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Visit Le Marche for some of the best vineyards in Italy
Le Marche is home to some of the best vineyards in Italy. In this sunny region on the east coast of Italy, you will find an abundance of small family-run wineries who farm using traditional and sustainable methods to protect the biodiversity of this fertile land. You will discover new varieties of grapes and taste wines of the highest quality. One of the oldest known wines is Rosso Piceno is from Le Marche. The Piceni or Picenes were an ancient tribe which dwelled here until the Romans conquered them around the second century B.C. Hannibal is said to have refreshed his troops on the wine.
Surrounded by vines
The view above is of the vineyards from the pool area of our holiday apartment at Villa in the Vineyard. Our eco-villa sits sympathetically in the landscape surrounded by 7.5 hectares (19 acres) of vineyards and farmland. The land is farmed by the Vitali family who run the winery, Casale Vitali, just up the road from us. Gabriele and Elisabetta are the energetic couple, who manage the wine production and the cantina for wine tastings. Gabriele's grandfather, Alfredo, set up the farm in 1970 with his son, Giuliano who still farms the land today and at first they managed livestock. They then moved on to fruit and vines, which they cultivated to sell on to other producers. Gabriele trained as a land surveyor and in 2003 took the brave decision to develop their own wines and grow vines for their own use using a low environmental impact practice. Today they now produce a collection of 10 wines (red, white and sparkling white and rose), with several holding the DOC accreditation for quality.
A tailor-made wine tour for our guests
With our location within the vineyards, we are able to offer our guests a very special wine tour. Firstly, you can walk through the vines on our land and see the varieties of grape the Vitalis grow here including Pecorino, Passerina for white wines and Sangiovese for reds. In the spring/early summer you will be able to see the way they allow the grass, clover, mint and wild flowers to grow up between the vines to encourage pollinators and then they cut the grass for a natural nitrogen fertilizer. If you are here in the summer, you will see the grapes as they begin to ripen and in the autumn from September to early November you will see the harvest (vendemmia in Italian). In December a local shepherd with the help of his dogs drive the sheep through the vines to eat the grass - they are our living lawnmowers.
Having seen the the vines, you will then be able to visit the Vitali Winery a short walk up our road where Elisabetta will give you a tour of the state-of-the-art winery. You will see how the wines are fermented, the ageing process in barrels for some of the reds as well as the bottling and labelling area. For the sparkling wines they still tie the string by hand to make sure you get the perfect 'pop'!
Finally, Elisabetta will escort you to the traditional vaulted ceiling cantina. On the walls there are numerous awards for their wines. Here you will be able to taste these fine sparkling, white and red wines accompanied by carefully chosen cold meats, salami and cheeses with fresh bread from local producers close by.
The Vitali's have collaborated with three other local wine producers to launch a new white Sangiovese wine for 2019 called Deviango which has had very positive reviews.
We are also working on a wine tour focused on sustainable and organic wines, where you will be able to visit a number of hand-picked wineries in our area and experience some of the best wines in Italy from the local Montepulciano, Pecorino, Passerina and Sangiovese vines. If you would like more information, just email us.
You can also find out more about the wonderful local food all around us to accompany those great wines on our Wine and Food
page.
Nikki Mattei of Villa in the Vineyard and sustainability marketing strategist declares a climate emergency
A holiday home with private pool in the rolling hills of Le Marche, Italy for an eco retreat - run on renewables set in 19 acres of sustainably managed land
Villa in the Vineyard achieved the Green Tourism Gold Award in December 2019 for the eco credentials imbedded in its business: renewables, organic products, zero miles food and wine
Run on renewables this newly constructed tradional-style home offers comfort and style for the conscious traveller
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Roberto and Nikki Mattei of Villa in the Vineyard took part in this annual event in Italy sewing seeds for the future on the organic farm Cooperativa Gino Girolomoni
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For some of the best vineyards in Italy stay at Villa in the Vineyard in Le Marche. Here you will look out on the sustainably run vineyards and taste the wines at the winery up the road.