Since its founding in the early nineties, the La Fiorita estate has constantly sought to perfect the longevity and aromatic complexity of its Brunello to illustrate the magical harmony between the diverse terroirs, climate and Sangiovese grape – the Star of Montalcino.
Since Natalie Oliveros' arrival in 2011, the estate has acquired organic certification. Together with her business partner Louis Camilleri, they acquired additional vineyards and built a Cantina that combines sharp architecture with proper tools to vinify and age her Brunello.
The two-level gravity-fed cantina was completed for the 2019 harvest and now cements the new foundation for La Fiorita’s exciting future and the generations to come.
From viticulture to winemaking, there are no compromises or shortcuts to ensure the purest translation from soil to bottle.
Natalie Oliveros
One of five sisters, Natalie Oliveros was born in Northern New York. Although American born and bred, her Calabrese “Nonna” gave an Italian heritage and education to the family that exposed Natalie to “basement winemaking” with her parents at an early age.
In the early 2000s, in parallel to her adult entertainment career, she was introduced to Roberto Cipresso, wine consultant and co-owner of La Fiorita. Natalie and Roberto started to collaborate on a series of Italian wines – “Sogno”, which translates as “dream”.
Today, Natalie is the main Owner of La Fiorita Brunello di Montalcino. She leads a team that includes Luigi Peroni, the Estate Manager (disciple of La Fiorita for 20 years), Vincenzo Pirrone (talented young wine maker), Michele Marini (the warehouse Manager) and François Colas (Marketing Director).
Natalie Oliveros “tailors” wines showcasing various facets of the Sangiovese grape respecting the appellation of Brunello Di Montalcino while revealing the diversity of soils.
More recently, she further stamped her mark in La Fiorita by launching two new wines. One Brunello from parcel selection: “Fiore di NO” and a concrete Egg fermented Rosé “Ninfalia”.
Vineyards and terroir
The 9 hectare La Fiorita Brunello Di Montalcino Estate comprises four separate vineyards: La Fiorita, Pian Bossolino, Giardinello and Poggio al Sole.
Each vineyard has its own identity and are cultivated using the spurred cordon method, with density averaging 7,000 plants per hectare while the yield is around 6,000 kg per ha (appellation rules are set to a maximum of 7,000 kg per hectare for Brunello).
The complex diversity of soils, altitudes and microclimates offers the choice to harvest selected parts of the vineyards at different times. These selections are then vinified separately to achieve a more precise blend to craft the La Fiorita Brunello.
Harvest generally starts between the last 10 days of September and the first 10 days of October. Fermentation takes place in 50–70hl concrete tanks where the must reaches a maximum temperature of 25°C. The period of maceration between the must and the grape-skins can last between 14–20 days.
Due to the low level of anthocyanins in Sangiovese, delestage and pumping over are done regularly during fermentation and maceration. The wine then spends 24–30 months in French or Slavonian oak casks of 25, 35 and 50hl. They are sent back a few months in concrete tanks before bottling. The wine will remain in bottle for 2 years before being released to the market.
