Prestigious Reds and Whites
Over 1700 hectares of an estate employing up to 600 people during the height of its glory in the 1800s, the Castello Terriccio winery in Maremma Italy is located on the northern Tuscan coast not too far from the city of Pisa. The estate is enormous and offers vast olive groves, wheat fields, a horse breeding facility and wild game in extensive numbers.
Etruscan Roots
The Etruscan era was the beginning of the estate with its strategic location overlooking the ocean and the islands of Gorgona, Capraia, Corsica and Elba. The location was used to watch for pirates attempting to raid the coastline. The Terriccio castle ruins can still be seen. The estate next passed into the hands oaf the Gaetani family who managed it and resided there for five hundred years. The Maremma wineries cellar and farm buildings are still standing.
Post 1979
Although the present owner Serafini Ferri acquired the property in 1921, it was not until 1979 that the Ferri, confined to a wheelchair, took more of an interest in the potential of the estate as a wine making facility. The Castello Terriccio winery in Maremma Italy was developed with vineyard plantings of Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Sangiovese in the 1980s and 1990s.
Current Yields
Maremma wineries produce interesting white wines and very powerful red wines that have been espoused by the international community of wine lovers. The best known of the wines is the Tuscan Lupicaia, whose name comes from the vine planting location where wolves used to hunt. The blend includes flavors of fruit with spice and balsam. The Castello del Terriccio ruby wine is a complex blend of flavors.
The Castello Terriccio winery in Maremma Italy harvest is done by hand in order to protect the condition of the grapes. Yield is also deliberately curtailed in order that each grape will receive maximum benefit of the soil nutrients and the available water. The estate is a must on our wine tour list.
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