Cantina del Tufaio: winery tour and food tasting with the producer

We will stroll through the vineyards, telling you our story that began back in 1881. We will visit our underground cave. I will guide you through a tasting of 3 of our wines, including the sparkling wine!

My name is Nicoletta, and I'll start the tour by introducing you to the oldest vine we have in the winery, which dates back to 1881. Our story begins with my ancestors, 6 generations ago, who built the farmhouse and dug an underground cave. My grandparents made wine for a living and supplied the Roman market, which demanded light wine with a low alcohol content. The carters would leave the countryside with their horses and go to Rome to sell the wine in the squares or in the taverns. When my parents took over the reins of the estate, they decided to change course and start producing quality wines. My father was one of the pioneers of the classic method sparkling wine in Lazio. After years of research and study, he produced his first batch of classic method sparkling wine in 1983. At the end of 2015, I decided to return to the winery and open the doors of our company more. I love sharing my story, our work, the organic approach to tilling the soil, and spontaneous fermentation in the cellar. So the tour will have a cultural approach to the world of wine. I like it when people delve into our world and feel at home. We will visit our cave, 17 meters underground, which was dug out of the volcanic soil at the end of the 19th century. Thanks to its natural and constant temperature of 12/14°C, the second fermentation of our sparkling wine in the bottle takes place slowly. This promotes an elegant, persistent, and creamy perlage. So I will explain to you what the aging of a classic method sparkling wine consists of and tell you about the difference with Prosecco (for example). Finally, I will lead you through a tasting of 3 of our wines: Tufaio pas dosè sparkling wine, Casale Tiberio (Merlot), and Tufaio (white wine from native grapes). I will briefly teach you how to taste a wine, following an approach based on evaluating sight, smell, and taste. The food tasting will be accompanied by a board of local cured meats and cheese, as well as bread and oil made by us.