MONTENIDOLI
San Gimignano, Italy
No one could ever speak of this estate without mentioning Elisabetta Fagiuoli. Her wines bring us the very spirit of Tuscany itself. She is the soul of the place, an inexhaustible font of energy and creativity. In 1965 she and her partner Sergio came to Montenidoli to create a refuge for troubled youth. In 1971 she produced her first wine, one that caught the imagination of Italy’s greatest critics. To this day she produces the very best Vernaccia di San Gimignano along with a range of other marvelous wines. As such, she recently celebrated her 50th vintage, and her Vernaccia and Sangiovese offerings show just how deft a hand one can have after five decades of viticulture and winemaking. Her wines carry with them a religiosity, a hum, something deeply spiritual and of-the-land. She and her dedicated team work all 59 acres of vineyards organically.
The vineyards themselves are surrounded by 500 acres of woodland, covering the slopes of a hill opposite the storied towers of the medieval city of San Gimignano. The soils here, calcareous with marine sediment (that is, fossils), for the whites and ancient clay deposits for the reds, are unique to this land between Florence and Siena.
Wines
Montenidoli Vernaccia di San Gimignano ‘Tradizionale’
Montenidoli Vernaccia di San Gimignano ‘Fiore’
Montenidoli Vernaccia di San Gimignano ‘Carato’
Montenidoli Toscana Bianco ‘Vinbrusco’
Montenidoli Toscana Bianco ‘Templare’
Montenidoli Toscana Rosato ‘Canaiuolo’ Rosato
Montenidoli Chianti Colli Senesi ‘Il Garrulo’
Montenidoli Toscana Rosso
Montenidoli Toscana Rosso Colorino
Montenidoli Toscana Rosso ‘Sono Montenidoli’