Albatreti is a 29ha property of which 5ha are under vine and 1.8ha dedicated to Brunello di Montalcino. Located at an altitude of 400-500m asl just outside the town of Montalcino in Southern Tuscany, this estate is cared for by hand by the owner Gaetano Salvioni. The skeletal soils (containing a high proportion of rock fragments), contribute to the linear and mineral character of the wines. The only grape variety planted is Sangiovese Grosso.
Founded in 1974, Avignonesi is the leading winery in the Montepulciano area of Tuscany. Its flagship wine, Vino Nobile di Montepulciano, is appreciated by critics and winelovers worldwide and the winery is also renowned worldwide for the unique dessert wines Vin Santo di Montepulciano and Occhio di Pernice.
Avignonesi was purchased in 2009 by Virginie Saverys, who has brought significant changes to the winery. She has worked tirelessly to convert the entire property to organic and biodynamic viticulture, with the clear goal of crafting distinct, genuine wines that fully express the singular characteristics of the Avignonesi terroir. In 2011, Avignonesi applied for organic certification and expects to receive it in 2016, with a slightly longer than usual conversion period because of recent vineyard purchases in Montepulciano.
Today, Avignonesi owns 200 hectares of vineyards spread out over the Montepulciano and Cortona appellations. All of its wines are produced with 100% estate grown grapes. Resident winemakers, Ashleigh Seymour and Matteo Giustiniani oversee production, and under Virginie’s guidance, Avignonesi has developed a production philosophy based on balance, elegance, brightness of fruit and a strong sense of place. Virginie’s appreciation for the malleability of Sangiovese has inspired her to produce a Vino Nobile that fully reveals the complexities of the appellation’s key grape; Avignonesi Vino Nobile is in fact 100% Sangiovese, making this wine a true winelover’s alternative to the more expensive neighboring Brunellos, both in terms of value and style.
Along with Vino Nobile and the critically acclaimed Vin Santo wines, Avignonesi is also known for “Desiderio Cortona DOC,” a Merlot-dominated blend with an iconic “white bull label”. Other notable wines include “Il Marzocco” Chardonnay Cortona DOC; Vino Nobile’s younger brother, Rosso di Montepulciano DOC; and the recently reintroduced “Grifi” Toscana IGT, a rich and suggestive blend of Sangiovese and Cabernet Sauvignon.
The Fattoria di Calappiano, in Vinci, in the territory of Montalbano, represents one of the historicalarchitectural treasures of the Medici family of Florence. It was built around 1500 on commission of Grand Duke Francesco I de ‘Medici Prince of Palazzo Vecchio, with the aim of creating one of the first examples of Tuscan Farm with wine production and a hunting reserve to cheer guests during their stay.
Later the farm was sold to the House of Habsburg-Lorraine, and in the nineteenth century Calappiano was nicknamed “Villa degli Inglesi” (English Villa), as it was bought by AH Savage Landor, nephew of the poet and scholar Walter Savage Landor, Shakespeare’s biographer , who was a painter, explorer, writer and an anthropologist. Inside the building you can still find paintings of faraway country peoples and many antiquarian finds, relics of his many trips to the East.
Today the Fattoria Calappiano is owned by the Sensi Family. It’s a place that contains history,tradition and passion for discovery and travelling.
These characteristics are very close to the company philosophy that, with a careful and respectful eye of the past and in love with art and beauty, looks forward to innovating and improving with a modern and international character. The Fattoria
di Calappiano of His Imperial Majesty is currently composed of about 200 hectares of vineyards, olive groves and woods and is protected by the authorities as a natural heritage site for the reproduction of the
local fauna. The Fattoria Calappiano is a laboratory of excellence where unique, territorial and innovative
wines.
The 13th Century Ormanni estate is located right in the heart of Chianti, between the towns of Poggibonsi and Castellina in Chianti. Proof of the incredible heritage of this Tuscan property can be found in Dante Alighieri’s “Divina Commedia”,where the Ormanni family is mentioned. For the last 200 years the estate has been owned by the Brini Batacchi family, and itis Paolo Brini Batacchi together with his daughter Paola who run the winery today.The Ormanni property covers an area of 242 ha of land, 68 of which are vineyards dedicated principally to the cultivation of Sangiovese.The Ormanni Chianti and Chianti Classico are sincere, soil driven wines, expressive of the Barberino Val d’Elsa commune, where Sangiovese takes on a brooding, austere character, though maintaining a generous, fruity core.