Montalcino also has its own “vineyard in the city”. It is welcomed by the ancient Fortress

Montalcino, one of the most famous wine territories in the world, also has its “vineyard in the city”, welcomed by its symbolic monument, the ancient Fortress. Where tomorrow, for “Benvenuto Brunello” no. 30 (Montalcino, November 19-29), a vineyard will be created that symbolically celebrates the great vocation of the territory, with the planting of the first cuttings of a row of the “prince” vine on whose cultivation and production the history and economy of Montalcino are based, and that has made it famous throughout the world thanks to the production of Brunello: Sangiovese, of which today it is the “home” par excellence.
A project that is not productive but ornamental, desired by the Municipality of Montalcino and “baptized” by the Consorzio del Vino Brunello di Montalcino, and that will be managed by the students of the Istituto Professionale Agrario, a detached “residence”, with the Professional Address of Services for Agriculture and Rural Development, in the Brunello territory of the Istituto di Istruzione Superiore “Bettino Ricasoli” of Siena.
And that “is part of a “historical garden” that, with the support of the Soprintendenza Archeologica Belle Arti e Paesaggio (Archaeological, Fine Arts and Landscape Authority) for the provinces of Siena, Grosseto and Arezzo, reproduces inside a monument that has one million visitors, the typical cultivations of the town’s vegetable gardens that have been a characteristic of Montalcino since the Middle Ages - the mayor of Montalcino, Silvio Franceschelli, tells WineNews - from dog roses to olive trees, from aromatic plants to vines. Which for the moment will only be Sangiovese, but to which in the future will be added the vine-grafts of Moscato Bianco, the vine from which Moscadello is made”, the “historic wine” that has made the territory famous in past centuries, and that today is a “niche” production. In the meantime, “the first Sangiovese vine shoots will be planted close to the walls of the Fortress”, explains Luca Pastorelli, trustee of the Montalcino plexus of the Institute, “using traditional materials and techniques characteristic of the area, and with reference to the provisions of the Superintendency, with management and care work that will be carried out by the students during their studies”.
Montalcino is not only one of the world’s wine “capitals”, but also an important example of a medieval town, where gardens are one of the most “precious” legacies of the communal heritage, sources of sustenance in times of peace and war, within the ancient walls that still surround it, dominated by the imposing Fortress. Witness to history, built in the 14th century at the behest of Siena, for centuries the Fortress has defended the city from the sieges of Ghibelline Siena and Guelph Florence, contended for the strategic position of its hill, which is clearly visible from the view that, from the top of the walkways, sweeps over the different slopes that make the terroir of Brunello unique. Mentioned by poets and writers such as Gabriele D’Annunzio and Nobel Prize winner for Literature Saul Bellow - as have Montalcino wines since ancient times, starting with Moscadello - it was the setting for the film “Brother Sun, Sister Moon” by Maestro Franco Zeffirelli (1972), and the stage for the greatest Italian actors, from Eduardo De Filippo to Vittorio Gassman, from Dario Fo to Franca Valeri, from Gigi Proietti to Giorgio Albertazzi. And now it is also home to the “most illustrious” representative of the richness, biodiversity and history of the Brunello area: the vine.