Montenidoli

Ancient foundations

Montenidoli means “mountain of the little nests.” Its human history is presented as a succession of cultures superimposed upon a much older geological inheritance. Marine organisms first left the shells and fossils that now distinguish the lower soils. The Etruscans subsequently brought vines from Asia Minor, cultivated olive trees and established a dwelling here; a keystone from an Etruscan arch was found near the house. Roman coins were discovered beneath the olive trees. The Knights Templar also occupied Montenidoli and are associated with its early culture of wine and with fermentation in wood.

1404 and the old agricultural estate

In 1404, the owner Finuccia de’ Barbi bequeathed her property of woods, vineyards and olive groves to the Hospital of Santa Fina for the salvation of souls. Generations of peasants later maintained a mixed landscape governed by daily and seasonal agricultural rhythms.

Abandonment and renewal

During the first half of the twentieth century, the two world wars and rural depopulation left Montenidoli deserted. Woodland reclaimed the fields, brambles covered the vines and the olive trees grew wild.

Maria Elisabetta Fagiuoli acquired the property in 1965 with Sergio Muratori. Nine children seeking freedom and care were part of the community that returned life to the hill. The adults cleared the surviving vines and restored the wild olive trees. Fagiuoli, born in Rome to Veronese parents from a family that cultivated vines and olives in Veneto, replanted abandoned vineyards using cuttings from estate vines and other local vineyards she particularly valued. Her first Montenidoli wines were made in 1971.

The environmental work began alongside the agricultural restoration. Rabbits were raised to provide manure, earthworms were distributed through the fields to form humus and loosen the soil, and winter prunings were ground, fermented and returned to the plants as compost. Native varieties remained central: Vernaccia, Sangiovese, Canaiolo, Colorino, Trebbiano Gentile and Malvasia Bianca.

Sergio the Patriarch and the Montenidoli community

Sergio arrived in 1968. A schoolteacher, psychologist and educator, he received young people and adults who came to Montenidoli for guidance. His gentle but steadfast character made him the estate’s support during difficult periods and earned him the name “the Patriarch.” He fostered a community based on friendship, care and cooperation.

In 1975, winegrowers first gathered at Montenidoli to celebrate the completed vintage, compare successes and difficulties and encourage one another before the next season. The meeting became an annual observance linked to Saint Vincent, patron saint of winegrowers.

New wines and the foundation

Il Templare debuted with the 1999 vintage, joining Vernaccia, Trebbiano Gentile and Malvasia Bianca in a wood-fermented white conceived in memory of the Knights Templar. The inaugural vintage of Triassico was 2007. Produced from Sangiovese grown on the high Triassic terrain and released in magnum, it became a means of supporting the estate’s social project.

Sergio Muratori died in 2012. The Sergio the Patriarch NPO Foundation was established in 2014 to continue his educational and humanitarian work. Its two groups of houses stand on the estate’s high plateau and are intended to welcome younger and older people from different countries and cultures for dialogue, study, seminars, apprenticeships and shared practical work.

Alessio Cecchini began working beside Elisabetta in 2019 after winemaking experience in New Zealand, Australia, South Africa, Burgundy and Montalcino. His studies concentrated on concrete fermentation of Sangiovese and biodynamic agriculture; he now supervises winemaking and represents Montenidoli internationally.

Recent vineyard renewal

During 2022, one hectare at Tre Marie was planted with Vernaccia and Trebbiano on sandy, calcareous soil. In 2023, Montenidoli acquired Il Capanno di Natalino, known as “l’Amato,” a one-hectare abandoned mixed-crop plot near the Fidanza vineyards, with the intention of restoring it.

In 2024, another piece of land was acquired beside Tre Marie. A cross discovered beneath the bushes inspired the name Il Campo della Croce. The land is intended to be cleared and returned to cultivation.

Position and landscape

Montenidoli occupies a wooded hill overlooking San Gimignano, facing the Chianti Classico zone between Florence and Siena. The estate lies east and south of San Gimignano and covers 200 hectares of woodland, vineyards and olive groves. Its cultivated plots are surrounded by forest, creating an isolated environment with clean air and abundant light.

Lower hill: marine sediments

During the Quaternary period, the Ligurian Sea covered the local valleys with shallow, calm water in which shellfish, crustaceans and sea urchins flourished. Their remains formed the pale, sandy, calcareous soils of the lower slopes. Between approximately 250 and 400 metres, these well-drained soils contain abundant shells and marine fossils and are principally associated with Vernaccia and the estate’s other white grapes. Some red varieties, including selected Sangiovese and Colorino, also occupy marine-derived or mixed clay-calcareous terrain.

Upper hill: the Triassic formation

Between approximately 400 and 600 metres, the hill changes to cavernous Triassic rock and red, fine-textured mineral soil. Water penetrates about 200 metres into cavities in the formation, creating an underground reserve described as a saline basin beneath the land. The red upper soils are rich in iron and other minerals; the Le Pianore vineyard is also described as deep limestone rich in iron and magnesium. Sangiovese from this formation is kept separate for Triassico.

Woods and biodiversity

Ancient oaks, evergreen holm oaks and flowering manna ashes cover the hill. Maritime, pitch and umbrella pines provide habitat for squirrels. The understorey resembles Mediterranean scrub, with myrtle, juniper, strawberry tree and broom. Microelement-rich forest soil supports autumn and winter mushrooms as well as hellebores, violets, cyclamens, marigolds and daisies. These woods closely surround and penetrate the vineyard and olive-growing areas.

