Forum: News and lifestyle

ORGANIC BRUNELLO 2021 BY DONATELLA CINELLI COLOMBINI

A YEAR THAT STARTED BADLY, WITH A LIGHT SPRING FROST, BUT ENDED WELL WITH AN EXTENDED RIPENING PERIOD THAT GIVES US A BRUNELLO FOR LONG AGEING .

Montalcino, Toscana, vendemmia 2021 Casato Prime Donne

Montalcino, Toscana, 2021 harvest Casato Prime Donne

Casato Prime Donne is usually the first to harvest Brunello grapes, but in 2021, it was among the last to harvest in Montalcino.

This is a very strange year, beginning with the disappointment of the frost that struck all of Europe’s vineyards. In our vineyards, it burned the tips of the first shoots and delayed the opening of those that were still covered when the cold wind arrived. This had two effects: a reduction in grape production and uneven ripening. Indeed, bud break marks the beginning of a vegetative cycle that lasts about six months. The 20-day gap between the first and last shoots resulted in uneven ripening. The result was a very labour-intensive harvest, requiring us to harvest each parcel separately and even go through the same vineyard multiple times, selecting bunch by bunch. This was a painstaking task, entirely done by hand by the pickers.

2021: THE LONG, CAREFUL, AND SPECTACULAR BRUNELLO HARVEST

Most of the harvest was therefore postponed to the end of September.

The bunches resembled those of Pinot Noir: small, open, and with miniature berries.

The heat and drought were also severe, with only two rains totalling 31 mm of rain from June to September, and peaks of over 40°C mid-August. However, paradoxically, the Sangiovese vines ripened in perfect health. The extraordinary resilience of Sangiovese stems from its millennia-old history in this area. Its DNA contains the effects of the Roman optimum, when temperatures were warmer than today, as well as the small glaciations of the Middle Ages and the 19th century.

The 2021 harvest was therefore poor in grapes but the 2021 Brunello will delight lovers of long-aging reds, as always happens when the ripening phase takes place in a period with cold nights, as happened this year

9 December 2025

EXPERIENCE WITH MYSTERIOUS WINES AT CASATO PRIME DONNE

THE CASATO PRIME DONNE WINERY IN MONTALCINO OFFERS 5 TOURIST EXPERIENCES FOR 2026. THE NEW ONE TESTS VISITORS WITH COVERED BOTTLES OF BRUNELLO AND NOT ONLY

Casato Prime Donne esperienze turistiche 2026

Casato Prime Donne 2026 experiences for visitors

All the wineries in Montalcino are beautiful, but Casato Prime Donne is unique because the vineyards are more than just vines and the cellars are more than just barrels. In the first Italian winery with an all-female staff, which also achieved gender certification in 2025, wine lovers will find many surprises and experiences that will enthral even the most experienced.

THE EXCEPTIONALITY OF A VISIT TO THE CASATO PRIME DONNE WINERY

Contemporary works of art enrich the marvellous landscape of the Val d’Orcia, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2004. Alongside, dedications by great women help you reflect and recharge, amplifying the benefits of walking amidst nature preserved by organic farming.

In the winery, painted images and videos tell the story of Montalcino and its people’s sense of belonging. A different way to understand Brunello and discover how only there could a unique and extraordinary wine be born, the fruit of a land and a people with a strong character.

4 December 2025

in Forum: News and lifestyle, Not only wine...

WINE TOURISM IN WINERIES AROUND THE WORLD

Lo storytelling nelle cantine turistiche Casato Prime Donne a Montalcino

wine tourism at Casato Prime Donne in Montalcino.

GEISENHEIM UNIVERSITY IN GERMANY INTERVIEWED 1,310 WINERIES IN 47 COUNTRIES, PROVIDING A PICTURE OF WINE TOURISM AROUND THE WORLD

By Donatella Cinelli Colombini, winetourism, Fattoria del Colle in Trequanda, Casato Prime Donne Montalcino

The 2025 “Global Wine Tourism Report” has been commissioned by top-level clients, including the UN Tourism Organization, the OIV – International Organization of Vine and Wine, the Great Wine Capitals Global Network (GWC), and WineTourism.com. The scope is also vast, encompassing the entire world, with 1,310 wineries interviewed in 47 countries, but with a particular focus on Europe, which accounts for 70% of the sample, with Italy in a dominant position (17%).

