Charismatic, enthusiastic and opinionated
owner Sebastiano Castiglioni has
made Querciabella one of Tuscany’s
outstanding producers.
He’s a vegetarian, and this outlook informs
his management of the estate. It has been farmed organically since
1988 and fully biodynamically since 2002, the largest biodynamic
estate in Italy.
Sebastiano is quick to criticise industrialised farming, which he sees
as exploitative and damaging to the planet. He uses a vegan form of
biodynamic agriculture, where no animal-derived products are used. If
farming biodynamically already requires attention and commitment to
quality, then this is a particularly labour intensive form.
But the results speak for themselves.
In 2010, Italian expert Antonio Galloni wrote of the estate, “I can’t say
enough good things about these wines, all of which merit your serious
consideration.” This rings true just as much today. Whether you agree
with his methods or not, the resulting wines are ones you must try.