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January of 2019 is already in the last few days. All the activities at Fattoria di Montemaggio in Radda in Chianti are already in full force. Soon it is time to get prepared for the preview of the vintages released this year. However, the vines are still asleep and resting. Composting is something you can do all year round though. Fattoria di Montemaggio has just started composting and is very excited about it. In this article, we will look closer at the processes and benefits of composting. Organic Farming and Composting at Fattoria di Montemaggio Let us start by looking further… read more

How to Find Your Wine You don’t have to be passionate about wines nor a connoisseur with a skilled palette that can distinguish the exact make, region, and type of grape from a single whiff. However, life is too short to never give Italian wine a try. The sheer intricacies and aroma of the Chianti Classico Riserva or full-bodied Chianti Classico are a must! In the midst of the Tuscany wine allure, have you found ‘The One’? If not, here are five characteristics that you can use as your guide to finding the wine that is meant for you: 1.… read more

Christmas Memories from the Montemaggio Staff As we enter the holidays and more specifically the month of Christmas celebrations, the rush for finding the perfect Christmas gifts is at its peak. In the world of wine, Christmas gifts have become important as a way of gifting your friends with specifically chosen wines. But where did it all start? What do we know about the origin of Christmas gifts? The Origins of the Christmas Gift Gift-giving as a tradition goes long back in history until before Christianity. It is considered to have been a pagan tradition in connection with the celebration… read more

Halloween is here! It is to a certain extent believed that many of the rituals and traditions in connection with Halloween go back to old Celtic harvest festivals. These rituals are believed to have pagan roots and to then have been Christianized and connected to the All Saints' Eve. Anyway, today it is Halloween and the harvest of 2018 is over. Days and weeks of hard work picking grapes in the vineyards, making several selections, destemming and crushing to send the must to fermentation is done. At wineries all over Italy they can start to breathe again, so to say.… read more

TUSCANY, ITALY -- There's a saying, "a picture is worth a thousand words" and at Montemaggio's scenic winery in Radda, Chianti, the old adage rings true. However, in today’s fast-paced social media world, we might need to update that expression to "a video is worth a thousand words". To best showcase our beloved Chianti winery and the world of Fattoria di Montemaggio, we decided to create visual wine tour of our vineyards, tasting rooms, processing areas, bodegas, seasons, harvesting time, estate magic and more. It's a taste of what our visitors experience and it's a glimpse at the very best… read more

When the veraison period had just gotten started, it was time for many people in Italy to go on holiday. So, also the staff at Montemaggio. The winery was closed for two weeks around the Ferragosto holiday in mid-August which is considered more or less the peak of the summer in Italy. Ferragosto is a holiday that has its origin in the Roman era where the Roman Emperor Augustus instituted this holiday in year 18 B.C. The word Ferragosto stems from the Latin expression Feriae Augusti which means the resting period in August. This today translates into the holidays and the… read more

What could be better than having the opportunity to spend a few summer days in the Douro wine region in Portugal? Not for holiday though but to discuss the wine market with fellow people in the industry. Fattoria di Montemaggio, of course, immediately said yes when they via Li Valentine got the invitation from the Team Douro. Ilaria went to represent Fattoria di Montemaggio and had a grand time doing so. The trip was not only for leisure, but it had a specific theme and goal, namely to have a group of wine producers from different countries to meet and… read more

Pink wine is on the RISE! And who hasn’t tapped ‘like’ on a post under the hashtags #roseallday, #yeswayrose, or #drinkpink on Instagram? Elaborate wine drinking photos featuring lovely hues of pink that almost communicate a sort of lifestyle of luxuriously sipping rosé wine all-day-long. Let’s face it, it is trendy to drink pink and in winemaking country, it's no different. Rosé is the unofficial drink of the Millennials. Of course, you now might think that there are other more important wine trends. In Italy, however, the rosé wine production with indigenous grape varieties is becoming more and more important… read more

The last weekend of May has by now become synonymous with the two events Vignaioli di Radda and Radda nel bicchiere in Radda. This year, it was the second edition of Vignaioli di Radda and the 23rd edition of Radda nel bicchiere. One more recently founded and one well-established event, both strengthening the role of wine producers and wine in Radda. What is so special about Radda then? Well, it is a wine area located on high altitude with vineyards up to around 700 m.a.s.l. This used to make it difficult to produce wine in this area but the recent… read more

Spring is here, and the tourism season has started. Tuscany does not really have much of a down time when it comes to visitors, but the winter months are generally a bit calmer. When Easter arrives, the tourists from Italy, as well as abroad, start populating Tuscany and its attractions. Tourism in Tuscany Tourism is important for Tuscany and Italy. Toscana Promozione Turismo stated last autumn that the returns from tourism increased 4.1% in Tuscany during the summer of 2017. In this context, wine tours are becoming more and more an essential part of tourism activities. Many wineries are focusing… read more