The Story Behind a Woman-Led Natural Wine Agricultural Startup
From the big city of Milan to the wild countryside of Maremma, Tuscany, Antonella Manuli’s story has had many chapters. A constant thread throughout has been her love of nature and dedication to sustainability. In our VeroTalk with Antonella, we explored her roots in one of Italy’s largest cities and her sudden departure. We talked about her time abroad and how those experiences would impact her and ultimately bring her to where she is now, the winemaker and owner of La Maliosa farm and winery in Maremma. We tasted her exciting wines and chatted about the significant influence one key player had on her journey to make natural wines. We also talked about her goals for the future, including promoting local tourism through innovative initiatives like Starsboxes. Don’t miss out on learning about Antonella Manuli and her winery La Maliosa in this exciting recap of our VeroTalk with Antonella about her story, vision and achievements for La Maliosa.
Antonella Manuli took the harder path when she founded La Maliosa farm and winery in Maremma, Tuscany.
About Antonella
Antonella was born in Milan. During the second decade of her life, Italy entered the Lead Years, the Anni di Piombo. It was a dangerous time marked by terrorism. As Milan grew unsafe and a normal existence became impossible, her family moved to Switzerland. Her life changed dramatically as she was suddenly thrown into a new reality in a world she didn’t know. She remembers this experience vividly, which is why she feels very connected to the current situation the Ukrainian people are facing. Antonella is currently hosting a group of Ukrainian women and children in Saturnia.
After graduating from high school, Antonella, a talented golfer, was ready for a new experience outside of Europe. She was awarded a golf scholarship to San Jose State University. This was the 1980s in the US, and the organic movement was just starting. In California, Antonella was exposed to ideas of healthy living, organic farming, and preservation, concepts that were not yet widely known in Europe. This exposure planted a seed in Antonella, and these ideas would remain with her and become guiding principles in her future work.
Back in Italy after university, Antonella started her career in finance in Milan before taking a position at the Terme di Saturnia, a spa hotel in Maremma, the southern-most part of Tuscany. Antonella was unfamiliar with the area before taking the job. She remembers traveling to the Maremma on a series of small, winding roads. She sat in her hotel room the first night and wondered what she had gotten herself into. However, she quickly grew to love the place for its wild authenticity. Compared to the famed art cities of Italy, the Maremma offered a unique chance to explore a more authentic and less touristy area.
The power of nature in Maremma awed Antonella, and she wanted to take on a project that honored it. After a decade at the hotel and lots of searching, Antonella purchased the plots of land that would become La Maliosa. Buying the land from scratch is an unusual story in Italy, where wineries are typically passed down through the generations along the male line. Two significant advantages would come from this unique approach: she would need to plant almost all the vines from scratch, and she could write her own rules. She calls La Maliosa an “agricultural startup” where you have to respect the time nature needs to make natural wines with the innovative sustainable approach she had in mind. At this point in the story, this could be seen more as a disadvantage, but read on to see how they ultimately helped Antonella.
The Winemaking Dream Comes Together Naturally
Here you see the wildness of Maremma, Tuscany and of La Maliosa’s organic and biodynamic vineyards.
Antonella makes natural wine in a healthy way that respects the land and people of Maremma and promotes this unique corner of Italy. Her vision and goals are to achieve sustainability not only for the good of the environment but also for people, from workers to people drinking her wine and her olive oil.
But back in the beginning years of her farm, in 2009-2010, she realized that she chose a harder path and needed help to make her vision a reality. Then in 2012 she meets Lorenzo Corino, a pioneer in organic, natural viticulture. He visited Antonella at La Maliosa and immediately recognized the potential of the land. He saw a place where he could develop a unique project ‘from scratch’ for producing natural wine. He helped Antonella develop La Maliosa farm and winery the principles and processes for making natural wine and “expressing the truth of the land.” They decided to plant the vineyards using the Alberello training system, literally meaning little tree, also referred to head trained. This system is typically used in warm, dry, and harsh environments.
Here are Antonella Manuli and Lorenzo Corino after they gathered grapes in La Maliosa’s vineyard to taste before harvesting.
Together Antonella and Lorenzo developed Metodo Corino, which defines the process they use to make natural wines. One of the most critical tenants of the Metodo Corino is that the skin of the grapes must be thick. The thickness of the skins is a sign of healthy grapes which means they are less prone to problems, more indigenous yeast is present, and it is easier to make natural wine. To achieve this, you need to have the right conditions present in the vineyard, including the training of the vines, the varieties used, the placement of the varieties, and the right climatic conditions. This particular combination of factors is not easy to come by, and as Antonella shared during our chat, Lorenzo Corino often said it is impossible to make natural wine all the time and everywhere.