PERHAPS TOO MANY EXPECTATIONS FOR THE WINE TOURISM BUSINESS

Wineries are showing strong interest worldwide: two out of three wineries report that wine tourism is profitable or very profitable. This type of tourism generates approximately a quarter of their total revenues. This percentage is likely higher in North America and smaller in Europe.

2 December 2025

OFFER: NEW OLIVE OIL FOR YOU!

The new offer includes a blend of EVO oil and two single-cultivar varieties from Fattoria del Colle, delivered directly to your door for tasty and healthy dishes for €179.00.

You’ll receive four bottles of 0.75L organic EVO oil 2025, and two bottles each of 0.5L organic EVO oil 2025 Correggiolo and Moraiolo. Freshly pressed oil with its intense aroma and vibrant flavour, delivered directly from the mill to your table.

Fattoria del Colle is located in Trequanda, one of the best areas in Tuscany and the world for producing extra virgin olive oil thanks to its sandy soil, its remote location from the sea, and its altitude of over 400 meters, which protects it from olive fruit flies. The farm has 6 hectares of organic olive groves and sells exclusively its own oil. The olives are hand-harvested between October and November and pressed at the Oliviera Sant’Angelo, 10 km from the farm, and at the Frantoio di Montalcino.

🎁 For those who take advantage of this offer, a video with the “Guide to tasting EVO oil”!

18 November 2025

MICHAEL GODEL’S EXCELLENT RATINGS

Brunello Di Montalcino DOCG 2021, Brunello Riserva DOCG 2020 e Brunello Prime Donne DOCG 2021 Casato Prime Donne Donatella Cinelli Colombini Toscana

CANADIAN BRUNELLO EXPERT AWARDS DONATELLA CINELLI COLOMBINI’S WINES EXTRAORDINARY SCORES, AND HIS FAVORITE IS THE IOsonoDonatella SELECTION

For many years, renowned Canadian critic Michael Godel has spent extensive periods in Montalcino. He has visited most of the Brunello wineries, tasting all their wines. He therefore has a deep knowledge of the places, the people, and the different Brunello production philosophies, including its evolution over time. Receiving a positive assessment from him is a great honour and a great satisfaction.

Donatella Cinelli Colombini was delighted to receive the stellar scores of 96, 95, 95, 94, and 93 awarded by Godel to five of her Brunellos. These wines are produced at Casato Prime Donne in Montalcino on the northern slope of the Montalcino hill, where the clay-rich soil is cooler and creates ideal conditions for the gradual ripening of the grapes.

13 November 2025

92/100 WS CENERENTOLA ALWAYS MORE A PRINCESS

DONATELLA CINELLI COLOMBINI’S DOC ORCIA CENERENTOLA RETRACES THE FAIRY TALE OF THE POOR YOUNG WOMAN WHO BECOMES A PRINCESS AND IS AWARDED 92/100 FROM WINE SPECTATOR

Punteggio Wine Spectator Cenerentola DOC Orcia 2019, Fattoria del Colle, Donatella Cinelli Colombini

It’s difficult to stand out in an international wine market overcrowded with bottles. Especially with a young appellation like the Orcia DOC, and even more so with a native grape variety abandoned for over a century.

This is why Donatella Cinelli Colombini is happy every time her Cenerentola wine achieves a good result, like the 92/100 awarded by Wine Spectator for the 2019 vintage.

The Orcia DOC was born on February 14, 2000, in the high hills of southern Tuscany, nestled between the Brunello di Montalcino and Vino Nobile di Montepulciano territories. Sandwiched between two important and famous sisters, the Orcia DOC is in a favourable position for vineyards but difficult to establish a commercial niche.

