MONTEVERRO
“A great wine is like a work of art: it pushes us to seek out and respect each terroir’s unique character.” (George Weber)
MONTEVERRO is a young winery founded in 2003 by Mr Georg Weber, German nationality. The property is located in Capalbio in Maremma (Tuscany), on the border of the Lazio region.
This region was long, until the mid-twentieth century occupied by large agricultural grain fields.
Photo by ©LeifCarlsson
Georg Weber’s love for wine was born when he was a student while he was dripping for the first time a glass of fine Bordeaux. Since that day his passion for wine only grew up to bring it to the purchase of MONTEVERRO.
In 2000 wishing to acquire property Georg Weber began looking for a vineyard. For three years visited many properties in Bordeaux, Napa Valley, Bolgherie or Australia but it’s coming on holiday in Tuscany, on the border of Lazio G. Weber was in love at first sight for the place would become MONTEVERRO.
In 2003, not wishing to rush without being sure to be able to produce great wines he asked leading international experts to study the soil of MONTEVERRO. Satisfied with the results he proceeded with the purchase of this former farm of 50 hectares.
In 2004 he planted Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot; in 2005 Syrah and Grenache and finally Chardonnay in 2006 to reach a total of 16 hectares. Since, they’ve been planting, every two years roughly, to increase the Bordeaux grape varieties.
Today the property has 50 hectares of MONTEVERRO including 27 hectares of vineyards and 23 hectares of scrubland, buildings and trees.
Where does the name “MONTEVERRO” come from?
“Mounted” means “hill” and “verro” means “wild boar” in the local vernacular. MONTEVERRO can therefore be translated as “Boar Hill.”
A popular local legend tells that in 1901 a young girl who wanted to celebrate Christmas dinner by adding meat to the soup of her family, went hunting with her father’s gun. The naive girl wandered into the thick bush and killed a boar so huge and dangerous that even the bravest fighter friends of her father would have feared the boar. That feat was immortalized in the name of MONTEVERRO.
Focus on Matthieu Taunay, winemaker / oenologist of MONTEVERRO
“We are using progressive farming methods but our practices are inspired by the organic farming (no insecticide, just copper and sulphur).
Each action and decision here is made with care / for example the craftsman-winemaker understands the strengths, weaknesses, constraints, potential and needs of his vineyard. We work our vineyard little by little.
© Giacomo Fè for Monteverro
We harvest by hand in small crates 7kg then vinify by gravity. Each year we produce 5 labels (2 white, red 4) with a total of about 150,000 bottles of wine per year. The first produced vintage was the 2008. It was sold for the first time in 2011. We were already very happy with the result but we want to go further each year.
It also produces about 1,000 bottles of olive oil a year.
What I like here is the terroir, the challenge to be part of nothing but to create a property, the love for this region and its potential and to the atmosphere within the team. It is a very cosmopolitan team. I am French, the owner is German, our winemaker is French and our team also includes Italian, German and a Swiss. Between us we worked on five continents. ”
What is the terroir of MONTEVERRO ?
“It is located on a hill facing the sea (5km), so it benefits from marine influences. It is between 30 and 80 meters above sea level.
In summer in this part of Tuscany the winds can be very strong and hot. But at least they blow gently over MONTEVERRO because we are located within a natural bay, it is protected.
It’s always breezy here. Summer days bring us a refreshing sea breeze and on hot August nights, the winds are strong enough to bring the vines the refreshment they need.
Our soil consists of clays that slowly release water to fight against the heat, limestone and large rocks help with soil drainage. It’s a nice virgin soil that was planted a few years ago. There were no grape vines here before we arrived but only cereals, olive groves and scrubland.
It is surrounded by a small natural wall made of red earth, boulders and surrounded by scrubland that allows us to naturally protect the vineyards but also to maintain good biodiversity. It is a mineral rich terrain, which is good for the vineyard. ”
What is recognizeable about MONTEVERRO wines in a blind tasting? What is your signature style ?
© Giacomo Fè for Monteverro
“In our wines are always a hint of scrubland; a reminder of the DNA of these wines, the terroir. This is something that is typical of this hill. Delicate saline finish is also still found in our wines. This is probably due to the sea wind.
The focus is on the work in the vineyard for wine is made primarily in the vineyard. We work on the length, complexity, but especially on the width of the wines. Deeper wines more marked by the terroir, cooler … Finally one makes a careful fine tuning of the details … ”
How would you describe Monteverro in a few words / adjectives?
« Young (for the atmosphere and the owners), International (team), explosive / free and pioneering nature (belief in something new, in the potential of this region. »
Side story:
One of the wines MONTEVERRO is called ‘Tinata’. “This is one of the favorite wines of Mr Weber! “.
He gave it the name “Tinata” in honor of his mother, Christine. It’s a passionate Syrah and was affectionately nicknamed “Tina”. “Plus it really has traits like Ms. Weber! It is a wine that combines power and feminine sensuality. ”
Thanks to the team of MONTEVERRO for its warm welcome.
Choukroun Chicheportiche Jonathan
Monteverro
Capalbio,
58011 Capalbio Province of Grosseto, Italie
Tél :+39 0564 890721
