We are the mediators between nature and a man-made product. We believe that by doing less we can achieve more.
We are lucky to have the chance to live and work on a great terroir, from the very beginning we have worked hard on two things:
Our wish is that our wines can reveal their soul, which is nothing more than the outcome of the climate, the vintage, and the geology of each and every single vineyard, in order to understand the Montalcino terroir through the Sangiovese.
Our wine represents our little corner of the world; we have vineyards on two opposite sides of Montalcino: in Castelnuovo dell’Abate, on the south-east side, where Podere le Ripi was founded 25 years ago, and on the west side, in an area named Galampio.
34 hectares in total, of which 30 are fully dedicated to Sangiovese, one to Syrah, and three to Trebbiano and Malvasia.
These two areas are so different that we have decided to keep the grapes separate and produce wines from single vineyards instead of making a Brunello which is a result of their blend. This is part of the beauty of growing Sangiovese, a grape that is chameleon-like, that captures the character of the different geological compounds.
For example, in Castelnuovo dell’Abate we enjoy a full sun from early in the morning, a constant breeze and the protection of the Monte Amiata. The soils have a very high clayey and silty content; they have oceanic origins, are rich in limestone, with high pH and in some instances very strong salinity. This kind of terroir gives wines a tangible depth and layering, but it requires a light human hand due to its exuberant nature which is the result of this warm and sunny area of Montalcino.
On the west side the picture changes quite a bit, and it can be easily understood by simply looking at the vegetation. The area is isolated and immersed in the forest, overlooking the Ombrone river. This energy is imprinted in the wines: it is as if they were wild. The vines get the sun mostly in the afternoon, the climate tends to be more humid and cooler, the complete opposite of the east side.
Here the geological composition of the soil is very heterogeneous and influenced by erosive phenomena originating from the course of the river and the washed-out hills overlooking the land. This condition originates in an alluvial mixture, quite silty and deep, dominated by clay and sand, enriched by various draining rocky materials (alberese, galestri, macigno toscano). This slope helps us in hot vintages, with more diluted fruit often dedicated to the production of Sogni e Follia and Cielo D’Ulisse.
Producing Brunello in Montalcino is a deep-rooted tradition, on the contrary, applying biodynamic agriculture is a relatively new technique. Few generations ago people produced wines and worked the land in a very similar manner, but without giving it any specific definition or classification. They weren’t producing “natural Brunello”, they were simply making wine. We decided to combine the two concepts, to produce a Brunello following classic and traditional methods of cellar-aging, but without adding any additives, other than a very small quantity of sulfur. In the vineyard, we follow biodynamic farming practices, which can be viewed as a more modern farming method, but there is very little innovation about it. These reasons are why we define ourselves as farmers but also artisans.
Brunello Cielo D’Ulisse comes from the western side of the hill, Brunello Lupi e Sirene and Amore e Magia from the eastern side. These wines spend from 24 to 41 months in large barrels depending on the ever-changing characteristics of the vintage, to then complete their aging in concrete for 12-24 months. Our Brunello, Rosso di Montalcino and Bonsai are pure expressions of the vintage.
Cappuccetto Rosa (Pink Riding hood), the first ever rosé produced in Podere Le Ripi completes the trilogy. From the Canna Torta which depicts a clumsy hunter, and following with the Attenti al Lupo which shows a sneaky wolf attempting mischief during the night. Then we absolutely had to include Cappuccetto Rosa in the characters. A young girl with a pink hood riding a flying whale while dreaming, just under the nose of the astonished (and hungry) wolf. The flying whale represents our Sangiovese: a generous grape, rich in Mediterranean flavours and sun, but in its best forms is capable of surprising us with unexpected lightness, just like a huge flying whale that sails the sky.
Cappuccetto Rosa is a rosé not produced by draining (salasso) but by direct press. Meaning that grapes were picked with the idea of being transformed without skin contact. At the end of the fermentation, it will stay in cement for approximately 9 months, the needed time to lose its cloudiness and to become naturally clear, for lack of particles that will naturally sediment during its time in the cement vat.
Attenti al Lupo is a new project born from the evolution process Podere Le Ripi went through in the last few years. On one hand we have the study and the research undertaken by our team, that felt the need to examine and investigate new choices and practices both in the vineyards and in the cellar in order to find solutions for a climate that is putting our vineyards to the test. Following various tests we identified certain block of our vineyards mainly (but not only) on the alluvial soils, where we could engage in an earlier harvest and a fermentation carried out in a way that is definitely not-so typical in the area.
