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Farm experiences

Is wine a family business?

Joys and sorrows of family wineries. To belong to a wine family dynasty offers better perspectives in imagine and in duration in time, as long as there are no rows

 

Lucia Buffo interviews Lunelli, Boscaini, Soldati, Nonino, Antinori

By Donatella Cinelli Colombini

By chance I see an article in Wine Searcher, the super portal from New Zealand. They publish the prices of wines from all over the world , from the best stores from all over the world. They always share also articles that are very very interesting. This particular article has this tile: “Family Wine affair, a Risky Business” and was written by Margaret Rand.

WINE FAMILIES, A STORY OF NOBLESSE AND ROWS

I come from a wine family; my vineyards are on this land since the end of the 16th century. So this subject regards me directly. Reading the piece by Margaret Rand one understands that mine is a privileged situation that creates a better appreciation of a brand and its wines. However the saying “you can’t choose your family” is perfectly apt for many particularly confrontational wine dynasties.

Gaja and Antinori

Soma explicit  examples are quoted in the article, and it starts with my distant relatives the Biondi Santi family, then the Alvarez from Vega Sicilia, and finally the Mondavi’s where Robert has spoken of disputes, even physical ones in an autobiography.

THE WINE FAMILY ASSOCIATIONS

Unions such as Primum Familiae Vini, born 25 years ago ,were born because of the  difficulty in creating cohesion among the family members of these historic wine dynasties. And of course because of the  necessity to advise one another. Primum  is made up of  the real wine Gotha from the international wine world: Marchesi Antinori, Baron Philippe de Rothschild, Joseph Drouhin, Egon Müller Scharzhof, Famille Hugel, Champagne Pol Roger, Famille Perrin, the Symington Family Estates, Tenuta San Guido, Familia Torres, Vega Sicilia and Clarence Dillon. Obviously this is not the only partnership. There are also partners that have solely common sales objectives or those tied by shared scopes, such as the Famiglie dell’Amarone that are opposed to the Consorzio della Valpolicella.

TREQUANDA SOUP

The bread soup, the most classic of Tuscan recipes changes in every village but in Trequanda, near Fattoria del Colle, is special

zuppa di fagioli di Montalcino



Typically the soup of Tuscan bread is a very tasty vegetable soup poured on the bread. It is therefore vegan. Only the ciancifricola and Easter soup contain also the egg.
There is however one exception: in Trequanda. The recipe book of the small medieval village near Fattoria del Colle there are two bread soups with pork. The soup with the paw and the trequandina soup.
Below I transcribe the recipe that I received from the housewives of Trequanda and that was illustrated by Silvia Argilli with extraordinary skill. Silvia is one of the young polyglots who welcome tourists in the farm house of Fattoria del Colle but has a past as a painter and illustrator.

Who welcomes tourists at Fattoria del Colle

Alessia, Sara, Carolina and Silvia welcome you. They organize stays, visits, natural wellness, tastings and weddings. So today I tell you about who welcomes tourists at Fattoria del Colle

 

By Donatella Cinelli Colombini

Staff Fattoria del Colle

Alessia, Sara, Carolina, Silvia

Some, like Alessia and Sara, have for years been the smiling faces and the kind voices of Fattoria del Colle. Often tourists who come to spend a few days on holiday, visit the wine cellar or just to taste the wine and eat want to meet them because they have talked to them by phone or met them on previous trips. Others arrived last year and perhaps you are more curious about them, they are Carolina and Silvia. Let’s get to know who welcomes tourists at Fattoria del Colle

 

CAROLINA VITOLO THE FATTORIA DEL COLLE SOMMELIER

Carolina is from Sinalunga, only 10 km away from the Farm, but her ancestors are a mix of different

Carolina Vitolo la sommelier della Fattoria del Colle

Carolina Vitolo sommelier at Fattoria del Colle

origins: Istria, Austria and Sardinia. Her studies in law and social studies lead her to work in Brussels in Emma Bonino’s projects on international integration. She is sommelier AIS and in the past has worked on wine tours. In fluent English she comments the wines  in the videos on the  YouTube channel by Donatella Cinelli Colombini.

Hence it is Carolina that  guides most of the wine cellar tastings that will soon expand to the master class on Sangiovese in which she teaches tourists wine lovers why and how this grape gives rise to masterpieces like Brunello.

Pan lavato (washed bread) soup that enhances the new olive oil.