27 October 2025

CHRISTMAS IS CLOSE, HERE ARE 2 BRUNELLO AND 1 ORCIA FOR YOU!

cenerentola 2019 DOC Orcia, Brunello di Montalcino 2020, sottobottiglia in resina artigianale

Would you like to receive this offer of 3 Magnums for €264.00 directly at your home?

This offer is designed for your Christmas party planning. Three different magnums to enjoy during moments of conviviality with family or friends (last bottles available). These bottles will also be appreciated as gifts by collectors of fine wines.

🎁 Along with the bottles, you will find: a beautiful resin coaster directly from our Toscana Lovers stores and created by Riccardo Marzi.

What’s special about this offer?

The value of a magnum bottle of wine lies in its excellent ability to preserve and evolve the wine, thanks to less contact with oxygen and its ability to withstand temperature changes better than a standard bottle. In addition to the qualitative benefits, the magnum format offers a strong visual impact on special occasions and makes a surprising and memorable gift.

Cenerentola and Foglia Tonda

Two grapes are used to produce Cenerentola DOC Orcia: Sangiovese and Foglia Tonda, both native. Sangiovese is the main grape variety in Tuscany, and in the Orcia denomination, it must comprise at least 60% of the total. In Cenerentola, it accounts for approximately 65%. The Foglia Tonda grape variety is genetically a descendant of Sangiovese. It has been cultivated in Tuscany since time immemorial and is mentioned in 19th-century sources in the Chianti Classico region. Foglia Tonda vines have also been identified in Siena’s historic urban vineyards. It is a late-ripening vine that loves heat and tends to be overly fertile, so its cultivation is primarily aimed at limiting grape production. It takes its name from its almost circular, lobed leaves. The bunches are cylindrical and compact. They ripen later than the Sangiovese. In the wine, the Sangiovese Foglia Tonda blend combines the vertical elegance of the first with the greater power of the second, which adds colour and polyphenols.

Brunello Prime Donne

A flagship wine for female winemaking! This wine comes from Donatella Cinelli Colombini’s Casato Prime Donne winery and is selected by a panel of international tasters: two Masters of Wine, Rosemary George from England and Madeleine Stenwreth from Sweden, as well as Astrid Schwarz and Daniela Scrobogna. The tasters blindly taste the wines from the different vineyards and then

decide on the type of barrels to use, the length of maturation, and the blend between the different varieties. Today, Brunello Prime Donne is exported to 44 countries worldwide and is a symbol of courage, ethical values, and challenging clichés.

The 3 magnums included in the offer: Cenerentola 2019, Brunello di Montalcino 2020, Brunello Prime Donne 2018

Brunello di Montalcino

Brunello is produced in Montalcino, the world’s best area for the Sangiovese grape. This grape variety has been cultivated in Montalcino for hundreds, perhaps thousands, of years. Thanks to the climate and soil, it has developed specific characteristics: it produces small grapes, with small clusters and small berries. This makes it possible to create a great, long-aging red wine in Montalcino, like Brunello, using just one grape variety: Sangiovese

🍇 Offer of the Month – For Donatella Club Members

– 1 bottle of Cenerentola 2019 Magnum Organic

– 1 bottle of Brunello Prime Donne 2018 Magnum Organic

– 1 bottle of Brunello di Montalcino 2020 Magnum Organic

– 1 resin coaster, an expression of Tuscan creativity

7 October 2025

UNMISSABLE APPOINTMENT WITH WHITE TRUFFLES AND FINE RED WINES

AN EXTRAORDINARY EXPERIENCE ON A NOBLE TUSCAN FARM WHERE WHITE TRUFFLES OF EXTRAORDINARY FINENESS, BRUNELLO WINE, AND ITALY’S MOST FAMOUS EVO OIL ARE MADE

