Monte Sante marie: our landscape is our landmark
Tenuta di Monte Sante Marie is a big organic farm in the heart of Tuscany, among the arcadian clay hills east of Siena (“Crete Senesi”) made famous by great photographers, popular “hero” bycicle races such as “Eroica” and “Strade Bianche”, rallies, pilgrimage routes (such as the newly equipped Cammino Lauretano, a branch of Francigena trail), great movies (“Stealing Beauty” and other ones) and worldwide known car advertisement.
It’s the enchanted, as far as I can see landscape of cypress trees, water ploughed hillsides, Monte Oliveto Maggiore monumental abbey, Jean Paul Philippe’s Site Transitoire and much more.
The Tenuta headquarters are in the 1.300 years old middle age village, once fortress and castle, of Monte Sante Marie, a magic location owned by the same family since many generations. After decades of abandon, they settled back here thirty year ago and struggle hardly to maintain and recover this small, aparted world made of real life, misteries not solved yet, deep dungeons and hidden yards, the old local school, the church, a tiny train station, a small country cinema hall, the stone and bricks walls. Here, every day is made of stories to tell, new discoveries and surprises from the past.
Large part of the buildings, the garden and the park around are protected by the national law as achitectural and landscape treasures. Everything here is true: no maquillage, no fake.
Monte Sante Marie is hilltop, touched by the narrow, ancient and dusty country road named after it, 25 kms off Siena, 10 off Chianti area, 35 off Montalcino and Brunello vineyards, 90 off Florence.
Books, Records, art, and organic food in a former “ghost” country village
The family (Stefano is a journalist and author, Daniela is a publisher and a communications expert) is deeply in love with their place. And they deeply love literature, music, art, poetry, wine and great food. That’s why they transformed part of the village and their private house too in a sort of meeting point where these passions can be shared with people: house concerts, exhibitions, lectures, performances or just conversation. Monte Sante Marie is a place full of large and small locations, secluded or not, indoor and open air, ideal to read, write, play, sing, paint or just listen.
The surrounding, 227 hectars farm is totally organic certified and grows ancient, recovered local grain varieties, olive trees and (in a natural private reserve beside Ombrone river) truffles. With ancient grains they by artisanally produce flour, an exclusive pasta, farm beer and an extraordinary extravirgin olive oil. We sell this all directly in the farm or in our online shop.
After being pioneers of country holidays in Tuscany back in the 80’s, they just restored an old barn, they filled it with antique family furnitures and farm instruments from the past and made it fit for meetings, food and wine tastings, shows, seminars and courses. The estate is full of private tracks, country roads, paths for walking, running, bird and wild animal wacthing (boars, foxes, porcupines, deers, badgers and, sometimes, wolves), picnic and landscape pictures.
Monte Sante Marie is a milestone of the just reopened Cammino Lauretano, the middle age west-east pedestrian pilgrimage walk from Siena to Adriatic Sea.
Being Daniela a small publisher, we got a microbookshop too where to buy home-published (and not) books, unusual records and village craft items.
We have also some works in progress: to make the small cinema village hall newly available and to plant a vineyard with the misterious, still to be studied, ancient grape varieties we accidentally found in our private garden and spread in the estate woods. Just another thrilling story to tell.
More info on:
https://www.montesantemarie.bio
