Marchesi Antinori is set to build a €50m winery in the hills above Florence.
The plans were recently approved by the municipality of San Casciano Val di Pesa, at the gates of which the winery will stand, and work should begin early this year. The estimated cost is €50m (US$44.6m)
The project covers an area of 10 hectares, which includes a 3.5 hectare semi-underground winery to be roofed with vines, which will replace the old cellar at San Casciano Val di Pesa in the middle of town.
‘The old cellar is difficult to manage, considering the number of trucks which come and go all day long and disrupt the town and its inhabitants. Over the years we have added on to the building, which can no longer contain the volume of business we are dealing with,’ said Antinori spokeswoman Albiera Antinori.
The cellar, which will hold 40,000 barriques and will be the largest of its kind in Italy, will be used for vinification, storage, bottling and dispatch. All Antinori white wines, along with Chianti Classicos Villa Antinori Riserva and Tenute Peppoli, will be vinified there.
The site of Antinori’s current winery in the centre of San Casciano will be developed by the town council. At present the plan is to create a commercial centre, a nursery school and a hotel. The whole project should be completed by 2005.
Written by Michèle Shah9 January 2002
