Forum: News and lifestyle

CASATO PRIME DONNE: AN UNPARALLELED EXPERIENCE IN MONTALCINO

CASATO PRIME DONNE IS DISTINGUISHED FOR THE QUALITY OF ITS WINES AND FOR A SERIES OF UNIQUE FEATURES THAT MAKE EVERY VISIT AN UNFORGETTABLE EXPERIENCE

Among the novelties for 2025 is the “driver discount” of €10 for those who have to get behind the wheel after the experience in the cellar and can therefore taste only one wine.

THE FIRST ITALIAN WINERY WITH AN ALL-FEMALE TEAM

Casato Prime Donne is the first winery in Italy to boast a staff made up exclusively of women, from the oenologist to the cellar workers, from the sales staff to the tourist reception staff. This pioneering choice underlines the commitment to female empowerment in the wine sector, giving our wines a unique touch of sensitivity and dedication

6 February 2025

FATTORIA DEL COLLE 2025 WINERY TOURS

NOVELTY AND TRADITION IN 5 UNFORGETTABLE EXPERIENCES ON WINE AND EVO OIL, AT FATTORIA DEL COLLE. DEDICATED TO LOVERS OF WINE, HISTORY AND NATURE

The main innovation this year is the introduction of the “Driver discount” which provides a €10 discount for those who can taste just one wine. It is Fattoria del Colle’s contribution to safe driving and a kind way to alleviate the sacrifice of those who will then have to drive. A necessary adjustment after the introduction of the new highway code and the tightening of controls.

DRIVER DISCOUNT FOR SAFE WINE TOURISM

For 2025 the new experience is called “New Oil in Ancient Jars, Brunello and Vino Orcia Cenerentola” and enhances the recently inaugurated orciaia in the basement of the Fattoria del Colle villa. After a very careful restoration and the use of some innovative elements, Donatella Cinelli Colombini is, for the first time, putting extra virgin olive oil back into traditional Tuscan ceramic containers. A mix of tradition and innovation that increases the charm of the wonderful extra virgin olive oil from these lands.

31 January 2025

New offer: 2 TOP family wines-with a preview

Would you like to receive 3 bottles of Chianti Superiore 2022 and 3 bottles of Il Drago e le 8 Colombe 2020 directly to your home for €123.00?

This is an opportunity for those who love the small ORGANIC productions of Fattoria del Colle. It is truly an unmissable opportunity for lovers of good wine!

In the Chianti Superiore 2022 the superior typology indicates Chianti with superior quality characteristics and aging

Nell'offerta del mese, in anteprima la nuova annata di "Il Drago" assieme al Chianti Superiore 2022

Family wine della Fattoria del Colle: Chianti Superiore 2022 e Il Drago 2020 nell’offerta del mese

capacity. It is produced at Fattoria del Colle from vineyards with greater vocation and lower production.

Il Drago e le 8 Colombe 2020 preview is a “super Tuscan” that is, an IGT Toscana wine that does not belong to any denomination but was born following the creativity of Donatella Cinelli Colombini’s winemakers. It is a blend of wines from three different varieties, grown at Fattoria del Colle, and is dedicated to the male component of her family which yesterday consisted of her husband Carlo Gardini and today is represented by her grandson Lorenzo.

As a gift, you will receive a customized professional corkscrew and a booklet, “Brief handbook for great wine lovers”, with historical notes on the vine and wine, the cultivation and pruning of the vine, and the principles of tasting. A small booklet that will help you better understand the effort and commitment of those who work on the farm.

23 January 2025

ERIC GUIDO FROM VINOUS AND THE NEW BRUNELLO 2020 AND RISERVA 2019

94 POINTS FOR BRUNELLO RISERVA 2019, 93 AND 91 FOR BRUNELLO PRIME DONNE AND BRUNELLO CLASSICO 2020. ERIC GUIDO’S COMMENTS ON THE NEW VINTAGES ON SALE

by Donatella Cinelli Colombini, #winedestination, #brunellodimontalcino

Vinous is a wine review portal created by Antonio Galloni starting from “Piedmont Report” (2004). It is young but is establishing itself as one of the most authoritative repertoires of wine reviews

VINOUS THE WINE REVIEW PORTAL CREATED BY ANTONIO GALLONI

He has 12 collaborators including two Masters of Wine and Stephen Tanzer who has brought together his International Wine Cellar in the same portal. Eric Guido is entrusted with tasting wines from most of Italy, including Montalcino. Eric previously led wine and retail marketing for Morrell Wine Group and is also an expert in food and music.

