GROWTH, VALUES and TERRITORY

Over the years, our estate has expanded with the purchase of new lands in which vineyards have been planted, reaching the current 60 hectares, of which about 35 of vines, 14 of olive groves, and about 10 hectares have been maintained as a forested area. The predominant grape variety is Sangiovese, which constitutes the “soul” of Chianti Classico. However, since 2000, international varieties such as Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon have been introduced, contributing in various percentages to the composition of some of our important IGT wines. In the following years, with the aim to strengthen the bond with the Chianti territory, its history, and traditions, new vineyards have been replanted with native varieties such as Canaiolo Nero, Colorino, Trebbiano, Malvasia Lunga del Chianti, Ciliegiolo, and Foglia Tonda, an indigenous grape variety that was starting to disappear.

In planting new vineyards, utmost care has always been taken to maintain the forests’ integrity, the water regulation systems, and the hedges, in order to avoid damaging the local biodiversity, while also preserving some historic vineyards such as the one planted with “married” vines in 1920, now quite rare to find. Our attention and care for the surrounding environment positively reflects on the quality of our wines; the forest undergrowth scents of the Mediterranean maquis with its myrtle, rockrose, strawberry tree, bay, mastic, and juniper bushes enrich our wines with their characteristic enveloping aromas.

The vineyards of Torraccia di Presura also stand out thanks to their marl-clay soil which gives body and sapidity to the wines, their excellent exposure, and a very favorable microclimate for the growth and the ripening of the grapes, even in less favorable years. The high quality of the final product also comes from careful and constant soil management.

Since 2015, the practice of controlled grassing in alternate rows with nitrogen-fixing plants has been carried out in all our vineyards. This naturally enriches the soil with nitrogen and prevents the growth of potentially harmful plants for the vines without having to rely on herbicides in the inter-rows.

In 2013, our winery Torraccia di Presura launched a new project: the expansion of our agricultural activities with the development of an agritourism program, which materialized with the 2019 opening of the agritourism Villa Ulivello in Chianti. The agritourism is located in the Villa Ulivello complex, adjoining Torraccia di Presura, and was renovated between 2015 and 2019, following a carefully studied project by Paolo Osti himself, with the support of his architecture and engineering firm. An interesting historic villa from the early 19th century, restored with care and attention to preserving its original architectural, distributional, and functional aspects, and the adjacent farmhouse for which traditional materials were used, with natural plaster-free cement on the exterior and interior, fixtures, and materials that minimize thermal dispersions. Solar panels have been installed on the roofs of both buildings to produce hot water solely through renewable sources.

The agritourism, mainly managed by Federico Osti, Paolo’s son, offers hospitality, dining, tastings, and sales of the winery’s products. The choice of raw materials for the restaurant is based exclusively on first-choice ingredients produced on the estate or sourced locally to help reduce CO2 emissions and support the local economy.