Fattoria del Colle Trequanda weekend del tartufo

Fattoria del Colle Trequanda white truffle weekend

Rejuvenate amidst landscapes shaped by man over the centuries, at the time of year when the Sangiovese vineyards turn to a golden splendour on the hills. It’s the season of the white truffle of the Crete Senesi, known for its extraordinary elegance, rivalling that of Alba. It is also season of freshly produced EVO oil, which at Fattoria del Colle is diversified into five varieties, one of which is preserved in antique terracotta jars. It’s the season when you can already preview the future 2021 Brunello. Click here for more info

3 UNFORGETTABLE WEEKENDS WITH TRUFFLES WITH AN INCREDIBLE AROMA AND GREAT WINES

The first 3 weekends of November, coinciding with the Crete Senesi White Truffle Market.
Stays take place at Fattoria del Colle, a hamlet-like property built in 1592 around the villa where Donatella Cinelli Colombini still lives today. The villa will open its historic rooms for a guided tour.

29 September 2025

Family Gift Set: Wine and Olive Oil for Relaxing Moments Together

Autumn Offer: 2 bottles of Riserva 2019, 2 bottles of Il Drago e le 8 Colombe 2020, and EVO oil in tins delivered directly to your home for €197.00

Autumn offer – wine and olive oil for family time

Autumn brings the pleasure of spending time together at the table, we have thought of something ideal for Thanksgiving. We’ve created a special gift set for you that captures the diverse spirit of our region, with wines to sip by the fireplace and something for the little ones, too:

Brunello di Montalcino Riserva 2019, a wine with a silky harmony that conceals a powerful structure.
Il Drago e le 8 Colombe 2020, dedicated to strong personalities, decisive and full-bodied.
Colombino Olive Oil, our most delicate extra virgin olive oil, in a 500 ml tin to keep on the table and in two practical 250 ml formats, perfect for any occasion.

A box that represents family in all its nuances: romantic, strong, and everyday.

🎁 Along with the bottles, you’ll find a Fattoria del Colle recipe book featuring the tastiest local recipes.

23 September 2025

TIERRA MULTI- ETHNIC CAKE CREATED FOR THE PRIMA DONNA 2025

THE CAKE CREATED BY THE TESSIERI HIGHER TRAINING SCHOOL OF PASTRY FOR DARYA MAJIDI IS TIERRA AND COMBINES ANCIENT FLAVOURS AND CONTEMPORARY KNOWLEDGE

Tessieri Noalya con Donatella Cinelli Colombini

Tessieri Noalya with Donatella Cinelli Colombini

Montalcino, September 13, the 2025 Casato Prime Donne Award ceremony concludes at Fattoria del Colle in Trequanda with a cake in honour of the winner Darya Majidi, Donna 4.0.

It was created by students in the advanced pastry course at the Tessieri School of Ponsacco, led by instructor Fabio Centoni. A dessert that speaks of the dialogue between cultures, roots, and the future.

CAKE WITH IRANIAN RAW MATERIALS AND ETHICAL PRODUCTION

A story that describes Darya Majidi, a woman born in Iran and raised in Italy, tied to tradition and strongly committed to artificial intelligence and women’s understanding of it.

The dessert is made using three ingredients typical of Darya’s homeland (Iran): pistachio, pomegranate, and Medjool date. It’s all topped with Noalya chocolate, made with 72% cocoa from the Tessieri plantation in Venezuela.

18 September 2025

ENDLESS CYCLE , 2025 ART INSTALLATION BY GIULIA LAPENTA

THE WORK OF ART THAT ACCOMPANIES THE QUOTE BY THE PRIMA DONNA 2025, DARYA MAJIDI, IS BY A 17-YEAR-OLD STUDENT FROM THE SIENA ART HIGH SCHOOL, GIULIA LAPENTA

by Donatella Cinelli Colombini, winedestination, Fattoria del Colle Trequanda

Ciclo infinito endless circle 2025 CasatoPrime Donne Montalcino Giulia Lapenta disegna i profili

Ciclo infinito Endless Cycle 2025 Casato Prime Donne Montalcino Giulia Lapenta

Ciclo infinito-Endless Cycle is an artistic installation approximately 3.5 meters high with a cylindrical, saw-cut travertine base with a split top. From this base emerge six silhouettes depicting human heads made of 14 mm diameter solid round iron, hand-painted with a silver, gold, and copper metallic effect. The irons rise to form faces and then descend to sink into the ground. The work was created by COIMA under the direction of architect Elisa Boldi.

