Interview with Giampiero Bertolini, CEO of Biondi Santi | Travel Italy

The history of the Biondi-Santi family is inextricably linked to that of Brunello di Montalcino: this Sienese wine is produced within the small town of Montalcino, a town nestled on the soft Tuscan hills, from which the homonymous DOCG comes to life.

Red wine obtained in purity from Sangiovese grapes, can have a nineteenth-century origin, dating back to the first experiments of Clemente Santi: at the time, the grape with which the vinification was carried out was simply called “brunella”, to indicate the dark color of its berries. Today, that adjective has become known worldwide as the proper noun — with a capital B — of one of the oldest Italian wines

ever.

Giampiero, can you explain to us where we are and the importance of this place?

Within these walls, the malolactic fermentation of wine was once carried out, and today it is no longer in use. It is a historic place, which preserves the memories of a past that spans two centuries: the first Brunello vintage was in fact produced in 1888, by Ferruccio Biondi Santi, Clemente's nephew. The second vintage, always signed by Ferruccio Biondi Santi, dates back to 1891 and is followed by another 37 vintages, produced first by Ferruccio's son and then by Ferruccio's nephew, Tancredi and Franco Biondi Santi, who saved the family winery from

the enemy raids of 1944.

Without them we would have lost an inestimable heritage in terms of the history of this wine, but each generation of the family has left its mark on the production. This place is at the origin of all this.

To date, however, the management of the company has passed to a French owner. Can you tell us more about him?

The group that bought Biondi Santi is that of Christofer Descours, who has been running this company since 2016. The traditions that have developed here over the long family history, however, continue to be respected by the company, which primarily wants to give a dynamic turn to the promotion of the brand, without distorting it

but rather restoring its prestige.

To do this, the focus is not only on Brunello but also on Rosso di Montalcino, a young wine, suitable for spreading among an audience less trained to grasp the complexities of aging in bottles of more than forty years. At the same time, excellent quality is maintained as its objective, holding technical tasting meetings every other week and investing in the genetic analysis of the starting grape varieties or

the yeasts used.

So will the biggest innovation be a different marketing, associated with a more in-depth study of the territory and the wine it produces?

You can say yes. The French approach — also considering the experience that the EPI Descours group has with the Maison de Champagne — is to reduce quantity and increase quality, always and in any case, urging an already pounding demand. The first sales figures confirm, among other things, the success of this approach

.

To conclude our interview and greet us with a look to the future, I would ask you: what challenges do you see on the horizon for Brunello di Montalcino?

Without a doubt, the biggest challenge will be to reconnect with people. Many people know the name of “Biondi Santi” but have never tasted wine, as if they were afraid of it. Instead, also thanks to the skills of the oenologist Federico Radi, we have designed a wine that combines elegance with accessible flavor, the undeniable

value of diffusion among people.