking and DOC(G) knowledge. There’s just the right portion of technical nuggets for a proper enthusiast.

The Chianti/San Gimignano mini-guide helps you visit a couple of fine estates that also made the cut for my forthcoming book—including Badia a Coltibuono and Vicchiomaggio—but also several of which I wasn’t aware. I’ll be stopping by next time, for sure.

The Montalcino/Montepulciano guide has broad coverage of the heights that Sangiovese hits in southern Tuscany. On top of that, both recommend select places to stay and eat, as well as to shop for wine, food and artisan souvenirs—many of which I can vouch for, too. The detailed food and wine glossaries are invaluable; advice on matching local dishes with the perfect regional wine is an ingenious touch.

“The idea is to have 3 more Tuscany guides, making 5 in total. One by Michèle Shah is planned for mid-summer, probably to be called ‘Between Florence and Lucca’; later there will be 2 to the Tuscan coast areas,” explains Wink Lorch, who founded and runs Wine Travel Guides. “Eventually we will extend the guides to cover other key Italian wine regions like Piedmont, Friuli and Umbria.”

There are occasional gripes, of course: travel guides are personal things, especially for a guidebook writer. I’d like a bit of help choosing a winery or hotel when I don’t have time to see them all. Even a crude star system works for me. The guide needs a proofread, and if I’m being pedantic it should be trattorie not trattorias; ditto with contrada.

One or two out-and-out errors have slipped through: there are no Pietro Lorenzetti frescoes in Siena’s Palazzo Pubblico, Banchi di Sopra originates at Piazza Salimbeni, not by San Domenico. The main street in Cortona isn’t the “Corso”, but Via Nazionale (sometimes nicknamed “flat street” because it’s the only one in town that is). Montalcino’s Consorzio moved from the address provided a year or so ago, and the driving directions from Rome are wrong.

Compared to the precision of the wine-related information, the “regular” tourist advice is a touch vague in places.

Montepulciano’s Bravio delle Botti, costumed shenanigans in the usual Tuscan style, is a curious omission from the festival section, given that it involves racing wine barrels up the town’s precipitous Corso.

So, my overall impression is of a guide that doesn’t quite deliver on the (non-wine related) travel side of its promise. But I’ve not seen any impartial source that’s quite as good at helping me plan an independent wine tour round Tuscany. If you know one, enlighten me in the comments below. But it’ll have to go some to beat my Wine Travel Guide.

* Follow Wink Lorch, founder of Wine Travel Guides, on Twitter for plenty of wine trivia plus occasional offers and competitions.
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They [the With Your Family series] have … all of the family friendly travel information you require. They give star ratings for attractions plus recommended ages (and I’m impressed by the fact that they have suggestions right from babies through to teenagers). There are highlights and must-see attractions. There are accommodation options for families from ultra-expensive through to economical (for which they provide price guidelines not just $$$ or $). I love the special icons they have – find, moment, value, overrated and green. Plus they include reviews of playgrounds and parks which are very important to families!

That’s all true. There are some great books in the series. I’ve found Rhonda Carrier’s companion guides to Brittany and Normandy especially handy. For Frommer’s Tuscany and Umbria With Your Family, we considered every single one of those factors when researching and writing the book. Much of my (grown-up) research was then road-tested by unforgiving under-5s. It’s gratifying that family travellers are finding it a useful tool in planning a trip to Tuscany and Umbria. I’m always pleased to hear from readers. Your feedback can help make any future new edition, of this and my other books, even better. Thanks.