The now unfortunately deceased founder Andrea Franchetti was the son of an American mother and an Italian father. Growing up in an environment frequented by artists, he was raised with experiments and research in his blood, which later also showed in his way of winemaking. Stubborn and determined, he ignored the most important grape variety of the region – Sangiovese – and instead focused on Bordeaux grape varieties. Today, Tenuta di Trinoro is counted among the legendary wineries of Italy.
In the 1980s, Andrea decided to plant Bordeaux grape varieties in a godforsaken area south of the Brunello region, in the Val d’Orcia, on until then completely untouched land. After gaining his first experiences in Bordeaux, his special love was for Cabernet Franc. The location here is also something very special. Of the approximately 200 hectares, 23 are planted with vines, lying between 420 and 600 meters in altitude on barren, weathered, calcareous soils. The soils reminded Andrea of those in Saint-Emilion, which gave rise to his visionary idea to plant French vines here in the first place. Due to the altitude, the microclimate is significantly cooler than one would expect from the southern latitude. This allows the grapes to ripen slowly and evenly.
At the beginning, Andrea's winemaker friends Peter Sisseck (Pingus) and Jean-Luc Thunevin (Château Valandraud) stood by him with advice and support. Andrea Franchetti soon created wines with a characteristic combination of power, structure, and strength. His wines are extremely dark and rich in extract. At Tenuta di Trinoro, grapes are always harvested late and only when fully ripe. This gives them a wonderfully brilliant, rich, and mature touch.
The flagship of the winery also bears his name: Tenuta di Trinoro. The blend is always based on Cabernet Franc and Merlot, with smaller proportions of Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot. The wine has already achieved perfection on paper, as it received a full 100 points from wine critic Robert Parker. While "Palazzi" is a silky, ripe, single-varietal Merlot, three single-vineyard Cabernet Francs are also vinified separately: Tenaglia, Magnacosta, and Camagi. All three are highly individual, powerful, and complex. They need some bottle aging, and just like top Bordeaux from the right bank, they reward patience with great finesse and complexity. These fascinating wines have their very own character and are in no way inferior to the Bordeaux wines. Not wines for every day, but they undoubtedly belong to the greatest wines in the world.
Sancaba is another visionary project by Carlo Franchetti, Andrea's cousin. The vineyard lies at over 650 meters altitude, high in the hills of San Casciano dei Bagni, at the southern edge of the province of Siena. The soils consist of calcium-rich, weathered clay and schist. The cool microclimate is also ideal for growing outstanding Pinot Noir. Here, the temperature difference between warm days and cool nights is high. This allows the grapes to ripen slowly and perfectly evenly. Often, harvesting only takes place in October. The result? Precise, mineral Pinot with so much tension that it pops. From Tuscany… – hard to believe, right?!
Unfortunately, Andrea Franchetti passed away in December 2021. He leaves behind big footsteps, into which his well-coordinated team steps with great pride and awareness of responsibility. Vincenzo Lo Mauro has been the chief oenologist at Passopisciaro from the beginning, since the year 2000. He has always supported Andrea's vision of developing the separate Contrada vineyards on Etna. Now, together with Andrea's sons Benjamin and Carlo, he continues to lead the winery's affairs in Andrea's spirit.