Washed bread, slices, cabbage with slices, different names for the simplest bread soup in Tuscany, the one that best enhances the EVO oil just made. Pan lavato

 

By Donatella Cinelli Colombini

pan-lavato-Fattoria-del-Colle-Toscana

pan-lavato-Fattoria-del-Colle-Toscana

The name of this dish changes from village to village but the recipe changes very  little. It is a delicious traditional bread soup with cabbage from southern Tuscany, typical of the winter time . In Montalcino we call it washed bread, in Trequanda, where the Fattoria del Colle is located, they call it slices or cabbage with slices.
More than with any other dish you can appreciate the freshly pressed extra virgin oil , especially what is made from olives with a full taste and fragrant scent.
Consequently like all very simple recipes the quality of the result depends on the ingredients that must be extraordinary, the cabbage obviously but mostly the  EVO oil, the vinegar and especially the bread, rigorously without salt and handmade with sourdough.
The most suitable wine to accompany this soup is a Chianti Superiore or a Doc Orcia that come from the  same territory as the oil that, in our case, is from Trequanda where the Fattoria del Colle is located.

Montisi the magical village part of Montalcino

Toscana-Montalcino-Montisi

 

By Donatella Cinelli Colombini

Two km from Fattoria del Colle there is a sign indicating the entrance to the territory of Montalcino. I feel at home, although originally my municipality was not so big because it expanded with a merger only in 2016. It is a fact that in Montisi (6 km from the Fattoria) now they say here in Montalcino>> and I listen to them ecstatic.
Montisi is perhaps the most intact medieval settlement in Tuscany.

A small gem built on the remains of the Cacciaconti castle with narrow streets that climb up one inside the other among beautifully restored stone houses. It is so pretty that it looks fake but it is not… the Pieve della Santissima Annunziata (XIII century) with a beautiful altarpiece by Bartolomeo (1496), the Church of Santa Flora and Lucilla, the ‘Oratorio di Sant’Antonio Abate with the small museum that testifies how, the poor people of Montisi could survive by helping each other. In these places I have a beautiful personal memory.


MONTISI A PERSONAL MEMORY WITH ABSOLUTION

I was little more than twenty and studied medieval Sienese goldsmiths. As in each of the things that I do, even in that case I had thrown myself into the adventure with all myself dragging my husband, then fiancé Carlo Gardini, in an interminable pilgrimage between museums and churches to count chalices, reliquaries, and so on …

In Montisi there was a processional cross and I went to examine it and photograph it. Seeing the patience with which Carlo helped me, the priest said to him “Were you in Rome for the Holy Year? Did you take up the plenary indulgence?” Carlo did not expect it and was amazed “no” he answered with a thread of voice “it doesn’t  matter>> said the priest “ kneel because I’ll give you absolution, I can see that you are a good boy>> and blessed him. To me nothing, he obviously understood who was the tender one between us.

Easter at Fattoria del Colle

From the Sacredness of the abbeys to the sin of gluttony, while all around the most beautiful countryside in the world is reborn with the news spring and so Easter at Fattoria del Colle  is even more beautiful

 

EASTER WEEKEND AT FATTORIA DEL COLLE WITH A VIEW

Easter at Fattoria del Colle

 Fattoria del Colle (write to holiday@cinellicolombini.it for the program) is an extraordinary place. It is basically a small hamlet built at the end of the 16th century. Here there is an aristocratic villa, chapel, parks, and old farmhouses transformed into lodgings for visitors, restaurants and wellness area. Above all at Easter we are offering guests the possibility to really experience the authentic and old Tuscany . We propose  old recipes such as corolli and schiacciate or l’acqua cotta pasqualina,… guided tours in the Brunello and Orcia Doc-Chianti Superiore wineries , brief cookery lessons and itinerant or vertical  wine tastings to understand the magical longevity of the Montalcino wines.

SURROUNDING THE FATTORIA DEL COLLE ESTATE ABBEYS AND CITIES OF ART

Easter at Fattoria del Colle Vinotherapy

Surrounding the farm, a landscape that has remained miraculously untouched for. A short distance away are the great cities of art and the great abbeys. Just  12 km away the Abbazia di Monte Oliveto Maggiore, 35 km distant is the Abbey of  Sant’Antimo in Montalcino and just over an hour away the Abbazia di San Francesco in Assisi. In a 40 km radius one finds  Cortona, Montepulciano, Pienza, San Quirico-Bagno Vignoni, Montalcino, Buonconvento and Lucignano.

This is a fairy tale land full of hiking trails regenerating for the mind and body, using the “ landscape therapy” to find balance between us and nature. Trails that allow your four legged friends to run free.

