Frequently during your wanderings through the streets in the centre of Florence, you’ll come across these porticine del vino or better buchette de vino (tiny wine doors) that dot the walls of important Palazzos.

These small openings on the ground floor (at the height of the cellar inside) are just large enough for a flask to pass through.

This is where the palazzo’s owners were obliged, by the order of the Signoria (the governing body of Florence), to sell the surpluses of wine from their estates.

Although most owners observe this law, a few philanthropic ones would go farther, giving out free jugs of wine and food to those in need.

Certainly the most characteristic of these doors is to be found at Palazzo Viviani, close to the corner of via delle Belle Donne and via Della Spada.