Within the history of time, nations have been established and battles have been fought in Chianti. A peaceful place where Etruscan land stood as the borderline of the bloody battlefields between Florence and Siena. From then, the Roman empire was built. Through Sangiovese vineyards, an ever more pure and indigenous blood whose roots flourished throughout the land and protected the peace of its residents, manifested a lasting heritage and tradition that is shared around the world. Upon these historical hills, in the heart of the Chianti Classico region is the family-owned, Montemaggio Estate, located within Radda in Chianti. As it is in the heart of the Chianti Classico region, it also stands as the heart of the borderline where back in 1560 this land was the home of politics. The Podesteria di Radda or City Hall was positioned high on the Monte Maggiore which means Big Mountain. Like mountains grow strong throughout its years and wine ages gracefully with time, so have these Chianti vineyards. Italy wine is a sip that around the world, nations find themselves desiring to experience. Travelers long for tours of Italy and most importantly, Italy’s wine, to grasp the enchanting Tuscan country sides that feed the flavors we so love. A trip to the Chianti vineyards is an experience of a lifetime. To share the cultural experience on native land is a beauty inside itself.
The Chianti vineyards run 20 acres long across the estate which covers about 190 acres of vineyards, groves of olives, and woods as part of the Chianti Classico Consortium. Sweet gifts from the royally historical land of the Montemaggio estate have granted flourishing products like, olive oils, Chardonnay di Montemaggio IGT, Chianti Classico, Rosé di Montemaggio IGT, Merlot and more. All organic raw natured land is what brought the nations here. A legend speaks of the influence the peaceful culture had on the nations in battle. Two knights, two roosters, and one successor. Florence and Siena for decades battled for the land and tired themselves out. Ultimately, the longing for peace was their goal. Each nation chose a rooster to represent their knight. The rooster must wake the knight at dawn to race. The knight that reaches the the end first becomes the one to draw the border. Florence who treated their rooster as not just the way to victory but as a true warrior in battle, starved and placed their black rooster in most uncomfortable conditions. The next rising, that very rooster couldn’t hold it in much longer! For he belched a song so powerful, it rang throughout the land of which they slept, singing of the approaching dawn. And their knight took to the race while Siena pre-celebrated their victory the night before by feeding their white rooster and pampering him so well that he crowed long after the dawn had passed which caused the Sienese knight to be just a little late.
Today, the black rooster is seen on every bottle of Chianti Italy wine. Each sip is a sip of purpose and that purpose is represented in the Montemaggio estate. Valeria Zavadnikova, originally from Russia, was inspired by her fathers dream to cultivate grapes in Tuscany. In 2007 they began their search for Italy’s vineyards. They sought more than a garden or land as Valeria described in a Q&A, they had it in their hearts to connect with this land and its native Chianti Italy wine. Once arriving in Montemaggio and standing on the heart of Italy’s wine vineyards, they knew quite quickly this is where fate had brought them. I like to think of it as two hearts beating one beat, a family’s passion and love for wine and nature, became one with the heart beat of the land of the Chianti Vineyards.
The Montemaggio logo of a young Etruscan woman holding a basket of grapes on her head represents history, passion, heritage, leadership, and value of women as the foundation of fundamental principles in these Chianti vineyards. Which came natural for Valeria and her appreciation in the land. Organic agriculture became her proclivity as it was already in her nature. Growing vegetables with her grandmother at a young age introduced the passion she grew to love. Planting the seeds of life and allowing them to flourish naturally was not only what she knew but also the way that it was created by nature. Having an organic vineyard within the Tuscany fields speaks to the nature of herself and the nature of the country land as it is already filled with organic rich hillside soils. Being in position to pass down a heritage to her children from Russia to the Chianti vineyards is more than just a trend but a way of life.
Chianti Italy wine tours offered in the Montemaggio estate expresses Italy’s heritage through Tuscan vintage wines, painting textile classes, and education. Chianti vineyards hold a history of lifestyle and graceful leisure. Going on a tour of the Fattoria di Montemaggio, you get to experience a home away from home. Friendly and gracious hosts share with travelers the history of why and how its Chianti Italy wine is cultivated. Educating as well as entertaining, each guest gets to learn about how the grapevines are grown organically, making, and tasting wine. Wine tasting includes a mini degustation of local cheeses, snacks and meats. There are a few different tours that one can fully immerse themselves in, to experience the preserved authenticity of the land of Chianti Classico.
Let’s dive into the Chianti tours, agriculture, and vineyards. There are Merlot, Pugnitello, Ciliegiolo, Malvasia Nera, and Sangiovese grapevines. Sangiovese grapes are the vein of the Chianti vineyards, pumping the blood of Montemaggio’s heart. These indigenous purple grapes of Tuscany are the result of a semi-sweet or sweet, dry, crisp Red Wine. It is a main source of Chianti Italy wine, other than its local hospitable residence! Sangiovese hosts alkaloid and amino acidic organic compound tannins and high acidity that directly reflects in the flavour and color. These healthy and flavour inducing additions are only a couple benefits of drinking the wine. They help process food, provide antioxidants, and work best with red meat protein that heightens the flavor of the wine. Touring the Montemaggio’s permaculture allows guests to view more than the wonderful variety of Chianti vineyards.
