Discover vineyards in Siena and province: the wine cellar of Pietrafitta
Posted on 03. Dec, 2010 by admin in Archive, Food & Wine, Itineraries
The Senese area, you know, is rich of small companies, not only about handicraft, that often are an excellence in Italy. In addition to monuments and historical beauties of Tuscan cities, is useful to know who creates prestigious products: among these the wine shines.
There is a place that we suggest for an unusual travel, situated on an hilltop close to San Gimignano, is called Pietrafitta. His origins are ancient and the first evidences as a farm date back to 961 d.C, when was a part of Fosci’s feud.
The name Pietrafitta probably derives from a milestone that marked off the boundaries of the land, now some trails of a medieval bastion remain hidden by the vegetation, ancient relics of a noble history. Now the company of the same name that extends for 300 hectars has the principal business of wines and extra-virgin oil production and selling.
The high quality of the wines was recognized by awards and honours, for the first time in 1966, when the Vernaccia of San Gimignano and Chianti Colli Senesi were declared the first Italian DOC wines.
We met Marco Valiani, Marketing and Sales Manager of Pietrafitta Farm, to know something else about this company and his relevance for Tuscany.
Can you talk me about guided tours in the wine cellar that you organize?
The farm offers different kinds of tour: with tasting included or combined with local specialties. The visit starts from the garden of the chapel, made by the architect Buontalenti (the genius that made a part of Boboli Gardens), so we talk about the origins of the company and his history. The tour continues in the wine cellar, explaining the practices for making wine and ends in our tasting room. Our aim is to pass on the relevance of Pietrafitta for wine and San Gimignano.
The wine of Pietrafitta got a lot of awards, do you point on some wines in particular, this year?
Pietrafitta’s philosophy is to point on all our wine, according to the target and the kind of wine, looking for the best quality in every bottle. Our Vernaccia made us famous during the centuries, La Costa la Riserva is inspired to the bottle of the Savoia Royal Family, when was called “Vernaccia di Pietrafitta”, our last release, the Campidonne, giving us a lot of gratification. Every wine representing us when is drink and has to be excellent.
Why you contact the famous wine maker Mario Ercolino and the designer Simonetta Doni for the wine packaging?
Pietrafitta has 1000 years of history, in 2008 we needed to rely on experts to focus on our tradition, turning it in a contemporary mood. Our leimotiv is: “tradition become innovation”. So we contact Mario Ercolino and Simonetta Doni that give an image classic and modern at the same time, according to the current wine lovers without forget origins.
In your opinion, what are the main attributes of a wine expert?
The wine expert has to know what consumer wants, which are his taste and to enhance the attributes of the vineyard. The natural talent is really important, but without any experience is difficult to express.
What are your suggests to a tourist that come for the firts time in San Gimignano and Siena? Which dishes are the best combination with your wines?
A tourist that came for the first time in Siena and San Gimignano has to visit these two cities and try to breathe the Tuscany atmosphere, see the landscape, visit some companies where can you listen to funny anecdotes that explain the origins of this area. Our white wines are well combined with sheep milk cheese, our Reserve with seasoned cold cujts or a rabbit “alla vernaccia”, the red wines are well combined with all our local cuisine, for example the Campidonne, for his versatility.
The foreign tourists often choose Tuscany as a destination for holiday. What is unique in this land, compared with the rest of Italy?
Tuscany is unique because is varied, every village, small town or city has his own history, his landscape to discover. We aren’t ever satisfied of Tuscany, because there is always something to see, similar to the rest but always new.
For information about guided tours in Pietrafitta, call the phone number 0577 943200.
