Vecchie Terre di Montefili

Ancient roots

Montefili occupies a strategically situated hill between the valleys of Chianti Classico. The land is associated with passage, settlement and cultivation from Etruscan and Roman times. In 986 AD it was entrusted to the Benedictine monks of Badia a Passignano, continuing a long sequence of custodians who worked the hill.

The Acuti family and the modern estate

The modern chapter began in the 1970s, when the Acuti family established the first contemporary vineyards. Their work combined a firm commitment to Sangiovese with the experimental outlook of the emerging Super Tuscan movement.

The first and oldest vineyard, later identified with Anfiteatro, was planted in 1975, the year treated as the foundation of the winery. Its Sangiovese vines were arranged in an amphitheatre-like formation on the hill. A second Sangiovese vineyard, now known as Vinea Vecchia, followed in 1981. In 1982, Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay parcels were planted within Anfiteatro. Further Sangiovese plantings took place in 1998, 2000 and 2002, including Vinea nel Bosco and the Lago and Canalone parcels.

A new chapter from 2015

In 2015, stewardship passed to Nicola Marzovilla, Frank Bynum and Tom Peck Jr. Their work with winemaker and agronomist Serena Gusmeri initiated a renewed emphasis on high-altitude, parcel-specific farming, close study of soils, old-vine Sangiovese, biodiversity and restrained cellar work.

The wines from the first harvest under the new chapter required three years of work in the vineyards, cellar and bottle before being presented at the estate’s 2015-vintage celebration. Nicola, Tom, Frank and Serena framed their goal as continual improvement, openness to evolution and preservation of Montefili for future generations.

Contemporary direction

Montefili now works 12.5 hectares of vineyards at 480–550 metres. The estate is managed parcel by parcel, combining traditional knowledge with scientific observation, organic cultivation, regenerative practices and continuous monitoring. It is a member of the Unione Viticoltori di Panzano in Chianti and participates in the area’s collective commitment to biodiversity and organic farming.

Location and elevation

Montefili lies high above Panzano in Chianti, in the heart of the Chianti Classico zone. The vineyards extend from 480 to 550 metres above sea level. The hill stands between valleys and opens onto broad horizons; cooler nights, wind and substantial day–night temperature changes form important parts of its high-altitude conditions.

Soils

The estate’s soils include Pietraforte, Alberese and schistose clays, with Galestro prevalent across the property. Individual parcels also contain quartz, limestone, marl, silt and calcareous-clayey sequences. The variations are treated parcel by parcel rather than as a uniform soil profile.

Parcel microclimates

Anfiteatro combines high elevation with Galestro and quartz in its historic Sangiovese sector. Its Cabernet Sauvignon parcel lies at 500 metres on Galestro and silite, while its Chardonnay parcel, also at 500 metres, grows on Alberese and schistose argillites.

Vinea Vecchia occupies a small site close to the top of the hill on predominantly Alberese soil. Vinea nel Bosco stands at 540 metres beside a wooded area. The surrounding trees, elevation and marked temperature changes at the forest edge create a distinct microclimate. Lago and Canalone lie at 480 metres on Pietraforte and Galestro.

Across the estate, altitude, exposure, rocky soils, cooler nights and the differing relationship of each parcel to the hill are treated as factors that shape vine growth and fruit character.

Organic, parcel-specific cultivation

Montefili farms organically and manages the 12.5 hectares parcel by parcel. Vines are not treated as a uniform crop: soil, altitude, exposure, growth and the rhythm of each plant determine the work performed. The estate combines traditional vineyard knowledge with scientific study and continuous monitoring.

Soil and biodiversity

Natural cover crops and green-manure plants grow between the rows to enrich and maintain soil fertility. Compost and moderate quantities of organic and natural fertilisers are used. Regenerative practices form part of the wider programme, while collaboration with Vite Nova Vine Wellness supports the study and care of soil vitality, flora and microfauna.

The vineyards are approached as living ecosystems in which insects, flowers and microorganisms each have a function. The aim is to allow biodiversity to thrive and to build resilience rather than impose a fixed model on the land.

Vine care and plant protection

Pruning is performed carefully by hand and adapted to individual vines. Canopy management follows the condition and rhythm of each plant, and clusters are thinned manually. Insecticides are avoided. An earlier account of the estate’s work within the Unione Viticoltori di Panzano also describes avoiding herbicides, synthetic fertilisers and other chemical products, using predatory insects for pest control and cultivating green-manure crops.

Harvest and environmental measures

Harvest work is closely integrated with canopy and vine-health management, and selected grapes are picked by hand. Environmental measures extend beyond the vineyard to lightweight glass bottles, compost, regenerative methods and attention to practices through delivery. Montefili regards organic agriculture as a responsibility and describes its outlook as extending beyond certification to the soil, vines, air and people who work at the estate.

Montefili belongs to the Unione Viticoltori di Panzano in Chianti, an association founded in 1995. The estate was identified as one of its 22 members. The association’s members follow principles centred on vineyard health, biodiversity, consumers and workers; its monitoring data are processed and interpreted with support from SPEVIS, the Stazione Sperimentale per la Viticoltura Sostenibile di Panzano in Chianti. The Panzano district is described as Italy’s first wine-growing biodistrict, with 90% of its vineyards farmed according to organic and biodynamic criteria.

Production is organised around the identity of individual vineyards and micro-parcels. Fruit is vinified in small lots, allowing differences in soil, altitude and vintage to remain distinct. Indigenous yeasts and spontaneous fermentation are employed in documented estate bottlings, while low intervention, measured handling and restraint define the broader cellar approach.

The objective is to accompany each wine rather than design it to a predetermined profile. Vineyard selections and hand-picked fruit preserve parcel identity, while maturation takes place in oak vessels of different capacities according to the lot. Bottle ageing is also an established part of the programme. Across the range, the cellar work is intended to retain freshness, structural precision and vintage variation rather than pursue volume or stylistic uniformity.

Montefili’s philosophy begins with the proposition that fine wine originates in the vineyard. The estate seeks to reveal the relationship among soil, altitude, air and time through detailed parcel mapping, observation of individual vines and limited intervention.

Its guiding ideas are patience, precision and restraint. Each wine is to be accompanied through its development rather than engineered toward a fixed formula, leaving the year, site and elevation visible. Authenticity is understood as the result of attention rather than a stylistic choice, and differences among vintages are intended to remain apparent.

Sustainability encompasses more than formal organic status. It includes the soil, vines, air, biodiversity, packaging and people who work at Montefili. Cover crops, compost, lightweight bottles, regenerative practices, continuous monitoring and the study of microfauna all belong to the same long-term view. Biodynamic principles are also invoked in the estate’s educational and membership material as a way of listening to natural rhythms, although the core farming description is organic.

Traditional knowledge is combined with scientific attention. The estate treats each vine as an individual shaped by soil, altitude and exposure, while collaboration on soil wellness and participation in the Panzano growers’ association add research and collective environmental responsibility.

Nicola Marzovilla, Tom Peck Jr., Frank Bynum and Serena Gusmeri have expressed their aim as making Montefili better each year while remaining open to evolution and preparing the property for future custodians. Gusmeri’s contribution centres on gentle stewardship, minimal intervention, deep soil knowledge and the potential of Sangiovese at altitude.