Attenti al Lupo is 100% sangiovese, and for the past four years we’ve been trying to understand if using stems during the fermentation, combined with semi-carbonic macerations could give us back that sangiovese that has become so hard to get nowadays. Especially in terms of acidity and taste that makes younger Sangiovese a lively and dynamic grape.
In our opinion these practices are capable of bringing out raw and tastier flavors, normally harder to extract with a traditional approach to sangiovese of Montalcino.
This is the only white wine we produce, made with Trebbiano and Malvasia, subjected to prolonged skin contact, it is often defined as an Orange wine, although its color is not too pronounced. While our newly planted vineyards were coming to the appropriate age to produce, the first three vintages of Canna Torta (from 2018 to 2020) were made by experimenting with purchased grapes organically grown in Tuscany.
We started producing this wine driven by our curiosity and because we needed to understand whether in Montalcino it would be possible to produce white wine, from native grapes, without resorting to the use of chemicals and additives.
Canna Torta is produced with a maceration on the skins of about 8-9 months in terracotta amphorae. The grapes ferment spontaneously in the coldest location of the cellar and continue their journey until we perceive the wine as being ready. The choice of terracotta was made to amplify the effect of the maceration process the wine must go through, and to have it benefit from the natural porosity of the material. Simply put, we needed the perfect container for our (alive) product.
This is Rosso di Montalcino from the Sangiovese vineyards that we have on the western side. Historically, our Rosso di Montalcino has always been aged for an unusually long period. This choice, as well as to satisfy the need to allow a natural stabilization of the wine directly in the barrel, without treatments, gives us the chance to offer a well-balanced Sangiovese.
Depending on the vintage, Sogni e Follia rests in casks for 24-36 months.
Cielo d’Ulisse recalls the vegetation and environment of the western slope. Classic style, slightly tannic, it is diluted in the mouth. This Brunello on the nose recalls the wild forests and the cool microclimate of the vineyards where it comes from.
Amore e Magia shows the sun and the Mediterranean climate that can easily be perceived in Castelnuovo. The marriage between Sangiovese and clayey soils is evident here with a wine that makes depth and layering its signature from year to year.
Lupi e Sirene just a few meters away from the above-mentioned vineyard, is dominated by light alkaline marl, the ground darkens and granite appears clearly. Same exposure, same altitude, different geology. Here the Sangiovese is less approachable and needs more patience. The presence of iron in the soil is also found in the glass offering the typical haematic notes that some Sangiovese have. It is a wine that in the first 10 years of its life often goes through reduction phases. We define it as a masculine and earthy wine.
Bonsai is produced from Sangiovese vineyards trained according to fit this “Bonsai” system. The production itself is very low due to the low yields that this training system causes. This vineyard, conceived for having extreme density, 62.500 vines per hectare, stimulates the depth of the roots, reinforcing the link between the plant and deeper layers of the soil.
This extreme density is not sanctioned in the production of Brunello and Rosso di Montalcino; therefore, this wine is released as IGT.
Due to the training system, the clayey soils, and the personality of this wine, we recommend waiting at least 6-7 years before opening a bottle, to ensure that the wine appears more welcoming.
We couldn’t be happier seeing people discovering and falling in love with our artisanal wines, it is our nourishment! Especially when people understand what we do and why, and it results in them reserving our every vintage year by year.
But is crucial to appreciate that we are talking about nature’s fruit and nature just loves surprising us every year!
Being our wines mostly sourced from single vineyards, farmed biodynamically and crafted in small quantity, we had to find solutions to provide decent availability for everyone without changing our natural approach to winemaking.
As we can no longer guarantee purchase of bigger amounts of bottles, we decided to introduce a more specific allocation system similar to a wine club, which will give priority to hard-to-find, small production wines. This obviously refers in particular to our three Brunello, the Sangiovese Bonsai and our white wine.
Our aim is to portray the different expression of the Montalcino’s terroirs, our wines really speak for the land, the vintage and our people. This wine club aims to offer two somewhat different levels to choose from so you can ensure you’ll receive every year all our handcrafted wines. Each shipment will be a little different from the one before, thus ensuring there is always something new to try! Wine availability may change according to the vintage, as mentioned, we are not here to dominate the nature but to let her blossom.
No entrance or cancellation fees
Access to our private allocationì
Professional tasting notes
Exclusive “Members Only” tasting experience for you and three guests, extendable to family and friends
January | October
Ask for more info!
CONTACT INFORMATION
[email protected] | +39 0577 835 641 | +39 3485732532
