Prime Donne Project - History

It was in 1998 that Donatella Cinelli Colombini left her family's estate to start her own, made up of Casato in Montalcino and Fattoria del Colle in Trequanda. Along with the vineyards and with the farmhouses to be renovated, Donatella received a quantity of Brunello di Montalcino and so she needed a cellar master to see to its barrel-ageing. She called the Oenology school in Siena asking for a good student to hire. They answered that they had none; these had to be booked years in advance. They mentioned, however, that they had many female cellar masters available, since no important winery wanted to employ them. This episode gave birth to the Prime Donne project.