Val di Toro

Tuscany , Italy

Val di Toro

In 2003, Anna Maria Cruciata and her husband Hugh Constable Maxwell moved from Milan to Tuscany because they were drawn to the countryside's beauty. They decided to plant a small winery on the land around the house they bought. They soon realized that the wines from this area were incredibly good so they kept on adding to their initial planting and expanded further with the construction of a winery. Anna Maria Cruciata and her husband check every detail and participate in every stage of the production at Val di Toro, a family-run winery. They have been able to produce wines with a very distinct personality that are significantly more elegant and complex than the typical wine from their region thanks to their sustainable and organic production methods and unrelenting pursuit of the highest possible quality.

Additional Details:

Producer: Val di Toro
Vendor: Podere Val di Toro
Varietals: Sangiovese, Ciliegiolo, Vermentino, Grechetto
Labor Practices: The majority of management at the winery is female, with the exception of Hugh, the husband of Anna Maria. Women make up their enologist, winery manager and administration manager. This is a family participation in every stage of grape production and vinification; however, during harvest, when Anna Maria and Hugh's three children, all of whom are in their 20s, make themselves available to assist in any way they can, they are primarily together as a family.
Organic Practice Certificates: Bioagricert Certified
Sustainable Practices: Podere Val di Toro uses electric vehicles, produces its own electricity through solar panels, and practices traditional organic farming. Green manure and broad beans, which are sown among the vine lines and mulched into the soil at the end of spring, are the only forms of fertilizer used. Copper and sulfur are the only substances utilized in disease treatments, but only in the quantities permitted by organic chemistry.