History
undertaking particularly demanding work and
harvests, experimenting with methods rooted in the past, including reading medieval texts, but with a forward-looking soul.
Our first step, now over 25 years ago, was to identify the indigenous grape varieties to preserve and reproduce through small harvests and microvinifications. The hands of men are our most precious tool, and, still today, much of the work is carried out manually, with absolute listening and respect for nature, following organic and biodynamic practices, always carefully attentive to the lunar phases.
My commitment in the vineyard is total: every day I am present, observing and taking care of the vegetative state of the vines, to fully capture what the earth and the sky offer us.
After eleven months of intense work, over a period of about 12-15 days, always hoping that the weather will be favourable, the selection harvest takes place, during which only the best bunches, one by one, are selected and brought to the cellar for vinification. Once the harvest is completed, the first part of the challenge is won. However, the real effort continues in the cellar, where the art of preserving and enhancing the quality of the harvested grapes reaches its full expression. As Dr. Tachis always reminded me, it is not enough to produce a good wine; that wine must be exclusive, an authentic expression of its territory.
Today, our production is divided into two wine lines: a high-end selection, intended for collectors and enthusiasts, and one proposed for everyday use, for special occasions and the pleasure of conviviality.
Giovanni Dolfi
It was an evening, twenty years ago, when, on the terrace of our estate, I was discussing grapes and terroirs with a renowned wine producer, immersed in the view of our historic family vineyard.
It was at that very moment that the idea was born.
Why not restore those ancient vineyards, growing on a rich, red, and stony land (galestro and galestrino), reclaimed from the forest over a hundred years ago?
My father, Oliviero Dolfi, was a bold merchant with a passion for challenges, while my mother, Giovanna Bendinelli, came from a family of farmers dedicated to viticulture in the municipality of Lari, nestled among the gentle Tuscan hills.
My grandfather, Fornarino Bendinelli, was also a great enthusiast of enology and viticulture, thanks to the guidance of Don Giuseppe Bendinelli, the parish priest of the village and his relative, who taught him the most ancient techniques and secrets, yet extraordinarily modern, for producing wines of excellent quality.
And then, I had the honor of meeting Dr. Giacomo Tachis. When I confided my idea to him, his response deeply moved me, both for the depth of his knowledge and for the passion that animated his words. His advice, always enlightening, encouraged me to follow the path my family had followed for centuries: that of the winemaker.
I felt ready, strengthened by my heritage and assisted by this greatest Italian enologist, a figure who had marked the history of enology both in Italy and in the world. Dr. Tachis, with his support and undisputed prestige, gave me the courage to face the most extreme challenges with determination.
Hence, with an almost maniacal attention, I began
