Marchesi Antinori

“The key to the transition is that the generation after gets a real grip on the fundamental values of the company and family history. You're not transmitting technology. You're transmitting respect for the land, the quality of the product. Whatever comes from the generation before is not a gift for you to do with it as you will. It’s something that you need to look after and make sure that it’s in better condition for the ones that follow.”

                      - Albiera Antinori, winemaker

In many regards, the name Antinori is synonymous with great Italian wines, both in the traditional Chiantis and in the innovative and courageous Supertuscans. The story of winemaking here traces back to the year 1385 when Giovanni di Piero Antinori joined the “Arte Fiorentina,” the Winemakers’ Guild of the city of Florence. In the years that followed, the fame of their wine expanded, to the extent that in 1506 they purchased the famed Palazzo Antinori, built for the Boni family in the 1460s. At this time, Alessandro Antinori was one of the richest men in Florence.

Fast forward a few centuries, the modern history of this great Italian franchise begins in 1900, when Piero Antinori bought several vineyards in the Chianti Classico region, including 47 hectares at Tignanello. It was his son Niccolò, young and courageous, who goes on to shock the Tuscany and the rest of Italy in 1924, by making a Chianti containing Bordeaux grape varieties. He continued to experiment over the following years, with new blends, barrel types, temperature control and bottle ageing. Niccolò retired in 1966, to be replaced by his son Piero who was even more innovative. He investigated early harvesting of white grapes, different types of barrique, stainless steel vats and malolactic fermentation of red wines.

The real mark of the revolution came in 1971, with the launch of Tignanello, a barrique-aged wine from the eponymous vineyard that contained Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc, which meant that it was ineligible for the Chianti Classico appellation. Technically Tignanello was not the first Super Tuscan - that honor goes to Sassicaia, created by a relative of the Antinoris - the Marquis Mario Incisa della Rocchetta. But it was Tignanello that really shook up the Italian wine industry, leading to far-reaching changes in rules and attitudes. Even though the Chianti Classico DOCG rules have now been changed to accommodate wines such as Tignanello, the Antinoris continue to sell it as a Toscana IGT wine. Emboldened by the success of the 20% Bordeaux blend Tignanello, in 1978 Antinori launched the 80% Cabernet Solaia, from the neighboring vineyard.

Today, the seven-century old family business is managed by Albiera Antinori, with the support of her sisters Allegra and Alessia, who are all closely involved. When thinking of the long history of the place, the Antinori estate is defined by its courageous and innovative decisions but always maintaining unaltered, fundamental respect for tradition and the terroir.