After reading his comments we wrote to him saying <<We are not surprised that you like the “Prime Donne” and the Brunello Riserva more which are more structured, but I hope you have seen the new search for purity and territoriality that characterizes all our wines. It’s a project we called “Vineyard First” and has been going on for five years. The most important change concerns the time of harvest. We harvest each parcel of vineyard on the exact day it reaches complete maturation. The result is that when we finish the harvest all the other Montalcino wineries are just beginning>>

In fact, the Vineyard First project has allowed us to produce wines that consumers like because they are pure; they communicate the grape variety, terroir and climate. They may seem simple, almost “minimalist” but in reality, they are the expression of great respect for nature.

14 January 2025

MICHAEL GODEL FROM CANADA SENDS US 11 EXCELLENT SCORES

BRUNELLO, ROSSO DI MONTALCINO AND ORCIA DOC IN THE LEONE ROSSO AND CENERENTOLA VERSION ON WINE ALIGN THE PORTAL BY CANADIAN SUPER TASTERS

Michael Godel with Donatella Cinelli Colombini’s staff

Michael Godel is among the foreign wine critics who know Montalcino best. He often participates in Benvenuto Brunello and the Tuscan wine previews and has visited hundreds of wineries in this area. He loves Sangiovese but also greatly appreciates the Foglia Tonda variety for its acidic richness which makes the wines long-lived and fresh.

Our importer in Ontario, Bernard Stramwasser Les Sommelier sent us 11 sheets and 11 scores from Michael Godel on Brunello and Rosso di Montalcino, Leone Rosso Doc Orcia and 6 vintages of Cenerentola (based on Sangiovese and Foglia Tonda) from 2021 to 2001. They are published on Wine Align, the portal of the major Canadian wine experts.

BRUNELLO DI MONTALCINO DOCG 2020 SCORE 93/100

Godel appreciated this wine and the respectful way in which it was vinified and matured, allowing the vintage to express itself without intervening in the cellar. The result is a good richness of extracts and a natural balance.

9 January 2025

95,94, 94,93 STELLAR RATINGS BY WINE ADVOCATE FOR DCC’S BRUNELLOS

EXCELLENT RATINGS AND A MOVING MEMORY OF CARLO GARDINI IN THE INFORMATION SHEET WRITTEN BY MONICA LARNER ABOUT BRUNELLO 2018, 2019 AND 2020 BY DONATELLA CINELLI COLOMBINI

Donatella Cinelli Colombini has known Monica Larner for many years, they have different ideas but they respect each other and above all they are fond of each other. This is why Donatella cried reading what Monica wrote about her husband Carlo in Wine Advocate –Robert Parker. She felt understood and embraced with affection. << I don’t remember having met Donatella without the super supportive Carlo right there at her side. They were a strong couple who were on an equal footing>>.

This is perhaps the most important thing for a producer: feeling understood in his or her deepest life choices.

2 January 2025

BRUNELLO RISERVA 2019 ORGANIC CASATO PRIME DONNE

THE 2019 VINTAGE SEEMS BORN TO CHALLENGE TIME AND TO BECOME BRUNELLO RISERVA. GRAPES SO PERFECT THAT NEEDED ONLY PATIENCE

There are vintages that seem born to produce wines capable of defying time and 2019 is one of them.

These are the harvests in which the grapes arrive in the cellar so perfect that they don’t need anything, just attention and patience.

Brunello 2019 is celebrated by critics and consumers as one of the best vintages of the last 20 years and in the Riserva version it finds its most enthusing expression for the silky harmony that hides a powerful structure.

Contrary to what usually happens in the best harvests, 2019 was abundant. A circumstance that also occurred in the legendary 2010 vintage and reveals how global warming has changed the internal balance of plants. In both of these vintages the vines were still in vegetation at the time of the harvest. This is also a rare but very favourable feature.

27 December 2024

Exclusive Preview: Brunello 2020 and Riserva 2019!

Do you want to receive 3 bottles of Brunello 2020 and 3 bottles of Riserva 2019 preview directly at home for € 324,00 ?

An unrepeatable opportunity for true connoisseurs. We are pleased to present a preview of two new extraordinary vintages. These two wines will be released on the market on January 1st so whoever makes the most of this offer will be among the first in the world to taste it and offer it to friends. An exclusive privilege for members of our Club.

