In the heart of Tuscany, we tell a story that combines the taste of wine with the liveliness of contemporary art
An area full of bucolic poetry between hills and valleys that, as in a suggestive loop, chase each other up to
the scrutinized horizon. Chianti Classico is a place endowed with a timeless charm, capable of surprising
even those who have been used to these landscapes for a lifetime.
We think this was precisely the keystone that unleashed in Philippe Austruy, an entrepreneur with a
passion for architecture, art and wines, the desire to buy Tenuta Casenuovi, a wine-growing paradise of 120
hectares in the heart of Tuscany.
To achieve his goals, Monsieur Austruy has decided to rely on excellent specialists in the sector, among
which Alessandro Fonseca, agronomist and manager of Tenuta Casenuovi, stands out.
What moves Alessandro within oenology is an innate curiosity: Mr. Fonseca does not fall and is not satisfied
with the simple contemplation of what has already been seen but studies, travels, gets excited.
We at So Wine So Food contacted him to let us tell the story of Tenuta Casenuovi and the fruitful
partnership with Galleria Continua.
Established in 2015, Tenuta Casenuovi is a relatively young reality; how did you become part of this team?
I met Philippe Austruy in 2014, from that meeting I understood his love for Italy.
Philippe was looking for a place in Tuscany where he could cultivate one of his great passions, wine.
During some interviews aimed at finding solutions, I proposed the one in Casenuovi; from here our
collaboration was born.
After the establishment of the company, Philippe asked me to refound and follow the wine business. The
initial idea was to keep a low profile; 2015 was indeed a rather interlocutory year. From 2016 we decided to
raise the bar with important projects, one of which was the preservation and renewal of the ancient
terraces, evidence of sharecropping and farmhouse in central Tuscany. We rediscovered them in an area
adjacent to the business center and recovered over a kilometer of terraces with the drainage technique
upstream of the drywall. Interesting decision to dedicate this space only to indigenous varieties such as
Sangiovese, Colorino, Ciliegiolo, Malvasia nera.
The vines were planted in 2018 and by 2023 we should have the first production that will follow a unique
oenological project.
What are the characteristics of your land and territory that allow you to have such a high quality product?
What can be called terroir is a complex combination of factors. In the case of Casenuovi we can count on
about five soils with peculiar characteristics. These terrains are positioned at different altitudes and
exposures, therefore we must understand from each of them what we can achieve in terms of the final
result.
Casenuova develops its land from three hundred and sixty to five hundred meters above sea level and can
count on a significant temperature range between day and night, with excellent ventilation, especially in
the afternoon.
We are therefore able to have conditions that are able to best express the floral characters of the fruits,
this allows for a high basic quality and excellent ripening of the grapes.
Is there a year you are particularly fond of?
At this moment I would say that of 2019, an excellent year in terms of temperatures and rainfall, despite
some points of extreme heat in the summer.
We recorded good regularity, especially in September, which
represents the heart of each vintage. The maturation was correct and the production full-bodied. I would
like to underline, however, that the last twenty days of October, characterized by adequate rainfall, gave
the grapes of 2021 a really important ripening. Unfortunately, it is still too early to draw conclusions.
A perfect union between art and wine reigns in Tenuta Casenuovi, as underlined by the collaboration with
Galleria Continua.
Between the autumn of 2018 and the spring of 2019, I spoke to Philippe from Galleria Continua, a reality
we both knew.
We have decided to open a dialogue with the members of Galleria Continua, a dialogue that was defined in
2020, just before the lockdown. The project plans to set up temporary exhibitions of works conceived by
several artists.
The collaboration with Galleria Continua manages to combine wine and art, making people discover the
beauties of the place also through contemporary expressions and forms. In a characteristic path between
our gardens, there are suggestive crystal sculptures representing the ten protagonists of the Tenuta
Casenuovi project.
In the meantime, we have acquired a property in Panzano, which has been transformed into an exhibition
gallery, where there is currently an exhibition by Loris Cecchini.
