buchette del vino

We’ve certainly overlooked this feature of vernacular architectural unique to Florence (Firenze) but on future trips will certainly be on the lookout for wine windows, which enabled passers-by to conveniently purchase a glass or bottle and other staples on the go.
Goods exchanged would have included Chianti bottled in traditional cushioning straw-jacketed vessels, called fiascos—Italian for flask (fiaschi, pedantic plural form) and by extension a humiliating situation for failing to make a bottle properly which ought to be something that is easily accomplished. Unfortunately, none of the remaining artefacts of a post-Renaissance time when wealthy Florentine landowners fell on harder times and turned towards cottage and craft industries to supplement their income remain in service but can still be spotted and appreciated.