CICLO INFINITO ENDLESS CIRCLE BY GIULIA LAPENTA

Young artist Giulia Lapenta developed the 2025 theme of the Casato Prime Donne Award, which concerns Artificial Intelligence, sending a message of alarm and the hope of a cycle that begins and ends on our planet’s surface.

The art installation is conceived of five elements: the earth, the base, the iron rods connecting the base to the heads, and the heads and tails. Earth is the starting point, and from the earth emerges the base, which, with its cylindrical shape, symbolizes human evolution and the invention of the wheel. The heads represent AI and the attempt to recreate human intelligence, but the metal wires with which they are made of descend to the ground, indicating that artificial intelligence exists within a perpetual cycle.

“AI can reduce human creativity and create new pollution, but when we return to the earth, the earth wins,” explains the young artist, expressing her concerns. “I fear that AI will try to replace artists.” But when artificial intelligence reaches the earth, the cycle begins again. There is therefore hope for an ending that harmonizes humans, nature, and artificial intelligence.

9 September 2025

3-TIME COOKED CAULIFLOWER IN THE MONTALCINO MANNER

BOILED, FRIED, AND REDONE IN TOMATO SAUCE, A DELICACY FROM MONTALCINO’S GRANDMOTHERS. 3-TIME COOKED CAULIFLOWER IS FLAVOURFUL, INDIGESTIBLE AND EVEN DIETARY

by Donatella Cinelli Colombini, wine destination, Casato Prime Donne Montalcino

cavolo rifatto di Montalcino Fattoria del Colle Trequanda Donatella Cinelli Colombini

3-time cooked cauliflower can be served as an appetizer, a main course, or a side dish. In the Marche region, fried cauliflower is eaten without tomatoes and is delicious. The recipe I’m sharing is very tasty and can well enhance even banal dishes like roast beef or chicken breast. It harks back to grandmothers’ cooking, who, with humble ingredients, managed to create extraordinary flavours, warming the heart as well as the mouth.

This recipe also has another advantage: like all cabbage, it’s indigestible, so it fills for a long time and promotes weight loss.

It should be paired with the white wine used in cooking, so I recommend the IGT Toscana Sanchimento from Fattoria del Colle, a traminer with a hint of Grechetto, one-third of which is made following the Orange method.

2 September 2025

TRENDY TUSCAN CERAMICS

IN THE FLORENTINE AREA, FOR 600 YEARS, WATER, EARTH, AND FIRE HAVE BECOME ARTISTIC CERAMICS. NOT ANTIQUE DECORATIONS, BUT TRENDY AND TRADITIONAL SHAPES

Toscana Lovers, ceramiche per pinzimonio e olio EVO della Fattoria del Colle

Toscana Lovers ceramics cruet for EVO Oil from Fattoria del Colle

By Donatella Cinelli Colombini, winedestination, Casato Prime Donne Montalcino, Fattoria del Colle Trequanda

“Among the villages of the Val di Pesa, Valdelsa, and Val di Virginio is the workshop where our ceramics are born, nestled among the vineyards and hills,” says Sara Petreni, welcoming us to the Toscana Lovers shop in Siena, in Piazza Indipendenza, just a few steps from Piazza del Campo, where the Palio is run. “They are still made using the ancient techniques of the wheel, casting, and press, in a blend of styles. From country chic with dusty hues and shabby details to classic and contemporary. Hands that first draw and then shape the clay.” Sara shows the results of the ceramists’ patient work: bowls, plates, trays, jugs, cruets… the colours are typical of the Tuscan palette and landscapes. “Each shade is unique, created by the brush of a true artist who adds a touch of chiaroscuro, thus making the ceramic vibrate.”

The items for sale at Toscana Lovers appear to be of a new design, but instead they tell an ancient story.

26 August 2025