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Purchased forty years ago by the Maestrelli family, Villa Petriolo has for a long time simply been the family’s country house, a place of leisure, relaxation and meditation. This is how Moreno, the founder of the family, had imagined it.
An entrepreneur who loves art and the countryside, Moreno is a fine carver of wooden sculptures and has for many years drawn the inspiration for his works from the silence of the hills surrounding the property.
The most outstanding of his works is a light stand (the base consisting of a large piece of machinery on which the trunk of an olive tree has been mounted on top of which is an original lamp), which represents the world and its contrasts: the skill of technique, the power of nature and the intelligence of man.
At the same time, over the years, he has nurtured the idea of making of Villa Petriolo a place of artistic aggregation and promotion.
Moreno’s idea has today been brought to life chiefly by his daughter Silvia, his second-born, who eight years ago, by following her father’s inspiration and her love for the places she grew up in, started a project of radical conversion of Villa Petriolo from family estate into a modern farming business capable of producing products of excellent quality.
Silvia has invested energy and enthusiasm in the farm, renovating the rooms, the cellars and the vineyards. Brave and tenacious, Silvia successfully completed her project in 2002 when the realization of the first implantation of Sangiovese, carried out according to the most modern rearing systems, coincided with the birth of her daughter Lavinia.
Now Silvia Maestrelli thinks of Petriolo not only as a place of real life and, why not, of cultural promotion, but also as a modern company able to assert itself on the market thanks the unquestionable quality of the wines and of the oil that are produced on the farm. The Petriolo estate is located in a region which unites landscape beauty to a very ancient cultural tradition.
Its closeness to cities and towns like Florence, Pisa, Vinci and Lucca makes of Villa Petriolo an ideal point of departure for those who want to alternate pleasant trips to the quietness of the winery.
The history of this land is that of the people who live here, so closely attached to their roots. Hence the desire to create a place in which, beside the ancient art of “making wine”, also the creativity of young artists could find its expression. In Villa Petriolo painters, sculptors and creatives can exhibit their works of art.
This initiative is, beyond any doubts, an attraction for the visitors to the wine estate, for young artists an occasion to show their talent and the fruits of their work and for country lovers an occasion to spend a pleasant day enjoying art, wine and nature.
In the running of the business, Silvia is assisted by her sister Simona.
A graduate in foreign languages, Simona has chosen to invest her knowledge of languages in the family business, and is in charge of the reception of the numerous guests, especially foreigners, who every year visit Villa Petriolo.
With her sensitivity, passion and knowledge, Simona personally takes care of the organization of visits to the cellars and of tasting of the farm’s wines. |
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