This offer is for those who want to start the new year with the right wines to celebrate any special occasion!

As gifts, you will receive a vacuum pump to remove the air from the bottles and a wine skin to carry your favorite

Dal casato Prime Donne le nuove annate del Brunello e della Riserva in un'offerta speciale

Nuove annate Brunello di Montalcino

wine wherever you go.

The 2019 harvest is to be considered one of the best Montalcino harvests with perfect grapes for the production of a great aging Brunello. The 2020 vintage, however, is reminiscent of the splendid 2015. They are two vintages that are part of the “Vineyard first” project where we make every effort to pick the grapes as soon as they are ready and we develop a system to choose the harvest day based on the tasting of the grapes and on the day in which the quantity of total polyphenols begins to decrease.

OFFER FOR MEMBERS OF DONATELLA’S CLUB

3 bottles of Brunello 2020 in preview
3 bottles of Brunello Riserva 2019 in preview
1 wine saving pump
1 Wine Skin to transport your wine in style

19 December 2024

DONATELLA CINELLI COLOMBINI AND DOCTOR WINE DANIELE CERNILLI

92/100 TO BRUNELLO PRIME DONNE IN THE ESSENTIAL GUIDE TO THE WINES OF ITALY BY DANIELE CERNILLI DOCTOR WINE,WITH ALSO A STAR FOR DONATELLA’S WINERIES

DanieleCernilli DonatellaCinelliColombini ONAV Congress 2013

By Donatella Cinelli Colombini, #winedestination

I have known Doctor Wine-Daniele Cernilli for almost forty years, when he was a young philosophy professor with a passion for tasting wine and the mission of raising the quality of Italian wineries by forcing them to compare themselves with each other and with the rest of the world.

We respect each other and are fond of each other. I cannot forget his words of comfort after the death of my husband Carlo.However, our sensitivities for wine diverge: Cernilli prefers leading wine makers like Carlo Ferrini, I believe in nature as the absolute protagonist. A distinction that leads to different outcomes especially in style. In fact, those who, like me, pick the grapes before over- ripeness softens the skin, produce more elegant but less powerful wines than those who wait. But I am convinced that this choice maintains a greater imprint of the terroir and the vintage in the wine. I intend to continue along this path: less power and more territoriality because the wine must tell and surprise and not always be the same.

I am grateful to Daniele Cernilli for having included my winery in the Essential Guide of Italian Wines 2025, also assigning it a star. It’s a joy and an honour.

12 December 2024

FOLIAGE IN THE VINEYARDS AND LANDSCAPE THERAPY

WALKING IN A BEAUTIFUL PLACE REGENERATES PSYCHOLOGICALLY AND PHYSICALLY, HERE IS THE LANDSCAPE THERAPY WHICH IS AT MAXIMUM INTENSITY IN AUTUMN IN TUSCANY

by Donatella Cinelli Colombini, #winedestination

cantina con vista Toscana Fattoria del Colle

winery with a view Tuscany Fattoria del Colle

My friend Angelo Gaja says that the foliage in the Tuscan vineyards has only one colour and is therefore less beautiful than that of the wine districts where there are many grape varieties and therefore many shades.

But that’s not true!

The human mind needs simple and harmonious images to feel good. Certain territories such as Val d’Orcia, a UNESCO heritage site since 2004 due to the beauty of its agricultural landscape, offer this type of scenery. Almost a balm for the soul.

The leaves of the vines begin to yellow immediately after the harvest and fall at the end of December. A short period in which the Tuscany of wine, where Sangiovese is the undisputed sovereign, is covered by a golden yellow brocade. The landscape of Brunello, Chianti Classico or Vino Nobile has remained intact for centuries. There are some large factories, a remnant of the industrialization dream of the mid-twentieth century, but they are very few, not like in Piedmont.

The landscape has an austere harmony made of history, nature and love of mankind. Woods, ploughed land for sowing, Sangiovese vineyards that become a golden cloak. Come and see it for yourself!

6 December 2024

OFFER: 6 BOTTLES OF ORGANIC EXTRA-VIRGIN OLIVE OIL

The new offer with EVO oil blend and 2 mono-cultivars from Fattoria del Colle directly to your home for tasty and healthy dishes for €134

For you three 0.750 bottles of organic Evo Oil 2024, and one 0.500 bottle each of Organic Evo oil 2024 Correggiolo, Moraiolo and blend

TREQUANDA WHERE ONE OF THE BEST EXTRA VIRGIN OLIVE OILS IN THE WORLD IS BORN

Recipes'book from Fattoria del Colle and 6 bottles of evo oil from 2024 olives harvest

Special monthly offer with 6 bottles of evo oil from Fattoria del Colle

Fattoria del Colle is located in Trequanda, in one of the best areas of Tuscany and the world for the production of extra virgin olive oil thanks to its sandy soils, its position far from the sea and the altitude of over 400 meters which protect it from the olive fly.

