Boscarelli

Egidio Corradi and the creation of Boscarelli

Poderi Boscarelli traces its foundation to 1962. Egidio Corradi, born into an old noble family from Montepulciano and trained in Economics and Commerce, had spent much of his life between Genoa and Milan working as an international broker. His ambition was to create a Vino Nobile capable of expressing the aromas and flavours of his native territory with elegance.

In 1962 Egidio acquired two small, semi-abandoned farms at Cervognano di Montepulciano. The land had previously been devoted to annual crops. During the 1960s his daughter, Paola Corradi, and her husband, Ippolito De Ferrari, moved into the project and transformed the properties into a specialized wine estate. They planted the first dedicated vineyards at 3,500 vines per hectare and created the first winery by renovating and adapting the old stables.

The first wines and early recognition

The first vintage was released in 1968. The estate’s original Vino Nobile di Montepulciano has remained its oldest and most representative label; from its first edition it accounted for about half of production, while its composition and maturation approach remained substantially consistent. In 1976 a Boscarelli wine was included among Veronelli’s 80 best wines of Italy.

Paola assumes leadership

Ippolito De Ferrari died in a road accident in 1983. Paola then took charge of the estate while their sons, Luca and Nicolò, were still adolescents. Continuing alone was a decisive personal challenge: circumstances required her to draw upon an independence and resolve that she had not previously needed to demonstrate.

Luca and the study of Sangiovese

Luca De Ferrari, born in Genoa in 1966, initially studied Political Science with the intention of becoming a diplomat. In 1988 he chose wine instead, joining Paola and the estate’s oenological team. His first harvest was that year. His work subsequently concentrated on vineyard management and wine style, with elegance, character and personality as the principal objectives.

Vigna del Nocio entered Boscarelli ownership in 1988. From 1991, the family began making specific selections of Sangiovese Prugnolo Gentile within the vineyard, distinguishing material by pedoclimatic conditions and by the Sangiovese clones present. The first Il Nocio vintage was also 1991. The work established a model in which differences of soil, mesoclimate, vine age, position and plant material are observed separately before the final blend is determined.

Boscarelli’s Rosso di Montepulciano, later named Prugnolo, entered production in 1989. Its present label was adopted in 2003.

Replanting the historic vineyards

The traditional Vino Nobile Riserva was last produced in 1992 before a pause of almost two decades. During the intervening years, Boscarelli progressively reselected and replanted its historic vineyards. The work investigated clonal selections, the different expressions of Sangiovese under changing pedoclimatic conditions and the relationship between Sangiovese and international varieties.

The Costa Grande selection had already been used in Boscarelli wines during the 1980s. Its vineyard was replanted in 2000 at 7,000 vines per hectare using massal selections from Vigna del Nocio together with selected clones.

Nicolò and the expansion of the estate

Nicolò De Ferrari was born in Genoa in January 1969. After a classical secondary education, a period studying Agriculture at the University of Perugia and subsequent Architecture studies in Genoa, he redirected his career toward the family estate. His first harvest was in 1996, and in 1997 he moved to Tuscany. He brought his interest in architecture and construction to the renovation and expansion of the winery while also working to modernize vineyard management.

Return of the Riserva and development of the crus

The Vino Nobile Riserva returned with the 2010 vintage. Grapes from the first replanted indigenous varieties had reached a level of complexity and structure that persuaded the family to revive a Riserva composed solely of native grapes, following the approach used during the 1970s and 1980s.

Sotto Casa was introduced with the 2011 vintage as the evolution of the former black-label Vino Nobile Riserva. Unlike the earlier wine, which drew on several parcels, Sotto Casa is a single-vineyard cru. It was conceived to combine the elegance, freshness and character of Sangiovese with the tannic structure and breadth of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot.

Beginning with the 2015 vintage, Costa Grande was vinified and bottled separately as a cru. Its earlier role as a vineyard selection was thereby converted into a distinct single-site expression.

The third generation and current direction

Luca and Nicolò represent the third generation at Boscarelli, with Paola remaining a central member of the family. Luca directs much of the work on wine style and vineyards, while Nicolò has led changes in vineyard management and the physical expansion of the cellar. Their stated challenge is to balance innovation with tradition, retaining the Etruscan roots of Cervognano while pursuing the fragrance, aromatic richness, elegance and identity of its vineyards.

Sebastiano completed his first Boscarelli harvest in 2023. The estate’s chronology identifies 2026 with new projects, continuing a family project that has passed through successive generations.

Vineyard decisions are made at a detailed selection level. Harvest timing follows the optimal maturity of each lot, assessed through vine age, vineyard position and soil composition. Indigenous and international varieties are matched to the characteristics of individual soils, while Sangiovese material is studied through clonal and massal selections.

The first dedicated vineyards were planted at 3,500 vines per hectare in the 1960s. Progressive reselection and replanting later raised the common density of the principal Cervognano vineyards to approximately 6,500 vines per hectare; Costa Grande was replanted at 7,000 vines per hectare, and the Centoia Merlot vineyard at 6,000.

Grapes for the principal estate reds are harvested manually and transported in small crates. The sequence of picking can differ within a single vineyard: Vigna del Nocio’s sandy and clay-rich zones, for example, have distinct harvest times, while the varieties in Sotto Casa are also picked separately.

Seasonal work is adapted to conditions. In the wet 2018 growing season, rain repeatedly interrupted shoot thinning and saturated ground sometimes prevented mechanical plant-protection work while fungal risk, especially downy mildew, was high. In 2019, strong vine fertility and water availability produced vigorous growth; crop load was reduced in some vineyards during véraison to protect quality. Harvest then proceeded quickly to prevent overripeness and botrytis after late-September rain. The estate also recorded localized damage from European grape moth in that season.

The original winery was constructed by renovating and adapting the property’s old stables. Nicolò De Ferrari later led its renovation and expansion.

Production is organized around the separation of vineyard material. Grapes are picked at their optimal maturity according to vine age, location and soil, and each selection is fermented independently. A single vintage can generate more than 30 Sangiovese cuvées. The final compositions are assembled shortly before bottling, allowing the family to decide how individual soils, mesoclimates and vine selections should contribute in that year.

Across the estate’s red-wine production, the cellar repertoire includes destemming, gentle crushing, fermentation with native yeasts in oak or stainless-steel vats, controlled temperatures, pump-overs and manual cap punching. Maceration may continue after alcoholic fermentation. Depending on the intended expression, maturation can use Slavonian, French or Allier oak in several formats, along with cement or stainless steel. Malolactic fermentation takes place in the chosen maturation vessel for several wines. Individual lots or cultivars remain separate through maturation where required, with blending performed afterward. Light filtration is used when considered necessary, and bottle maturation precedes release.

Vino Nobile di Montepulciano is the production focus, representing approximately 80% of output. Annual production is currently presented as 150,000 bottles, divided by grape selection and maturation regime.