Carpineta Fontalpino Winery

[CAR-pea-ne-tah fon-TAL-pea-no]

Location: Castelnuovo Berardenga, Province of Siena, Tuscany, Italy

Carpineta Fontalpino was founded in 1967 by Italo Cresti. The estate sits just outside Siena in the area famed for an 800-year-old battle between Florence and Siena and has 27 acres under vine. Today the winery is run by Italo’s children Gioia and Filippo.

Points of Differentiation

• Boutique production
• Classic Chianti style with a modern clean interpretation
• Vineyards have 100 years of winegrowing history
• Approachable and food-friendly

The History

The Cresti family founded Carpineta Fontalpino in the 1960s, though the estate has been used for winemaking since early the 1900s. The founder’s name was Italo Cresti.

The winery takes its name from the surrounding area of Montaperti. The name Carpineta is taken from trees call Carpini, which are indigenous to the area and are easy to recognize by their silver-backed leaves. The name Fontalpino comes from a water source near the winery. Today the founder’s children, Gioia and Filippo consider it an honor to live here.

Today the brother and sister team manage the estate with Filippo in charge of sales and marketing while Gioia is the enologist and agronomist, in charge of every phase of production, from the vinification to the aging.

The winery produces 100,000 to 110,0000 bottles of wine a year along with olive oil, red wine vinegar and pasta made from heirloom grains grown on the property.

The Terroir

The Carpineta Fontalpino property primarily grows Sangiovese, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot grapes with a few additional varietals like Petit Verdot and Alicante.

All the grapes are grown organically on a mix of sand and clay. The pebbly texture of the soil helps to promote good drainage. The vines range from five years old to 40 years old with an average age of 18 years. The plants are Guyot and spurred cordon trained and planted with a density of 1,050-2,700 vines per acre, which helps reduce yields.