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Marchesi Ginori Lisci

Ponteginori

It was getting dark when I wound my way up the long hill from the Cecina river at Ponteginori to an amazing millennium-old hamlet, which has belonged to the Ginori Lisci family since the 16th century. I was met by winemaker Ken Lenzi, and, rather to my surprise, given the ancient setting, a range of wholly modern wines. Ken used to be part of the team at the famed Ornellaia, but left, as he puts it, because he wanted to make wines for people to drink, not invest in. He has worked at this estate for four years, and one can see in these recent vintages the refi nement he is now delivering. The one white here is delightfully fresh and fruity. The reds, benefiting from a little micro-oxygenation, are given minimal handling and moderate oak: the result is wines from Bordeaux varieties that are elegant and gentle, yet recognizably Mediterranean.

Few people here in Britain have heard of the twenty years old DOC of Montescudaio, which lies between the coast and Volterra. There’s not a lot of wine produced here, indeed, only a score of growers, but this area seems to have great potential. It’s cooler in the Cecina valley than at the more famed vineyards on the coast at Bolgheri, and the quality of the Cabernet and Merlot grown here on the well-drained gravel, sand and clay soils on the terraces near the river, is impressive.

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