We pulled into the driveway and immediately thought we were in the wrong place.  The yellow villa on the hilltop was faded, mismatched lawn chairs were strewn haphazardly in the yard and a man on his phone glanced at us quickly, uninterested in our arrival.

We were considering leaving when a tall man with dark curly hair rushed outside to greet us.  “Welcome to Podere Canapaccia”, he said in a welcoming Italian accent.  “My name is Simone.”  Three hours later we knew there was no better place.

Charming stories, bottomless glasses of red wine, delicious homemade pasta, wine tasted straight from the barrels of Simone’s cellar and the “world’s best tiramisu”.  This long, lazy lunch under a tree somewhere in Tuscany is a beautiful moment that will forever be remembered.

More on this story later.