Tenute Lunelli The Story of Three Estates & One Passionate Family
Since 1952, the Lunelli family has led northern Italy’s legendary sparkling wine house, Ferrari Trento, to greater and greater heights. And after three generations of winemaking, their shared devotion to excellence yielded a new passion project — one that extends to still wines and other exciting Italian wine zones.
Tenute Lunelli comprises a trio of extraordinary estates representing the regions of Trentino, Tuscany, and Umbria: Tenuta Margon, Tenuta Podornovo, and Tenuta Castelbuono, respectively. Each estate, while separated by DOC boundaries and miles of vastly different terrain, was founded with the shared mission of showcasing the diversity, identity, and origin that is special to each territory. Combined with a holistic approach to sustainable and organic environmental protocols, Tenute Lunelli’s world-class lineup of fine still wines harmonizes beautifully with their collection of Ferrari Trento sparkling wines.
The logo, a depiction of the lunar phases, denotes the measured passage of time and slow maturation that is common to all three estates. This patience and respect for the cycles of nature is a methodical approach (both in the vineyard and in the winery) that yields beautiful expressions of each terroir. And yet, each estate is born of its own unique identity, driven by a family who are true artisans, creating wines that stand the test of time.
Mountain Wines from Trentino
Tenuta Margon is named after the Villa Margon, a magnificent 16th-century mountain estate that serves as the Lunelli family’s hospitality centerpiece for entertaining guests. The villa is completely frescoed both inside and out and is regarded by many as the most beautiful country house in the entire Alps region.
The trefoil illustrated in the estate’s crest represents the distinct cultural contributions of the Roman, Bavarian, and Austro/Hungarian peoples that have shaped Trentino through the ages.
Terroir & Viticulture
Tenuta Margon wines are all expressions of meticulous mountain viticulture, hailing from sloping vineyards on the high hills surrounding Trento (between 350 and 600 meters / 1,148 and 1,968 feet above sea level). Thanks to the territory’s dramatic diurnal temperature shifts, conditions here are ideal for fostering complexity, intensity, and vibrant acidity in the grapes’ flavor profiles. The soil is mainly sandy, with a high proportion of rocks.
Both Tenuta Margon’s namesake wine and the Pietragrande release are predominantly chardonnay-based, made from grapes grown in the Lunelli family’s sustainably farmed vineyards that surround Villa Margon, on the right bank of the River Adige to the southwest of Trento. The training systems employed include the one-armed “Trentino pergola” and Guyot, planted at a density of between 4,000 to 4,500 vines per hectare. The wines of Tenuta Margon have been certified organic since 2017.
Organic Friends of Biodiversity
Tenute Lunelli’s mission is to showcase the incredible diversity and unique sense of place across the fine wine zones of Trentino, Tuscany, and Umbria — and to do so in a completely sustainable fashion.
“If any company is honor-bound to act responsibly at a social level, this is even more the case for a wine producer, whose relationship with their terroir is profound and indissoluble,” says Camilla Lunelli. “With this conviction in mind, we have made sustainability our creed.”
To that end, the Lunellis prioritize top-quality grapes and the utmost protection of the environment along with ensuring the health and well-being of their vine growers. All three estates have obtained organic certification — Podornovo in 2012, Castelbuono in 2014, and Margon in 2017. In addition, Tenute Lunelli are a “Biodiversity Friend,” a certification created by the World Biodiversity Association.
Tuscan Wines, Lunelli Style
An enchanting combination of untrammeled countryside and vineyards — dotted by cypress trees and undulating dirt roads — Tenuta Podernovo is painstakingly maintained by the Lunellis through their principled approach of organic farming.
The estate was constructed with particular attention paid to conserving the surrounding landscape. All structures on the property were built using local stone and colored with a palate that is in perfect harmony with the environment. Next to the winery stands the historic Casale Podernovo, a farmhouse that was carefully restored and transformed into a luxury residence for guests.
Terroir & Viticulture
Tenuta Podernovo is a stunning, vine-covered hill in the commune of Terricciola, within the up-and-coming, high-quality wine zone of the Colline Pisane, not far from the Tuscan coast. This particular geographical position, coupled with soils rich in sand and fossil deposits, creates a microclimate with ideal conditions for vine-growing.
