Sancaba

Beginnings: 2011–2012

Carlo Franchetti acquired a 45-hectare estate at San Casciano dei Bagni in 2011. The property, set among extensive oak woodland, included a small existing Pinot Noir vineyard at about 650 metres above sea level. The discovery aligned Carlo’s interest in Burgundy with a site whose elevation, cool winds and soils appeared suited to the variety.

Carlo began producing wine from the high-altitude Pinot Noir in 2012. The first, small-scale vinification was carried out on a domestic basis and showed enough character and potential to encourage further investment in the project.

Sancaba takes shape: 2013–2014

The first Sancaba vintage followed in 2013. It was made at the Tenuta di Trinoro winery under the winemaking influence of Carlo’s cousin Andrea Franchetti and represented their first collaboration on the project. The inaugural release comprised 1,216 bottles. Its name was formed as an acronym of San Casciano dei Bagni, linking the wine directly to the local town and landscape.

New vineyards planted from 2013 onward departed from the wider spacing of the original Pinot Noir parcel. They were established at high density—about 8,000 vines per hectare—with Burgundian Pinot Noir clones, Guyot training and the Poussard pruning method.

Vini Franchetti was created by Carlo and Andrea in 2014, giving the project a broader commercial structure alongside the family’s other estates.

Vineyard development and organic farming: 2016–2020

Certified organic agronomic practices were adopted in 2016. Vineyard fertility was supported through cover crops used as green manure, while copper and sulphur were employed among the treatments permitted in organic cultivation.

The new high-density vineyards entered production in 2017. A Grechetto vineyard was subsequently planted in 2018–2019 on galestro and sandstone at approximately 650 metres. Another young Pinot Noir vineyard was planted in 2019 and later became an important source for the estate’s second red wine.

Biodynamic practices began to be implemented experimentally in 2020. That year was also the final vintage made at Tenuta di Trinoro before production moved to Sancaba’s own facility.

Estate cellar and stylistic evolution: 2021–2024

Beginning with the 2021 vintage, Sancaba was made in a new cellar created by converting space within the estate’s original farmhouse at San Casciano dei Bagni. The change coincided with a stylistic direction focused on greater tension, minerality, finesse, elegance and aromatic clarity. Picking dates became more exacting, with a preference for firm, crunchy fruit, while cellar work moved toward deliberately restrained extraction.

The 2022 Sancaba was the second vintage produced in the estate cellar. Fermentation used temperature-controlled stainless-steel vats, without punch-downs and with only gentle pump-overs. Natural malolactic fermentation took place in cement, followed by 12 months in second- and third-use French barriques and six further months of settling in a large cement tank.

The first Sancaba Bianco was produced in 2023, five years after the initial Grechetto planting. Petit Sancaba developed as the estate’s second Pinot Noir, drawing on the young vineyard planted in 2019 together with second-pick fruit from the other vineyards. By the 2024 vintage, its restrained red-wine protocol incorporated indigenous-yeast fermentation in steel, 25% whole clusters, no punch-downs, light pump-overs and approximately six months in cement.

Sancaba lies above San Casciano dei Bagni in southern Tuscany, near the borders with Umbria and Lazio and on the southern edge of the province of Siena. The vineyards occupy elevations between approximately 650 and 750 metres above sea level.

Mountain influence

The peaks of Monte Cetona, Monte Rufeno and Monte Amiata shape local wind and climatic conditions. Cool north-easterly air, including winds arriving from the nearby Apennines, circulates through the area for much of the year. High elevation lowers average daytime temperatures and creates substantial day-to-night temperature differences. Summer days remain comparatively moderate and nights cool, producing what is essentially a mountain climate.

The elevation and cool conditions extend the growing season. Historically, harvest could continue well into October, although increasingly warm and dry seasons have required earlier picking in drought-prone parcels. Many red varieties struggle to ripen under these conditions, while Pinot Noir has adapted to the site’s cooler, northern-influenced environment.

