Casato Prime Donne in Montalcino is a Brunello winery. The property is made up of 40 hectares of which 17 hectares are taken up by Sangiovese vineyards and the winery for the production and ageing of the Rosso and Brunello di Montalcino wines.
The vintners are all women, as is the winemaker, a unique situation in Italy, a flagship for women in the wine business.
In the barrel ageing area there are no barriques: the Brunello ages at least two years in 5 and 7 hectolitre French oak casks worked by artisans, after which it is decanted into 15-40 hectolitre barrels and finally undergoing a further ageing period in bottles which is essential for the aromatic fullness of the wine. The distinctive element of the wine is its elegance: red harmonies able to last in time.
Another detail, that makes a visit to the Casato Prime Donne a unique experience, are the frescoes of the history of Montalcino, that alternate with the Brunello barrels. The guide tells the tourists the secrets of Donatella Cinelli Colombini’s Brunello together with the fascinating legends such as the miracle that saved Montalcino during the 16th century assaults and the birth of Brunello in the 19th century. In the vineyards surrounding the winery there is a hiking trail enriched by contemporary works of art and sentences dictated by the winners of the Casato Prime Donne Award.
“Original style” Brunello
The project aims at bringing this wine back to the characteristics that Donatella discovered when she was very young, (1970-1980), in the wines made by her grandfather, Giovanni Colombini, one of the pioneers in the Montalcino denomination. Elegant wines, that are vertical, fresh and with a strong territorial imprint as well as the ability to be cellared for a long time. The project “original style” began in 2011 through a return to manual labour and old traditions, like the use of concrete tanks for fermentation.
The fermentation room is where the Brunello is born. The grapes are handpicked during September and October and in about 20 days are transformed into wine. At Casato Prime Donne there are two fermentation rooms actually, one built in 2002 and one in 2007. The indoor one was renovated in 2016 and now accommodates 8 small truncated-cone shaped bare concrete vats that are open on top, equipped with a plunger, and all temperature controlled. This is where the Brunello is vinified, reproducing, in a modern way, the system used in cellars from Roman times onwards. A production area to which the painter Roberto Turchi, ( in collaboration with Giuseppe Sanfilippo, Tommaso Dironato and MCM Service) has given an artistic imprint: for three minutes real and painted images of Montalcino get screened on the vats while sounds and music help visitors understand the real identity of the Brunello people.
On the outside one finds the Tinaia “del vento”, The Windy Fermentation Room, built to experiment with indigenous yeasts out in the open, close to the vineyards. The yeasts were selected at Casato Prime Donne between 2008 and 2015and are now available for all the Brunello wineries. 8 truncated-cone shaped stainless steel vats with plunger allow us to ferment separately the grapes from each small vineyard and without using pumps.
Casato Prime Donne is place for wine passion. The secrets of the fine wine Brunello, the local history, tasting wine while listening to music, entering the spirit of Montalcino listening to sounds. Lots of proposals for wine tours different to all others.
All Donatella Cinelli Colombini’s wines are being tasted in both wineries Casato Prime Donne in Montalcino and Fattoria del Colle in Trequanda.
