Castello Vicchiomaggio

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Although remnants from the Etruscan era have been discovered on the property, Castello Vicchiomaggio's historical roots stretch back to the fifth century, when it was known as Vicchio dei Longobardi (Village of the Longobards). The name was changed to Vicchiomaggio during the Renaissance (1450–1500), when the Village of May (maggio) and the current castle were both constructed.

The Estate is very important historically. The Castello can be found in the records of Leonardo da Vinci, who visited the estate and painted the Mona Lisa while staying there. At Vicchiomaggio, eminent scholar Francesco Redi wrote the famed "Bacco in Toscana" (first published in 1685) that has become so well-known.

The Matta family, who originated from Tonengo near Asti in Piemonte but migrated to London and began importing French and Italian in the early 1960s, has owned the estate since 1964. The estate was in terrible shape, but thanks to a committed replanting programme, Vicchiomaggio is now again among the best Chianti estates. Since 1982, John Matta and his wife Paola have managed the estate, and the quality has continued to rise, culminating in their being voted Italian Winemaker of the Year at the International Wine and Spirit Competition in 2002 and 2005.

In order to make good wine, a vineyard must produce good grapes, and nowhere is this more true than at Castello Vicchiomaggio. Each vine is methodically trained to yield a maximum of 6 bunches of grapes, and all work on the vines is done by hand. To accomplish this, extensive green picking is used, and throughout the growing season, the vineyard is traversed multiple times to guarantee that all the grapes ripen consistently. In this manner, yields are kept low to produce grapes of the best quality for the wine.

Castello Vicchiomaggio is constantly ranked amongst The best Italian wineries, and in 2002 John Matta received the Tasca d'Almerita Trophy for "Best Italian Producer of the Year." After that, the 2003 La Prima Chianti Classico Riserva won the "Carpineto Trophy For the Best Sangiovese" in the same competition, and the IWSC 2005 award for "Italian Wine Producer of the Year" followed. A remarkable accomplishment for an Englishman!

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