Val di Greve

The Greve river (fiume Greve), 43 km in length and among the best known rivers of Tuscany, arises on the hill known as Querciabella, in the Chianti hills just below Lamole, where it is fed by the springs of Fonte di Poggio alle Coste and Fonte del Topo. It flows rapidly down through the forested hills in an easterly direction and then forms a flat flood plain between Panzano and Greve, the Piano di Montagliari. This flat area continues as the river turns north, and the market place of Greve in Chianti itself is built on this plain while the more modern houses of Greve extend up the slopes of the valley on either side. The river continues through flat terrain northwards beneath the castles of Calcinaia, Verrazzano and Vicchiomaggio  before entering a narrow gorge at Greti.

The Greve river receives input from two seasonal torrents as it passes through Greve. One of these, the Borro Becherale, psses through a tunnel under part of Greve just before it joins the river. (Podere San Cresci makes an excellent IGT wine under the name Becherale).

The Greve then descends gently along the valley as far as the Ponte dei Falciani. Here it narrows to run through another gorge, the Scopeti, to arrives at Tavarnuzze from where it opens into the valley and receives the waters of the Ema stream, between the Certosa Galluzzo and the village of the same name. The Greve then passes through Scandicci and joins the Arno in the Florentine suburb of Mantignano (Bagno a Ripoli). The Ema stream, 27 km long, also arises in the territory of Greve in Chianti, near the Abbey of Montescalari.

More about the river valleys of Tuscany.