The estate has 6 hectares of organic olive groves and sells exclusively the oil from its olive trees.

The olives are harvested by hand between October and November and pressed at Oliviera Sant’Angelo, 10 km from Fattoria del Colle.

OFFER FOR MEMBERS OF DONATELLA’S CLUB

3 bottles 0.75lt of new organic extra virgin olive oil blend 2024

1 bottle 0.50 litres of organic Correggiolo oil 2024

1 bottle 0.50 Liters of organic Moraiolo oil 2024

1 bottle 0.50 litres of organic extra virgin olive oil blend 2024

1 Fattoria del Colle recipe book

DURATION OF THE OFFER

The offer ends on December 20, 2024

28 November 2024

BRUNELLO RISERVA 2018 IN THE TOP 10 BY VINUM

NEW SUCCESS FOR BRUNELLO RISERVA 2018 BY DONATELLA CINELLI COLOMBINI , AMONG THE TOP 10 CHOSEN BY VINUM MAGAZINE AND THE GREAT CHRISTIAN EDER

Vinum top 10 Brunello Riserva 2018 di Donatella Cinelli Colombini

Vinum top 10- Brunello Riserva 2018 by Donatella Cinelli Colombini

Vinum is the most important wine magazine in German. This magazine often dedicates monographic issues to a region with profiles of characters and tastings. In this case the protagonist of the magazine is Tuscany. Violante Gardini Cinelli Colombini newly elected President of the Movimento Turismo del Vino – Wine Tourism Movement is among the profiles described at the beginning while our Brunello Riserva 2018 is among the 10 TOP wines of this type.

VINUM AND CHRISTIAN EDER

As always, the scores are not very high, German culture is always sparing in its judgments and does not reach 1000/100 with the same enthusiasm as American critics. For Germans, perfection is a philosophical concept that almost requires something close to a miracle.

For this reason, the TOP 10 of Brunello Riserva 2018 are between 96 and 94 out of 100, that is, closely positioned. Overall, the best Brunello Riservas proposed by Vinum are 25 and three of them come from the area where Casato Prime Donne is located. A circumstance that demonstrates the growth in the qualitative potential of this corner of Montalcino which, twenty years ago, was too cool and now manages to express itself at a high level even in rainy years like 2018.

25 November 2024

WHICH WHITE VARIETY SHOULD BE PLANTED AT FATTORIA DEL COLLE?

TASTING OF 16 NATIVE TUSCAN WHITE WINES AND A LABORATORY OF IDEAS FOR CHOOSING THE VARIETIES TO PLANT. ROBERTO BELLINI NEXT TO DONATELLA CINELLI COLOMBINI’S STAFF

Donatella Cinelli Colombini is in serious difficulty choosing the white grape variety to plant and proceeds by trial and error. Like many Tuscan producers, she wants to have vineyards able to produce high-profile white wines capable of establishing themselves on the market. Everyone is aware that, in our region, there are areas suited to the production of great white wines which must be identified and characterized with the use of the most suitable grape variety.

Vini bianchi diversi per scegliere il vitigno da piantare alla Fattoria del Colle

16 diversi vini bianchi in degustazione provenienti da diversi vitigni toscani

TUSCAN PRODUCERS IN SEARCH OF THE PERFECT WHITE

But everyone goes on their own.

And in this way, it will take decades to understand the right path.

There is no connection between the ongoing experiments that allows us to identify excellence, above all there is no study on the different types of Tuscan Trebbiano or other native white grape varieties that identifies those with greater potential.

One wonders why the two Universities of Agriculture and Oenology in Tuscany have not begun. This would speed up the identification of the best clones and the best areas, perhaps with a view to the creation of a new denomination.

While Tuscany is still stuck on white wines, the other major wine regions have already moved forward. Piedmont has relaunched itself with Alta Langa and Derthona, Lombardy has Franciacorta and Lugana, not to mention Veneto with the Prosecco phenomenon. Friuli-Venezia Giulia and Trentino have always had a prevalence of high-end white wines.

18 November 2024