Valentine’s Day February 14 a weekend to love

Two nights, three days from 14 to 16 February at the Fattoria del Colle in the countryside of great red wines and seductive perfumes.Valentine’s Day February 14 a weekend to love

 

Valentine’s Day February 14 a weekend to love

It starts with the dinner dedicated to Cinderella Doc Orcia (a name that celebrates her birthday on 14 February) with a sensual menu of quail eggs, panforte and other aphrodisiac foods. The candlelight and the romantic atmosphere will help to enter the spirit of Valentine’s Day.

The evening continues in the rooms of Fattoria del Colle where the intimacy of antique furniture joins the brut rosé sparkling wine to create the right atmosphere. For the program and prices click here

New Year’s Eve 2020 tasting Brunello in the Tuscan countryside

At Fattoria del Colle, the New Year’s Eve 2020 holidays full of experiences for foodies, wine lovers and lovers of peace and Tuscan traditions

From 26 December 26th till January 6th, Fattoria del Colle, in the south of Chianti, offers a program of daily animations able to introduce visitors to the most authentic and ancient Tuscan tradition. There will be a visit to the wineries of Brunello with a special musical accompaniment, the cooking lesson on Sienese Christmas sweets such as panforte and ricciarelli held by a pastry chef, themed dinners with 3 dishes, the experience “oenologist for one day” led by a sommelier, the guided tour of the historical parts of Fattoria del Colle with itinerant tasting, tasting of the new olive oil …. Each initiative is tailormade to offer knowledge and fun to both great wine lovers and simple lovers of the countryside and views.
For the detailed program of the activities, the prices and to book click here.

FATTORIA DEL COLLE AN INTACT CORNER OF ANCIENT TUSCANY

Fattoria del Colle was built by the ancestors of the present owner in 1592 and has been preserved miraculously intact over the centuries. There is the villa with the ancient kitchen, the room of the Grand Duke of Tuscany and the underground now full of barrels, there is the Chapel of San Clemente and all around parks, olive groves, vineyards and truffle reserves. Also the transformation of the ancient village of peasants into tourist residences was made without altering the original characteristics preserving even the ancient floors, the rooms are furnished with authentic local antiques.
In Fattoria del Colle there are a restaurant and the banquet hall, the cooking school and the relaxation area for the natural wellness equipped with Turkish bath, sauna, jacuzzi, room for couples massages and wine therapy.

Passito IGT Toscana by Donatella and Carlo

The Passito 2017 from Fattoria del Colle is a rare sweet wine, produced in only 300 375cl bottles. Something that is really exclusive and with an extraordinary personality

 

Traminer-grapes-Fattoria-del-Colle-Passito-Barbara- Magnani

Passito is a rare wine, only 300 375Cl bottles. Something exclusive and hand crafted born from Carlo’s (husband to Donatella Cinelli Colombini) passion for sweet wines, and also that of Barbara Magnani, wine maker, who dedicate daily care and attention to this  small sweet masterpiece

 TRAMINER GRAPES FOR THE PASSITO

The grapes are from the vineyard that surrounds the chapel at Fattoria del Colle, planted around 1970 with a variety typical of the North of Italy, that however at 404 meters above sea level, facing east, where it expresses itself very well in Tuscany too. In that area the soil is deep, well drained and of new quaternary origin, characterized by limestone also in conglomerate form

In 2017 the hot summer and a real invasion of wild boar drastically reduced the grapes and the few cluster of Traminer were transformed into Passito

130 litres were produced with manual care in the vineyard ad in the cellar, and thanks to this craftsmanship the wine reaches extraordinary quality levels and a distinctive personality.

PASSITO 2017  IGT TOSCANA

Type: white, sweet, aromatic.

Production area: Tuscany, Fattoria del Colle, Sanchimento vineyard.

Classification: IGT Toscana

Vintage characteristics:  mild winter, very cold spring, summer without rainfall and with very high temperatures even during the night.

Grape variety: Aromatic Traminer

Grape harvest: August 21st with manual harvest and careful choosing of the grapes. The grapes reached the cellar in 5 kg crates.

Drying out of the grapes:  took place in the sun for a whole month.

Vinification: after the de-stemming, the grapes were pressed and transferred to the stainless steel vats, the temperature was maintained at about 18/20°C and selected yeasts were inoculated. During this period some short open air pumping overs took place so as to favour the fermentation processes.

