The protagonist of this wine story is a volcanic woman, proactive and full of ideas. She’s Donatella Cinelli Colombini, a great woman of Italian wine. Born in Siena and graduated in History of Medieval Art, in 1993 she founded the “Movimento del Turismo del Vino” (Wine Tourism Movement) and invented “Cantine aperte” (open wineries), the event that made wine tourism known in Italy.
In 1988 she founded her own estate that includes Fattoria del Colle at Trequanda and Casato Prime Donne in Montalcino (small countries in the province of Siena, Tuscany region).
Donatella was also the Tourism Councillor at the Siena Town Hall. In 2016 she was elected national president of Donne del Vino (Women of Wine Italian Association).
Donatella Cinelli Colombini is constantly supported by her husband, Carlo Gardini, once a former banker, and today a wine and cooking enthusiast. The young daughter Violante Gardini, graduated in Business Administration, works actively in the marketing of family wines.
I want to talk about a wine born from Montalcino wineyards and winery: Casato Prime Donne is a Brunello winery. The property is of 40 hectares of which 16 hectares are taken up by Sangiovese vineyards and the winery for the production and ageing of the Rosso and Brunello di Montalcino wines.
Here, the vintners are all women, as is the winemaker, a unique situation in Italy, a flagship for women in the wine business.
In the barrel ageing area there are no barriques: the Brunello ages at least two years in 5 and 7 hectolitre French oak casks worked by artisans, after which it is decanted into 15-40 hectolitre barrels and finally undergoing a further ageing period in bottles which is essential for the aromatic fullness of the wine. The distinctive element of the wine is its elegance: red harmonies able to last in time.
To celebrate the inauguration of the new winery Casato Prime Donne, Donatella Cinelli Colombini started producing the Brunello di Montalcino Riserva.
My tasting. Casato Prime Donne Cinelli Colombini – Brunello di Montalcino Riserva 2012
The wine diffuses dark smells in the glass, sometimes green and animal, but distinctly rich in spices such as rosemary and cloves. It also smells of blackberries and soft balsamic tints. The taste is ample, medium-bodied, soft, well balanced, fine tannins and the finish of cherry jam. It is a harmonious, supple and delicate Brunello, truly “feminine”, not only because it’s produced entirely by a team of women.
Grapes: 100% Sangiovese. Ageing: three and a half years in oak barrels.
Reatil price: € 70 – $ 82 – My rating – 92/100