Last year at Vinitaly I had completed all of the visits for that year's event and was briskly walking through the Tuscany Hall to the exit…thinking about a nice cold beer at Osteria del Bugiardo. I was hustling past a corner stand when something caught my eye. It was a really cool label and in the background the stand had a photo of a small, but beautifully detailed castle. Great label ... castle … these are the sort of things that intrigue me, so I stopped dead in my tracks, spun around and engaged with the young man on duty at the stand. 

I only wanted to try one wine, I explained, and that was the one with the cool label…hoping like heck that it was not a Sangiovese based wine because I already have a great producer of ‘sangio’ Il Palago. Thankfully it wasn’t …..it was Merlot dominant…..and it was pretty darn good. As I was tasting, an elegant, older man in a tweed jacket and a lively look in his eye approached and immediately engaged with me in faultless English. He turned out to be the owner, Signor Guicciardini. In the conversation he learned that my next stop was Tuscany and implored me to come and visit him. I promised to….and endeavoured to find a way….. but alas it did not happen.

Fast forward twelve months…and  the same scenario played out … rushing from my last appointment … the same stand caught my eye ... .and the same elegant gentleman was standing there …this time with a patch of plaster on his forehead from a fall that morning. “I remember you from last year”, he says and we have another conversation, with me again promising to come and see him at his castle in Poppiano.

What is Castello di Poppiano? 

Today, Castello di Poppiano is a home and a wine production facility, and these historic rooms are used to hold tasting events or where grapes are dried for the regional speciality, Vin Santo. 

From guarding the strategic road to then hosting grand banquets and political events, eventually housing Nazi central Italy headquarters and then being a safe house for priceless art treasures. It is a storied past, which is explored further as you read on. 

Where is Castello di Poppiano?

Castello di Poppiano is located only 40 minutes from my home base in Panzano. Located in the area of “Chianti Colli Fiorentini” (“Chianti Hills of Florence”). 

Who is Count Guicciardini?

The Castle was built in 900AD on a hill near Florence to be the outer defence against the marauding Sienese (Inhabitants of the town of Siena). It overlooks the most important ancient road between Siena and Florence on the valley floor. The Guicciardini family became owners of the Castle in 1199AD and have lived there uninterrupted for 42 generations.  It is almost not believable. It turns out that Signor Guicciardini is actually Count Guicciardini. At 87, he still lives in the Castle as its owner and its 140 hectares of forests, vineyards and buildings.

Count Guicciardini still works at the winery which houses its wine production facility and cellar. He took me through, tasting several wines as we discussed his family history. He was an engineer working on massive postwar dam projects in Morocco when his grandfather died.  He was called back to Poppiano to take over the agricultural business. It was the late 70’s and most of the Tuscan agricultural communities were left abandoned, as the workers left the serfdom of working, for the landed gentry - seeking new lives in the big cities.  The result of the postwar “Italian miracle”, where large automobile and other manufacturing factories were established in the northern cities of Milan and Torino.

The Count and his wife had no children, so over the last 25 years, he has been mentoring his nephew to take over the business. But while he is still able, he lives in the Castle. He walks across the internal courtyard to his office daily, where he goes about the challenging job of producing and selling wine from 3 significant wineries.

Castello di Poppiano in WWII

The only time that the family did not live in the Castle was for three years during WWII when the Nazis used Castello di Poppiano as their regional headquarters.`The family returned when the Nazis fled. They cooperated with the Americans, who advised that they would be helping the Nazis on their way by doing some strategic bombing from the air. Not so strategic that they could guarantee complete accuracy. The American recommended all the great artworks be removed from The Uffizi Gallery and held safe in some private estates (one of which was Castello di Poppiano). Priceless paintings and sculptures were held on every floor of the 5-level tower. I am assured that all were returned to the Uffizi after the war.

Exploring Castello di Popppiano

When Count Guicciardini arrived back in Poppiano after working as an engineer in Morocco, the family business only had 5 hectares of grapevines in poor condition, no workers and was close to broke. Over the past 50 years, The Count has grown the vineyards to 165 hectares and generated enough money to buy two other wineries in Chianti Classico (just a few km away) and Maremma in the southern coastal part of Tuscany.

Time Pour Wines visits Castello di Popppiano

After Vinitaly this year, I was invited for a second year to visit Castello di Popppiano with owner Count Guicciardini. We walked around the Castle and ascended to the top of the tower for the most amazing 360-degree view, including the ancient Siena – Florence roadway. Descending through the Castle and going in and out of grand rooms built 1000 years ago was a surreal experience.

After the tasting The Count walked me back to my Fiat 500L, shook my hand and asked me to ensure that next time I visited I made enough time to have lunch with him in the . He stood there in his tweed and stylish goatee and waved goodbye as I travelled down the one lane, pencil pine lined driveway out of the Castle. An absolutely delightful human, one of the last Counts in Italy living a similar life to his ancestors in a small corner of Tuscany that is basically undiscovered. I drove away feeling extremely lucky to have enjoyed such an inspiring morning. 

Time Pour Wines 

I visited Castello di Popppiano after representing my company Time Pour Wines at VinItaly. Each year I attend this tasting to connect with the producers I import directly into Australia for my Wine Club Members.

I will be endeavouring to bring in some of these wines, and some of this history to you in the months ahead.

CT

Join our wine club to discover more Time Pour WIne Adventures click here 

To learn about my experience at VIn Italy this year click here