Seasonal water and heat

Deep-rooted vines repeatedly draw on moisture retained from winter and spring rains during hot, dry summers. The 2020, 2022, 2023 and 2024 seasonal accounts all emphasize this reserve: even during prolonged heat, vegetation avoided major heat damage because water remained available at depth. Vintage conditions nevertheless vary markedly, from frost damage in April 2021 to extreme drought in 2022, a cold wet spring followed by intense heat in 2023, and sustained spring rain, disease pressure and a very abundant crop in 2024.

Montenidoli follows strictly organic farming certified by ICEA. The approach began with the recovery of the abandoned property in 1965 and is organised around the seasonal condition of the land rather than a fixed technological programme.

Early restoration practices included rabbit manure, earthworms introduced to create humus and loosen compacted earth, and the composting of shredded pruning wood. Pruning was confined to winter dormancy. Native varieties were retained and replanted using estate and selected local vine material.

At Le Pianore, the soil and subsoil were left structurally intact at planting. The vineyard receives neither fertiliser nor green manure. Spontaneous vegetation provides ground cover, while the soil immediately around each vine is worked by hand. Treatments are limited to a small number of applications of traditional Bordeaux mixture. The vines are goblet-trained, with shoots supported on wires fixed to chestnut posts cut and prepared on the estate. There is no shoot topping and no green harvest. Slow growth and very low yields are accepted in pursuit of strong, long-lived vines whose roots explore the soil in detail.

The wider estate is protected by a large surrounding woodland ecosystem. Myrtles, junipers, strawberry trees, broom, oaks, holm oaks, flowering ashes, pines, woodland flowers, mushrooms and squirrels form part of this setting. Vineyard work responds directly to rainfall, retained soil moisture, frost, heat and disease pressure. Replacing dead vines and caring for old vineyards are recurring winter priorities.

Harvest dates are adjusted to variety and season. In 2020, Canaiolo was picked early on 7 September to preserve acidity for rosé, the main harvest began on 17 September, and the last Triassic Sangiovese was collected at the beginning of October. Harvest participants include a recurring group of young people and former students. Vernaccia is hand-picked. The 2024 crop was gathered between repeated showers but remained abundant and healthy despite strong June disease pressure.

Montenidoli uses steel, glass-lined concrete or cement, French barriques and extended bottle maturation according to grape, soil and intended expression.

Vernaccia is interpreted through three distinct methods. Tradizionale follows the older local practice of treating a white grape in the manner of a red: the must macerates with the skins, is pressed around the beginning of fermentation, and matures in glass-lined concrete before bottle ageing. Fiore uses only free-run juice, fermented in steel and held on its lees in steel before bottling. Carato also uses free-run juice but ferments in barrique, followed by 12 months in French barriques and 24 months in bottle. Older descriptions specify French barrels up to seven or eight years old and an intermediate period in cement.

Il Templare combines Vernaccia, Trebbiano Gentile and Malvasia Bianca. Free-run juice ferments in old barriques, then spends 12 months in French barriques and 12 months in glass-lined cement before bottle ageing. Vinbrusco, made from Trebbiano and Malvasia, uses free-run juice and remains on its lees in steel before bottle maturation.

Canaiuolo rosé is vinified in steel and bottled on its lees at the end of fermentation, then refined in bottle.

For the reds, glass-lined concrete is the principal fermentation vessel. Il Garrulo is both vinified and refined in glass-lined concrete before bottle ageing. The young pure-Sangiovese Montenidoli is vinified in glass-lined concrete, refined in barrique and aged in bottle. Sono Montenidoli is selected Sangiovese vinified in glass-lined concrete, followed by 24 months in barriques and three years in bottle. Colorino undergoes maceration and fermentation in glass-lined concrete, then barrique and bottle maturation. Triassico receives a long skin maceration, 24 months in barrique and subsequent bottle ageing; it is released in magnum.

Montenidoli’s guiding idea is service to the land. Nature’s cycles—weather, daylight, seasons, dormancy and the movement of water through the soil—determine the work. Slow vine development, low yields and patient ageing are accepted where they strengthen the relationship between wine and place.

The estate treats soil as its principal consultant. Its native grapes are assigned to contrasting geological environments and are vinified separately so that marine sediments, clay-calcareous ground and the red Triassic formation retain distinct identities. Traditional techniques are preserved where they serve that purpose: skin-macerated Vernaccia, concrete vessels, wood fermentation for Il Templare and Carato, and long maturation for selected Sangiovese.

Environmental care extends beyond the vines. The surrounding woodland, spontaneous vegetation, soil organisms, composting, old olive trees and native plant life are treated as parts of one ecosystem. Minimal soil disturbance and restricted treatments at Le Pianore embody the belief that observation and patience matter as much as technical knowledge.

The social philosophy is inseparable from farming. Sergio Muratori’s work made Montenidoli a place of dialogue between generations and cultures. The foundation continues the idea of a “big family of the little planet,” seeking common roots through hospitality, education, seminars, apprenticeships and shared work. Winegrowing is understood not only as production but as a way to transmit friendship, cultural memory and responsibility for the future.