Rainfall and drainage

Rain is generally scarce between April and September. The limited rainfall is rapidly absorbed and carried deeper into the porous ground. The poor, fast-draining soils retain little moisture and warm quickly in midday sunlight, placing the vines under sustained natural stress and encouraging deep root growth.

Soils

Soil composition varies among the vineyards. Galestro—flaky, calcareous clay or shale that crumbles when exposed to air—predominates alongside bands of alberese, a hard, compact limestone. Some areas near watercourses contain alluvial deposits composed of sandy clay and sandstone. The Grechetto vineyard combines galestro with sandstone.

Surrounding landscape

Ancient oak forests encircle the vineyards. The wider landscape includes wild cherries, plums, indigenous roses, truffles and mushrooms. San Casciano dei Bagni occupies a historically remote borderland whose natural beauty and thermal baths have attracted visitors since Roman times, despite the area having little recent history of wine production when Sancaba was established.

Certified organic agronomic practices have been in place since 2016. Cover crops are incorporated into the soil as green manure, while later technical material also records the use of animal manure. Copper and sulphur are used for vineyard protection within the rules of organic cultivation; propolis was also part of the treatment regime for the inaugural 2013 vintage. Biodynamic practices began to be implemented in 2020.

Newer vineyards are densely planted at about 8,000 vines per hectare and use Guyot training with Poussard pruning. The original Pinot Noir vineyard retains its wider spacing of approximately 5,000 vines per hectare.

Increasingly hot and dry seasons have made soil moisture and canopy management central concerns. Straw mulch and cut grass were first deployed in the most drought-affected galestro parcels during the arid 2021 season to limit dehydration. Mulching was used more extensively in 2022. Rather than cutting shoot tips, the growing tips were repositioned within the trellis wires, avoiding additional stress to the plants.

Crop thinning is adjusted to seasonal conditions. Approximately half the crop was removed in the generous 2018 season, while similarly vigorous thinning—about 50%—was used during the drought of 2021 to help the remaining grapes mature without shrivelling. Warm, dry years have also required closer soil and canopy management and earlier harvest dates.

Harvesting and selection are manual. Picking dates are chosen parcel by parcel, with drought-prone sites harvested first. The estate’s more recent style favours firm, crunchy fruit and therefore places particular emphasis on precise harvest timing. The Grechetto’s thicker skin provided greater resistance than Pinot Noir during the severe mildew pressure of 2023, although both crops were affected.

Sancaba’s estate cellar was created by converting space in the original farmhouse at San Casciano dei Bagni. It entered use with the 2021 vintage; earlier vintages, including the 2013 debut, were made at Tenuta di Trinoro.

Red-wine approach

The current direction emphasizes careful harvest timing and deliberately restrained extraction. For Sancaba 2022, alcoholic fermentation took place in temperature-controlled stainless-steel vats. There were no punch-downs and only light pump-overs. Malolactic fermentation occurred naturally in cement tanks. The wine then spent 12 months in second- and third-use French oak barriques before assembly in a large cement tank, where it settled for another six months with frequent rackings. It was subsequently clarified, filtered and bottled.

Petit Sancaba 2024 followed an even shorter, fruit-focused protocol. Fermentation with indigenous yeasts lasted ten days in stainless steel, with 25% whole clusters. Extraction was kept low through the absence of punch-downs and the use of gentle pump-overs. Maturation lasted approximately six months in cement vats. Bottling took place during the waning moon in April 2025.

The inaugural 2013 Sancaba used a different regime: ten days of fermentation divided between stainless steel and new barriques, followed by two months in new and second-use French oak barriques and 15 months in cement. It was bottled during the waning moon in May 2015.

White-wine approach

For Sancaba Bianco, Grechetto is hand harvested and gently pressed, with only the first-run juice retained. Fermentation takes place for about two weeks in stainless steel at a controlled 12°C with indigenous yeasts. Most of the wine matures for six months on its lees in a 20 hl cement tank with frequent lees stirring, while a small portion ages in a 225-litre oak barrique. The components are blended, clarified and filtered before bottling during the waning moon.