fattoria di sammontana
Daniele Dzieduszycki with his parents, Andrea Dzieduszycki & Francesca Dzieduszycki
Montelupo fiorentino
Chianti - Tuscany - Italy
story…
The property now known as Fattoria di Sammontana has a history in Tuscany that dates back to the 12th century. During that time it was under the ownership of the Medici family, eventually the estate and Romanesque church next to it was then donated to the religious canons of the church of San Lorenzo in Florence. While under the ownership of the church it was mostly used as a place of rest for the monks, however they did build a large underground cellar on the property as well as an elaborate furnace facility for the production of terracotta. The entirety of the estate remained in the hands of the church until 1867 when a Polish nobleman, Michele Dzieduszycki, purchased the estate and surrounding farm land.
Michele was fond of spending his vacations in Tuscany, which is what led him to purchase the estate, which was really only intended to be a getaway and not a permanent home for him. His son, Maurizio however did manage to make the move to Tuscany full time after meeting and falling in love with an Italian woman. It is with Maurizio’s son, Massimo, that the founding of Fattoria di Sammontana as a wine producing and all around agricultural estate begins. Massimo took the humble family home and surrounding land and established it as a producer of honest wines and olive oil. They currently have around 13 hectares under vine and around 3,000 olive trees planted on the property.
Today the estate is run and managed by the fourth and fifth generations of the Dzieduszycki family. Andrea, fourth generation, is still involved but has passed a majority of the responsibilities and work off to his two sons, Daniele & Lorenzo. This fifth generation has brought a drive and work ethic to continue to increase their quality of product as well as expanding the line of wines they produce under the Sammontana label. Alongside their traditional production of Chianti wines they also produce a line of Toscana bottlings that are all aged in terracotta amphora, a nod to the ancient history of the region and to the ancient terracotta furnace facility on the property. The labels for these wines were designed by Lorenzo. The heart of their production remains focused on traditionally made Chianti wines and olive oil, but are always looking to express different aspects of their region.
farming & Philosophy…
As of 2012 the entire Sammontana estate has been certified organic and they have since started to incorporate some biodynamic farming practices in their vineyards along with organics. There are no chemical fertilizers or herbicides used in the vineyards and the only treatments that are used or sulfur & copper, but these are only applied when necessary and under the guidelines of certified organic agriculture. They plant cover crops in the fall, typically different types of legumes and grass in between the rows of vines.
The cellar work is very traditional, and in a sense along the same lines as many “natural” producers the world over. Fermentations all take place on native/ambient yeasts and there are no additives used during any of the winemaking process, say for small doses of SO2. Their white wines are gently pressed off the skins and left to set for a day before going to stainless steel for native ferments. The red wine production, the bulk of what they produce, is fermented in large glazed cement tanks with frequent pump overs &/or punch downs. They do open air racking throughout the elevage so they can avoid the need for filtering or fining of the wine. As a whole they are not huge fans of oak, therefore a great majority of their wines are aged in a combination of concrete tank/vats & stainless steel. Their Primo Fuoco line is all aged in terracotta amphora. They use some barriques in the cellar but only on two of their upper tier wines, of which neither is currently imported to the states.
Vineyards…
All of the wines produced at Fattoria di Sammontana come from their roughly 13 hectares of estate vineyards. These vineyards, as one would expect, are planted primarily to traditional varieties of the region such as: Sangiovese, Canaiolo, Trebbiano Toscana, Malvasia Bianca, Malvasia del Chianti, & Coloroino. They also have a collection of international varieties that are used in both blends and on their own, these include: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah, & Sauvignon.