There is a vegetable garden, designed by Francesca Benza, agronomist and landscape architect. The garden expresses the hillside perspective with raised sections of growing vegetables, fruit trees, and flowers. Plum, apple, and pear trees are used to mix experimental sweet wine, representing the rich land of Chianti Montemaggio has to offer. Your senses will experience more than wine. You’re experiencing nature, the smells, the sounds, the tastes of royalty. A background that is instilled in Chianti Italy wine.
Every fruit and vegetable is organic. The Off Road Tour Experience in Chianti authorizes a ride through the breathtaking hills of Radda in Chianti to places non accessible to travelers. You will listen as your tour guide tells you the story of what you see in front of you. This sensory experience graces travelers with the ability to see exactly what they hear. To live out Chianti historical and cultural traditions by grasping the nature and climate feel of the land.
Every wine tour includes an educational background experience that makes each traveler feel welcomed. The Classic Wine Tour for instance, includes a visit of the Chianti vineyards, an explanation of the wine cultivation process and its organic ecosystem. A walk through of the cellar, takes you into an anticipated world of wines. Where tasting and experiencing five products, with your choice of two IGT Rosé di Montemaggio IGT, IGT Chardonnay di Montemaggio, and Cuveé Brut Cielo di Montemaggio along with three fresh red wines, Chianti Classico Montemaggio, Chianti Classico Riesrva di Montemaggio, and IGT Torre di Montemaggio Super Tuscan. Included in the Classic Wine Tour is a degustation of local Tuscan cheeses, cured meats, with bread and olive oil produced here on the Montemaggio estate. You will experience the reason behind the organic agriculture and the chance to make wine!
Like the Classic Wine Tour, the Full Immersion Wine Tour with Mini Tasting Course includes a visit to the Chianti vineyards and how Chianti Italy wine is cultivated. A nature walk through the gardens of the villa and visit to the vegetable garden is also included in this tour. Where, the Classic tour offered five tasting wine flavors, the Full Immersion tour offers eight. IGT Quinta Essentia, Cielo di Montemaggio and Grappa, Chianti Classico Montemaggio and much more. This tour includes a mini-tasting course that teaches travelers how to open, serve, and taste wines just like a Tuscan native!
Guests who love to truly immerse themselves within the culture as if it was their second home, love the Total Immersion Wine Tour with Blind Tasting. This twist bears a fun cultural experience where the sight is completely removed and enhances the sensory detail of the wine tasting experience. It offers a new perception on smelling and tasting Chianti Italy wine. This tour has been renowned as the most popular because of its ability to fully imbue travelers in the historical wines of Italy from the inside out.
Each tour highlights the experience of your visit to the Chianti vineyards.
At Fattoria di Montemaggio, memories are created and taken home to stay forever. Just as the logo of the young Etruscan woman holding a basket of grapes on her head, the Chianti Montemaggio estate resembles values of tradition, heritage, and passion that the ancient civilization lived by for centuries. Valeria continues to pump the bloodlines of tradition as well as every one team member. Their dedication, life principles, and skillset all reflect in the culture life of Chianti Italy wine. The gorgeous countryside changes beautifully each season and even with the time of day. The historical values are stored in the rich soils and shared with the entire world. Each bottle is carefully inspected and aged appropriately.
Fattoria di Montemaggio’s Chianti Italy wine shares the heart of the family-owned estate and with each sip you’re able to taste exactly what rich, vintage, love tastes like. A place where nature’s views captivate not just the sight but the senses and the heart. A place to call your home, Chianti vineyards offer wine that comes with so much more in depth experience which allows you to leave with fulfilled desires. You cannot talk about wine unless you’re talking about Chianti Italy wine. Italy is the home of wine and has always been.
Traveling the highest peak to the Monte Maggio where the Fattoria di Montemaggio resides, is traveling to a timeless homeland of ever so loved Chianti Italy wine. Wine is a family favorite in every home around the world and exploring its royal historical Chianti vineyards, you can discover why it has been a family favorite for centuries. From the Eastern civilizations of Europe to the Western world of the America’s, wine is shared over book clubs, dinner, family gatherings, and even business events. It is subtle enough to be shared within the park, or under a gazebo. If you love wine and its strong sweet musky flavors, you will also love the history behind why it is. Vacation dreams begin with a purpose and so did Valeria’s fathers wine cultivating dreams. The heart of this Russian native was fated to the heart of the Chianti vineyards to continue the organic compounds of love, royalty, and tradition upon the Montemaggio. Every wine drinker, lover, seller, who gets to experience this ancient rich culture gets to experience why they are a part of the wine family. Wine is a family and each and everyone of us takes a sip with our own. Traveling to the Chianti countryside is an everlasting breathtaking experience that introduces what we’ve all strayed from. Family, tradition, and heritage. As mentioned on the Montemaggio blogsite, Chianti vineyards are unique, authentic, and grown organic, and those values flow into every carefully cultivated barrel of aged wine and poured into each bottle for the world to embrace and pop open in their homes with their families. Which makes you, apart of Chianti Italy wine family to carry the Chianti legacy.

Written by: withinherelement