Fanetti-Tenuta Sant’Agnese is an Estate winery in the Montepulciano region of Tuscany. The main wines are Rosso di Montepulciano DOC, Vino Nobile di Montepulciano DOC, and Vin Santo di Montepulciano DOC. In 2019 sales were evenly split between the domestic market (locally and Italy in general) and export (mainly Japan and USA). In 2013 annual production was 50,000 bottles with USA as the main market (Colorado and California).

Background: Adamo Fanetti, the current owner’s grandfather, revived the estate in the 1920s, it having fallen on hard times in the 19th-century The winery he created is still used by the family today. The estate is currently run by Elisabetta Fanetti. Her daughter is called Judutta. In 2019 there was no winemaking consultant.

Vineyards: 2019 116 hectares of land of which 12ha of olives, 50ha of hay (for sheep), 4ha of woodland, and 18.8 hectares of vines of which 10.7ha of Vino Nobile, 3.5ha of Rosso di Montepulciano and 0.7ha of Vin Santo. At some stage 4ha had been acquired from Avignonesi, of which 1ha was vines, and 3ha were arable.

Viticulture: Mainly guyot, plus some cordon.

Terroir: The vines are in the Podere Sasso, Bossona, Cervognano and Sanguineto zones, in the southern sector of the Montepulciano zone, what the owners describe as being in the heart of the Montepulciano production area between Madonna della Querce, Cervognano, and Località La Ciarliana. The soils are generally Pliocene clays.

The vineyards in Località Podere Sasso are named after a podere of that name, on Pliocene soil. There are a small amount of vines here (in two places near each other), plus olive trees. There are more vineyards near the winery (in the town), some 3km away.

Winery: The winery is located in Montepulciano town (see above). The company has an underground cellar. Reinforced concrete tanks for fermentation. The Vino Nobile ages in 50ha chestnut oak vats. The cellar walls contain marine fossils dating to the Pliocene era.

Red wines

Vino Nobile di Montepulciano DOCG, Fanetti: 2002 Tank sample. Sweet and sour with very dry tannin and VA (Consorzio 2005). | 2007 Dense old vine fruit, really distinctive but aged in botti which have given the wine its old wood/sherry nose (Anteprima, 2014). | 2011 Sangiovese 80%, Canaiolo 15%, Mammolo 5%. Dense old vine fruit again but the old wood is just starting to spoil this (Anteprima, 2014). | 2015 80% Sangiovese (‘Prugnolo gentile’), 15% Canaiolo, 5% Mammolo. Funky nose, bretty, drying out (Anteprima 2018). | 2016 Prugnolo Gentile and Canaiolo. 24m in botti. 14% alc. The fruit is too feeble a match for the over-present tannins (Anteprima, 2019). | 2017 14.5% alc. Low yield this year, like 2015. 40,000 bottles. Bretty (Anteprima, 2020).

Vino Nobile di Montepulciano DOCG Riserva: 2013 Acetic, drying out (Anteprima 2018). | 2014 Decent flavour but with slightly drying tannins lacking finesse (Anteprima, 2019). | 2016 A selection. 40,000 bottles. Bretty (Anteprima, 2020).

Sweet wines

Vin Santo di Montepulciano DOC

Contact

Fanetti-Tenuta Sant’Agnese

Viale Calamandrei, 29 | I-53045 Montepulciano (SI = Siena), Italy

Tel+39 0578.757897 | www.tenutasantagnese.com