Tasting La Maliosa Wines the Natural Way
One of the most critical things Lorenzo Corino taught Antonella was how to taste. Tasting is the most important tool they have at La Maliosa. They do not use additives, sulfites, or technology. Usually malolactic fermentation occurs in the vineyards due to the hot temperatures. Therefore, it is critical to harvest at the right time, and they make their decision by tasting the grapes. They go around to each vineyard and randomly select grapes to taste, as it determines the right moment for each part of the process. Tasting also plays a vital role in the cellar. Antonella shared that it’s essential that one becomes the leading expert of their wine. They need to expertly know their vineyard, the seasonal effects, and the varieties in order to successfully make natural wines.
With the knowledge that Lorenzo Corino imparted to Antonella, she has become a very successful winemaker. Today at La Maliosa winery, she makes a selection of exceptional wines made naturally with no added sulfites, no filtering and fermented with native yeast.
During our VeroTalk, we tasted four wines we sell to businesses and consumers across the US. We started with the Saturnia Bianco orange skin contact wine. The dominant grape in the blend is Procanico. The first mention of this grape was by the Roman author and naturalist Pliny, going back to 1st century AD. It is considered a historical grape variety going back to the Etruscans, which lived in Maremma. So, this grape represents the history of winemaking in the Maremma, which produced mainly white wine in the past. This orange wine is macerated for 3-4 weeks with the skin, giving it a distinct golden, orange color and bold presence of tannins. You will smell honey, botanical herbs, and ginger on the nose. The wine is excellent with cheeses, fatty fish like cod, and creamy desserts, including Mascarpone and Tiramisù.
We then moved on to a selection of three red wines. The first was Saturnia Rosso. Made with a blend of different grapes grown on the property, including Sangiovese, Ciliegiolo, and Cannonau Gris (like Grenache Gris), this wine is easy to drink. In addition to red fruit and spice, there are also herbal aromas. In fact, Antonella said that herbs on the nose are characteristic of all of her wines. It is excellent for an aperitivo paired with Tuscan crostini or chilled and served with fish.
La Maliosa Rosso was our next wine. It is made with Ciliegiolo, and as Antonella mentioned, it is an ancestor of Sangiovese, and the traditional red grape from Maremma. Antonella shared that Ciliegiolo is a grape that needs to be mistreated. If grown in rich soil and irrigated, it produces overly juicy, sweet grapes. When grown in poor soil, the Ciliegiolo has more complexity and acidity. Ciliegiolo means little cherry and accurately describes the profile of this wine which is rich in red fruit. Antonella perfectly describes this wine as “wild” like the Maremma. “It is a perfect witness to this place. It is not your perfect postcard Tuscany.” The tannins and flavors are bold, and the wine is very persistent. The wine likes to converse with the oxygen. After 3-5 minutes in the glass, the wine reveals botanicals. Its grippy tannins would make it a great pairing with a juicy Bistecca alla Fiorentina , aka Florentine steak.
The final wine we tasted was the Tarconte, a volcanic Sangiovese. The presence of volcanic soil in Tuscany is limited to this small area in the Maremma, and it’s rare to have Sangiovese on volcanic soil, so this is a unique find. The volcanic soil makes the wine evolve faster, gives it more minerality, and makes it very approachable. Vero has the last remaining bottles of the super limited 2017 vintage. Get them while they last!
All Eyes on the Future
A StarBox in the La Maliosa vineyards, ready to accept guests to sleep under the stars!
Antonella’s dream, paired with Lorenzo Corino’s tutelage, has resulted in great success. Antonella’s wines have received accolades and awards and are now sold in many countries worldwide. And wine is not the only product they produce at the farm. They also make honey and olive oil. Stay tuned for a future article all about La Maliosa’s olive oils. It doesn’t stop there, though. Antonella also wants to help others discover the Maremma and the wild nature that won her over. She offers a series of experiences at La Maliosa, including horseback and ebike tours and tastings. There’s also the unique Starsbox glamping experience in which you spend the night in a cute, wooden Starsbox outfitted with a cozy bed. The box’s roof opens so you can stargaze from the comfort and warmth of your bed. The sky in Maremma is known as one of the best and darkest in all of Italy due to the small local population and the lack of light pollution, providing an unrivaled stargazing opportunity. The picnic basket filled with local cheeses and cured meats, and a bottle of La Maliosa wine they give you at check-in and encourage you to enjoy while watching the legendary sunsets, don’t hurt either.
Antonella looks forward to continuing to write her own rules into the future. She enjoys the freedom she’s afforded by being the new kid on the block and being able to push boundaries and try new things without being tied to anything that has been done in a certain way in the past. As she continues innovating and trying new things on her farm in the gorgeous Maremma, this is certainly a company to watch. And don’t forget to say ‘Ciao’, if you find yourself in the Maremma!
Thanks to the contribution by Alex Smookler of Alex Smookler Travel for this article and in moderating the VeroTalk with Antonella.
Taste Antonella’s Passion and Natural Wines, Straight from Tuscany