The microclimate and topography here are ideal for producing fine red wines. The coastal climate marries perfectly with the combination of loamy yellow sand and blue Pliocene clay soils, with marine fossil deposits from the late Carboniferous age. In fact, it is the composition of the soil that provides the inspiration of the fossil as the emblem of Tenuta Podernovo. The vineyards enjoy west, south, and east exposures at an altitude of 137 meters / 450 feet above sea level.
Tenuta Podernovo was the first estate of the Tenute Lunelli group to be recognized with an organic certification in 2012. Leveraging Animavitis® — a precision vineyard management program invented and coordinated by Italian-Brazilian oenologist Monica Rossetti — the Podernovo team is able to map each row and plot based on the specific phenolic and vegetative potential of the vines. This potential is determined based on ground surveys conducted using infrared sensors that diagnose the behavior of the vines and, in turn, can adapt every single viticultural action from pruning, fertilization, canopy management, and harvest. The Lunellis were the first in Italy to adpot this emerging process.
Organic Friends of Biodiversity
Tenute Lunelli’s mission is to showcase the incredible diversity and unique sense of place across the fine wine zones of Trentino, Tuscany, and Umbria — and to do so in a completely sustainable fashion.
“If any company is honor-bound to act responsibly at a social level, this is even more the case for a wine producer, whose relationship with their terroir is profound and indissoluble,” says Camilla Lunelli. “With this conviction in mind, we have made sustainability our creed.”
To that end, the Lunellis prioritize top-quality grapes and the utmost protection of the environment along with ensuring the health and well-being of their vine growers. All three estates have obtained organic certification — Podornovo in 2012, Castelbuono in 2014, and Margon in 2017. In addition, Tenute Lunelli are a “Biodiversity Friend,” a certification created by the World Biodiversity Association.
Nature & Art Collide in Umbria
In 2001, fascinated by ancient Umbria (and by the region’s extraordinarily powerful and ageworthy sagrantino wines) the Lunelli family purchased Tenuta Castelbuono, an estate with 30 hectares / 74 acres of vineyards in the communes of Bevagna and Montefalco. While their efforts were initially concentrated on the vineyards, the Lunelli family eventually drafted in their long-time friend and famous contemporary artist, Arnaldo Pomodoro, to help bring a new kind of winery to life — and did he ever deliver.
The patinaed dome of “Carapace” took six years to complete and was finally opened to the public in 2012. Engraved with fissures that recall the furrows in the earth surrounding it, it is actually inspired by the curve of a turtle’s shell (“carapace” in Italian). A sculpted element in the form of a red dart plunging into the soil highlights the work’s place in the landscape. This is a distinctive, special winery for distinctive, special wines.
Terroir & Viticulture
When the Lunellis first arrived at Tenuta Castelbuono in 2001, their priority was focusing on the health of the vineyards. They immediately undertook a major replanting initiative along with a widespread clonal selection project to improve the quality of existing vines.
The soil composition of the vineyards is a clay-silt mix with excellent agronomic potential owing to its structure and drought resistance. The vines sit atop hills, allowing for favorable microclimates and abundant sunshine to ripen grapes (including sagrantino, an indigenous Umbrian variety that has some of the highest tannins and polyphenol content of any grape in the world). Significant shifts in temperature from day to night help create ideal growing conditions.
Tenuta Castelbuono obtained full organic certification in 2014 and Animavitis® has proven especially helpful in detecting the best fruit for cru wines Lampante and Carapace.
Organic Friends of Biodiversity
Tenute Lunelli’s mission is to showcase the incredible diversity and unique sense of place across the fine wine zones of Trentino, Tuscany, and Umbria — and to do so in a completely sustainable fashion.
“If any company is honor-bound to act responsibly at a social level, this is even more the case for a wine producer, whose relationship with their terroir is profound and indissoluble,” says Camilla Lunelli. “With this conviction in mind, we have made sustainability our creed.”
To that end, the Lunellis prioritize top-quality grapes and the utmost protection of the environment along with ensuring the health and well-being of their vine growers. All three estates have obtained organic certification — Podornovo in 2012, Castelbuono in 2014, and Margon in 2017. In addition, Tenute Lunelli are a “Biodiversity Friend,” a certification created by the World Biodiversity Association.