Quantity produced: 300 bottles

Valentine’s Day with romance and wine

At Fattoria del Colle for dinner on February 14th or a whole weekend dedicated to love, Brunello and aphrodisiac aromas

Valentine’s Day

Valentine’s Day dinner – February 14th – candlelit dinner with a menu concentrated on love. The weekend 15-17 February with erotic aromas, Benvenuto Brunello and romantic rites for wine loving couplet. An intense and unrepeatable program to enjoy your passions

 

VALENTINE’S DINNER

Here is the brief proposal for Valentine’s Day. Romantic dinner in the restaurant veranda at  Fattoria del Colle: slow music, candles, menu with typical traditional Tuscan dishes with aphrodisiac ingredients , such as “ ciancifricola” with quail eggs, panpepato, truffles, saffron, cloves, chocolate….(4 courses, wines not included 34 euro) to be matched with fine wines such as Brunello or Brunello Riserva, Cenerentola Doc Orcia …. For those who wish to prepare their skin for a night of romance dinner can be preceded by massages with extra virgin olive oil or vino-therapy treatments for the couple, or, still as a couple, a bath in the panoramic Jacuzzi.

 

VALENTINE’S WEEKEND AND BENVENUTO BRUNELLO

Fattoria del Colle couples massage with extra virgin olive oil

The most romantic weekend this year coincides with Benvenuto Brunello, a preview of the Montalcino wines (tickets to be bough directly from the Consorzio del Brunello website) where the exceptional Brunello Riserva 2013 will be presented. Montalcino is about 35 km from Fattoria del Colle.

DISCOVERING SEDUCTIVE PERFUMES

Our 2019 program for Valentine’s weekend is dedicated to wine, erotic scents and romance. The experience of perfuming your body and the explanations regarding the seductive character of certain essences come from Gloria Del Dottore expert in artistic perfuse. Together with Gloria women in love will take an aromatic journey to understand how to wear the more voluptuous perfumes and when o the other hand to wear fragrances that give energy or that relax.

The rooms and apartments are furnished with antique furniture; they have the intimacy of authentic places and are particularly apt for this type of stay.

Felix before, during and after surgery

Felix the blonde golden retriever, king of Fattoria del Colle, has had surgery for two skin tumours. He is well but we have been worried.

Felix-king-of-Fattoria-del-Colle-straight-after-surgery

Greedy, lazy, a snuggler, a wimp ….Felix welcomes, with a waggly tail all those who arrive at Fattoria del Colle in Trequanda. Everybody loves him.

 

DISCOVERING THE TUMOURS

During the summer we discovered that Felix had a strange bump on his back, and its pathology revealed that is was a skin tumour. This shocked us greatly. When we took him to the vet for surgery, we also discovered a second bump that after the incision resulted in being a second tumour even bigger than the first.

A few hours after surgery, when Felix came home, all his back had been shaved and he had two long scars, but he was walking, and hungry.

The scan and pathology on lymph nodes, liver and pancreas found no metastasis; we are worried, but have avoided chemo. We will keep him under check and if we see any suspect symptoms we will take action, but we did not want him to be unwell because of invasive therapy. This might have been a selfish decision but he is serene and he must live a good life until his health allows him to.

In the meantime he has pulled out 5 stitches rubbing against a hedge. Great amount of worry, and more stitches! For a few days he was “under special surveillance” and he was allowed out only accompanied. For him that was very strange as he lives free to come and go all day long, following Donatella Cinelli Colombini and barking with his big baritone voice when he finds a shut door. He actually hates shut doors!

 

LET ME PRESENT FELIX

Our Golden retriever is enormous he weighs over 50kg, but he acts like a puppy. He is very fearsome, he is scared of thunder and he hides under the desks for protection.

Violante-and-Felix-in-the-vineyard

Rifle shots have the same effect, consequently  when out for a walk he runs home if he hears the hunters. On the other hand is he fascinated by deer, wild boar and porcupines, he doesn’t run after them but he sits aiming at them

and barks while wagging his tail.

Felix is unrepentantly greedy. The vet calls him “pastasciutta”. He is able to finish his dish (one hamburger, half a chicken breast and beef with rice and zucchini, twice a day) in just a few minutes and then he wanders over to the restaurant, sits by the door waiting, as if famished.

Continental, English or Tuscan breakfast?

Breakfast at Fattoria del Colle is an unforgettable experience: ciambellone, tarts, cakes all freshly baked … and then country omelettes and pears and cheese

Breakfast- Fattoria -del- Colle-Patrizia-pastry-chef

Which is the best breakfast?

