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Vicchiomaggio Castle built with solid stone, is a charming historic residence in Tuscany immersed in a park of over 321 acres. During its long and glorious history, many personalities stayed at Vicchiomaggio Castle, including Leonardo da Vinci and Francesco Redi.
The Italian inventor painted the Mona Lisa there, along with several elaborate and impressive drawings still treasured among his personal papers; Redi, an Italian literature scholar, composed his “Il Bacco in Toscana”, while staying at the castle in 1865.
The current owners, John and Paola Matta, painstakingly manage the whole wine production also thanks also to their highly qualified staff of professionals.

The origins of the Castle, originally called “Vicchio” by the Lombards, date back to around 1400, as reported on some ancient documents. In 1320, only abandoned buildings and empty spaces were left in the castle: this explains its following transformation into a residence for the Gheradini family from Florence, and then for the Scolaris. Later on, it became a noble Renaissance villa reaching its maximum splendour. It was precisely in that period that the word “Maggio” was put before the original name of “Vicchio”, in memory of the “Maggiolate” (traditional songs of an idyllic-loving nature linked to the spring celebrations of “Calendimaggio” – “May Day”).

Its location on the top of a hill dominates the whole Val di Greve, and in the past, it proved a very strategic one within the Chianti area.

The building is surrounded by a large park and a splendid Italian garden, both well preserved, with slender cypresses (Cupressus sempervirens L.) as per Tuscan traditions, and well-trimmed hedges that harmoniously outline the inner spaces.

The company land has been thoroughly researched and then strictly classified, according to the different exposures of the vineyards, so that only the most suitable plants can be planted in each one of them. The wine production is, therefore, of excellent quality, while the crops are never stressed, nor boosted to increase their yield.

This post is also available in: Italiano (Italian)