Moretti family

Tuscany, Italy

Tuscany is located in central Italy and is characterized by picturesque hilly areas, vast vineyards and olive trees. It is also home to world-famous medieval cities such as Florence and Siena, and is known as a region where culture and nature blend together.

As a wine producing region, it is especially famous for red wines made mainly from Sangiovese grapes, such as Chianti and Brunello di Montalcino. These wines have a balanced acidity, rich fruitiness, and long aging potential.

The Moretti family's domain and vineyards

The owner, Roberto, is a surgeon, but in 1999, when he was extremely busy, he bought a farm in Scandicci, a small town near Florence.

The fields had been abandoned for a long time and were untouched by humans, so they were able to start growing organically right away. They started growing grapes, something they had always wanted to do. Although obtaining certification took a long time due to cost issues, they switched to biodynamic farming in 2003.

Organic history : Certified since 2009 (practiced since 2003)

Roberto practices organic farming, believing that organic is a lifestyle for him. He has a strong desire to stop polluting the earth, to eat healthy and delicious food, and to leave a better world for future generations.

Roberto says that working in the idyllic countryside and thinking about what he can create with his own hands is very fun and satisfying, especially when he sees some results with his wine. He loves his job so much that he now works as a surgeon three days a week and as a wine farmer the remaining four days.

Roberto, a surgeon, makes his own grape seedlings by grafting branches from his fields onto seedbeds. When he doesn't like the concrete supports for his vineyards, he makes wooden ones by painting them with a preservative. When the wire mesh protecting the vineyards is torn and destroyed by deer or wild boars, he repairs the holes himself. He doesn't run electricity through the wire mesh because it would be harmful to the natural environment. He thinks up ideas and puts them into practice.

He lives an almost self-sufficient life, sourcing not only vegetables, grains, and olive oil, but also butchering the pig his relatives raised him in, and making his own bacon, prosciutto, and sausages. While he is close to nature, he is also a scholar by nature, passionate about research, well-educated in culture, and knowledgeable about Japanese films, making him a very powerful and versatile person. When the staff asked him when he has time to rest since he works so hard every day, he replied, "Everything about life here is exciting, so I don't need a vacation."

Like Mavi, Roberto worries about the future of organic wine, given that the EU organic certification instituted in 2012 has loosened regulations to allow for large-scale, industrially produced wines.

"While the new regulations haven't changed much about grape growing, they are much more lenient when it comes to winemaking than what organic farmers have been doing up until now. They now allow the addition of a lot of chemicals to the wine and aggressive chemical processing. This makes it no different from conventionally made wine," says Roberto, who decided to stick to his beliefs.

・White grapes : Malvasia Bianca, Vermentino, Trebbiano
・Black grapes : Sangiovese, Canaiolo, Malvasia Nera, Punitello,

Field soil

Roberto's farm is located at an altitude of 80 to 160 meters. The total area of ​​the farm is 12 hectares, of which about 4 hectares are currently used for vineyards, and 1 hectare is currently under construction to be used as a new vineyard. The rest of the farm is rich in nature, with about 1,000 olive trees and small bushes.

In winter, the temperature rarely drops below 0°C, but is generally around 0-10°C, and in summer it is around 20-35°C. The soil is 40% clay, 35% loam, and 25% gravel.

Characteristics of cultivation and brewing methods

Aiming to create the world's only wine using indigenous varieties

For the past few years, Roberto has been making wine using only indigenous varieties such as Sangiovese, Canaiolo, Punitello, Malvasia Nera, Folia Tonda, Vermentino, Malvasia Bianca, and Trebbiano, and in most cases, he brews each variety alone.

This is something Roberto is passionate about.

"There are thousands of different varieties in Italy, and this comes from Italy's long history. In the past, Italy was divided into many small states, each with its own unique policies and rules. As a result, grape cultivation methods differed from place to place, and many indigenous varieties were born and passed down. It is almost as if each city in Italy has its own unique grape variety. So why not make use of these precious varieties that make our wines unique in the world? Indigenous varieties have fallen into disuse because producers only focused on the commercial aspect. Now, we want to save these grapes that are in danger of disappearing. "

He said.

Roberto does not use any chemical products in his winemaking, brews with natural yeast, and minimizes human intervention as much as possible. He does not filter or clarify the wine, and does not use sulfur dioxide (SO2) (though he does use a small amount in the 2009 Chianti Riserva).

The key to producing high-quality, healthy wine is to keep the grapes and cellars clean and in good condition, and Roberto pays the most attention to this when watching over the wine.

For Roberto, there is no fixed form for the "ideal wine". Because, no matter how different the expression, as long as it is a good wine, he appreciates, loves, and considers it to be his ideal wine. The wine that Roberto aims for is natural, high quality, healthy, expresses the terroir, is made from local grapes, and is unique. In other words, he believes that a wine with special characteristics that no other wine has should be what his wine should be.

From the producers to everyone in Japan

I have never been to Japan, but I have read a lot about its history, traditions and religion and learned that your country is very wonderful. I tried to learn Japanese many years ago. I was able to write Hiragana and Katakana with relative ease, but when I tried Kanji, I found it very difficult.

Japanese has some things in common with our language, most words end with a vowel and each sound is pronounced clearly. As a Tuscan, I didn't find it too difficult. Unfortunately, I don't remember much about the Japanese I studied, but I do remember some things about the culture. I don't know if my impression of Japan is real or not, but I am very interested in seeing Japan with my own eyes and would like to visit Japan soon.

Another point is that I think Japanese food is wonderful, but I have only eaten it in Europe. I think the Japanese food eaten in Japan is even more wonderful, so I am really looking forward to actually tasting it. If I can create a wine that will delight you all, a wine that will decorate the Japanese dining table, that would be the greatest honor. "Thank you" (The final greeting was written in Japanese, not in the Roman alphabet, in the original text).