There are two schools of thought regarding breakfast: there are those who say that a visitor is satisfied only if he finds that to which he is used to, so scrambled eggs and bacon, toast and the all the rest. Then there are those expert in tourism marketing who state the exact opposite, or rather that a tourist is looking for an experience and diversity, so an “international breakfast” in a Tuscan country inn disappoints him.

I’m in agreement with the latter.

However I do feel that in our traditions there can be something for breakfast to satisfy everyone. In fact the old farmers did not have sweet breakfasts but savoury ones and it is from these rich mid morning snacks that we must begin offering <<The Tuscan-international breakfast>> .

So now the farmers omelette, fresh pecorino cheese with pears, pork cold cuts like salame and finocchiata , vegetables with dip of extra virgin olive oil from Fattoria del Colle and other garden produce are an alternative to scrambled egg with bacon. Obviously one must also have on hand yoghurt, fruit juice and cornflakes … and other things that must be bought and that are more or less the same all over the world. But the highlight of our breakfast, that beats all opponents, is Patrizia, the pastry chef in the Osteria di Donatella 

Lighting for summer dinners at Fattoria del Colle

Summer nights in the countryside, lights, glow worms, outdoor meals. New lighting for  summer dinners at the  Fattoria del Colle restaurant

Lighting-for summer-dinners-Fattoria-del-Colle

Lighting-for summer-dinners-Fattoria-del-Colle

By Donatella Cinelli Colombini

For those who come from abroad it is a must: in Italy one must bring light cloche, flip flops and dine under the stars. Millionaires and tourists-on-the-road alike, everyone has the same romantic dream. Obviously their necessities differ: from costly and exclusive events where film producers and starred chefs create unique and private experiences…to glamour events where lights and music create the right atmosphere for famous and less famous people, but everyone is anxious to be seen and photographed by some gossip magazine.

Lighting-for-summer-dinners-Fattoria-del-Colle-before-dinner

Lighting-for-summer-dinners-Fattoria-del-Colle-before-dinner

And so on until we get to the locations apt for a vaster public: the Sicilian ”baglio”, the “masseria” in Puglia, the medieval hamlet in Tuscany … and not to mention the classical terraces overlooking the sea and the tables in the squares of the historical towns and villages with views of artistic monuments .

The open air dinner is part of a trip to Italy just like a visit to the Coliseum or like a true pizza. It is up to us to transform them into magical moments and the lighting has a very important role

FATTORIA DEL COLLE BY NIGHT

At Fattoria del Colle we have tried to put a little originality to our nights and we hope to offer special experiences for outdoor dinners.

Archi, a villa for parties

Magnificent panorama, swimming pool and private parks, dining room with monumental fireplace, 5 bathrooms and 7 bedrooms with air conditioning. Villa Archi is a perfect Tuscan villa for parties 

Villa-for-parties-Toscana-Archi-Fattoria-del-Colle-agriturismo

Villa-for-parties-Toscana-Archi-Fattoria-del-Colle-agriturismo

The luxury of a 2000 sq m villa and a garden that extends over one hectare and that reached the olive groves and the surrounding vineyards. The unique experience of living in a building three hundred years old that still has its porch with its outdoor oven and threes is a fireplace so large you can sit in it. A villa in exclusive use, with nobody else around, in the silence of the countryside.

A truly authentic Tuscan retreat but also modernly equipped: the 7 bedrooms have air conditioning (5 bathrooms), Wi-Fi, TV, a fitted kitchen … In other words there is the intimacy imparted by the antique furnishings, the freedom of wide open spaces and some of the most beautiful panoramas in Tuscany, together with the luxury of a private swimming pool for your sole use right in front of the villa.

Villa-for-parties-Toscana-Archi-swimming-pool-Fattoria-del-Colle-agriturismo

Villa-for-parties-Toscana-Archi-swimming-pool-Fattoria-del-Colle-agriturismo

This is an ideal place to organize a holiday with friends, to sun bathe, to have dinner all together at the same table under the gazebo, or in the dining room in the villa. And for those who love enriching holidays it is possible to take part in cookery lessons, wine tastings,

tours … organized every day at

Fattoria del Colle.

Villa Archi is also apt for organizing a birthday or degree celebration. Fattoria del Colle with its small hamlet and restaurant is only about 200 m away hidden by an olive grove. It can supply traditional food, excellent wines, water and all that is necessary to organize a stylish party.

                                                                       
Cinelli Colombini
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