The 2022 growing season was dominated by summer heat, where we recorded temperatures about 5˚C above average, and a distinct lack of precipitation, which was absent from April to August. As it happens, our established vineyards have faced the season exceptionally well, with very little heat stress, a testament, we think, to our particular terroir […]
We received Slow Wine’s “Top Wine” rating for our 2019 Chianti Classico. We cannot say how proud we are to be recognized by this guide. (Incidentally, Greve in Chianti is a “slow town.” What better place to enjoy our “slow wine”?) ***** Appreciation for our Chianti Classico Riserva 2019 Live tasting with Jamie Goode “There […]
Florence is an extraordinary city with a large number of surprises, not the least of which are the “wine holes” (or often called “gates of heaven”). The latter have undergone something of a revival in recent times, thanks in part to Stanley Tucci and his excellent “Searching for Italy” series. These miniature gates, located within […]
As reported in our latest newsletter, we are about to plant a new Sangiovese vineyard. We put a lot of thought into the clones to be planted, since, of course, these vines will be with us for the next 30, 40, 50 years. (A clone, by the way, is a single plant derived from another […]
With its beautiful glossy purple skin, the elegant eggplant has served us well this summer and is nearing the end of its season. This dish is perfect for cooler evenings. Every Italian home has its own variation of this classic dish, but this is ours in Montecalvi. Eggplant Parmigiana Serves 6 people 3 medium-sized eggplants, […]
As this newsletter lands in your inbox, we’re bottling a new/old wine that we’re excited to share with you. We invite you to cheerfully welcome all acronyms (welcome to the world of wine and welcome to Italy). The wine in question has the designation AVG or Alta Valle della Greve, is an IGT and thus […]
Laura Vegni runs our cantina and also feeds us all throughout the vendemmia Laura lives in the neighbouring hamlet of Montefioralle, which looks down on Greve in Chianti. Her family has lived there for generations and, in one way or another, they have worked on the Montecalvi property for years. She is a vital part […]
We are pleased to announce the release of our 2019 Chianti Classico Riserva. It comes exclusively from the Montecalvi Alto vineyard, which was planted to Sangiovese in 1990, and we only made two barrels of this wine from the excellent 2019 vintage. This particular vineyard tends to give us cleaner, more compact Sangiovese grapes, and […]
We were happy to have Emily O’Hare visiting this winter. Emily O’Hare left her job as head sommelier and wine buyer at London’s The River Cafe (one of our favorite restaurants) in 2014 to attend the grape harvest in Italy, and she never returned. Emily is a well-respected wine critic living in Siena, Italy. She […]
One of our favorite moments is when we go to the winery to taste directly from the barrels. We do this often to control both the evolution and quality of the wines. There is no fixed recipe for our wines. Every vintage is different, every time we cut the wine there are fari factors to […]
