REPORTAGE
76
JULY 2015
Above left:AntonellaMarconi,managerofCasatoPrimeDonne,
DonatellaCinelliColombini’ssecondvineyard;Aboveright:
FattoriadelCollecellarmanagerBarbaraMagnini
you can taste ourwine and see. Itmay ormay not be
your stylebut thequality is there.’ Finally, this yearwe
are getting the results.”
Smooth and fruity, the 2010BrunelloPrimeDonnewas
recently given a score of 96by
Wine Spectator
magazine,
and aroundhalf of the 150,000bottles ofwineproduced
by the vineyards each year are exported, selling in32
countries includingBelgium, theUS and theUK.
But Cinelli Colombini –whodescribes herself as an
equal opportunist, not a feminist –didn’t stop atwine.
Once the Fattoriadel Colle vineyardwas up and running
she transformed theproperty’s empty villas into 18 self-
contained apartments andbedrooms, adding a restaurant,
awine-themed spa and a cooking school for guests to
enjoy, eachwith awoman at thehelm.
In2004 she launched thePremioCasatoPrimeDonne
series of awards, thebiggest ofwhich is given to an Italian
womandoing extraordinarywork for her country and
gender. “Theproject is interesting andnecessary, and I’m
proud tobepart of it,” saysMarconi. “Donatella’s a great
ambassador forwomen and the territory, always a step
ahead, andby creating this award forwomen she’s brought
attention to gender inequality in Italy.”
Back at Fattoriadel Colle, in a restored villawithopen
windows and an industrial kitchen, chef HellePoulsen
Tesio is teaching sixholidaymakers tomakehandmade
pastawithpeas and crispypancetta, Tuscan antipasti
and
spiedini con vitello
: thin strips of veal stuffed
with sausage. There areplenty of oohs and aahs and
laughter as bowls of hand-whipped ricotta and
mascarpone are scraped clean, washeddownwith a
Eat,drink, sleep
Astayat theFattoriadel Colle’s
agriturismo
(cinellicolombini.it) costs from€100pernightwith
breakfast. Guests can select fromaprivatevillawith
pool, apartmentsordoublebedrooms. The reception
staffcanarrangewine tastings (from€12perperson),
vineyard tours, andbookaplaceonHellePoulsenTesio’s
half-daycooking course (from€127 including lunchand
wines). Theproperty is a90-minutedrive fromFlorence.
Thereare carhireoptions at theairport, or take the
train toArezzoor Siena,where theproperty’sdriver
Gianmarcowill bewaiting (tuscanysienatours.it).
