From SelectioNaturel: “Danilo Marcucci makes these wines as an homage to his wife's family ancestry… in Danilo’s words, he is merely a guest here, married to the vines and his wife Alessandra's noble lineage. During its heyday in the 1800's, the Conestabile della Staffa property totaled over 700 ha of mixed agricultural land, of which over 100ha were under vine in traditional 'promiscuous' agriculture (interplanted). During this period, in the late 1800's and early 1900's, Conestabile della Staffa was the most important social cantina in the Trasimeno-Perugino area, producing over 10,000 hectoliters of wine per vintage.  

In the 1920's the hamlet was home to over 20 small families, each related to Counts of the Conestabile della Staffa.  Alessandra is the great granddaughter of one of the Counts.  The village was essentially a self-sufficient commune/fiefdom at that point.  Work and profit sharing among the families was divided equally in all sectors of the farming; raising cows, growing and drying tobacco, making wool & silk, a cobbler, a school, a metalworker, and of course olive oil and wine. After World War II, much of the rural population migrated to cities; between 1956 and 2015, the family didn’t make any wine.”

The estate now comprises 12 hectares of 50 year-old vines, many of which were abandoned for over a decade, and none of which has ever seen chemicals.

Links to more info about Conestabile della Staffa: