Massa Vecchia

Founding

Massa Vecchia was founded in 1985 by Fabrizio Niccolaini and his wife, Patrizia Bartolini.

Organic certification

The estate received EU Organic certification in 1993, soon after the first European regulations were introduced. By 2008 the team had deliberately decided not to renew it. They felt that regulated organic standards did not reflect the estate's true philosophy and only restricted it. Since 2008 Massa Vecchia has followed the principles of "vino vero" (Italian for "real wine").

New management

Since 2009 the winery has been run by Patrizia's daughter, Francesca Sfondrini, together with her partners Daniel and Ines Wattenhofer, Thomas Frischknecht and Rocco Delli Colli. Francesca's husband, Stefano Costagli, joined the business in 2010. Francesca and Stefano look after the vineyards and livestock and handle wine sales.

The winery is in Massavecchia, in the province of Grosseto, in the uplands of Tuscany's Maremma, in the heart of the Metalliferous Hills.

The vineyard is tended entirely by hand with minimal intervention. Only sulfur, copper and organic fertilizers are used. The estate held EU Organic certification from 1993 and has followed "vino vero" principles since 2008.

The estate produces 15,000 bottles of wine each year. No chemicals are added to the wine, and fermentation takes place naturally with wild yeasts.

Respect for nature is central to the estate's work. The team decided not to renew EU Organic certification in 2008, feeling that regulated organic standards did not reflect the estate's true philosophy and only restricted it. Since then the estate follows "vino vero" ("real wine"), with minimal intervention in both vineyard and winery.