Territory | Tombolini Vini

THE MARCHE AND
THE CASTELLI DI JESI

We make wine in the Marche, the plural name of a territory which is “Italy in one region”, and which has given birth to personalities such as Federico II, Raffaello, Leopardi, Rossini and Montessori.

Located east of Tuscany, with a shared Renaissance history, the region extends for 60 km that separate the 1,500 meters of the Apennines to the west from the coasts of the Adriatic Sea. A landscape dominated by rolling hills and countryside, shaped by centuries of sharecropping, its history characterized by 500 years under the Papal rule.

The winemaking tradition of the Marche is pre-Roman and was already in practice before the Greeks, who founded the capital city Ancona in 387 B.C. The Benedictine monks consolidated it throughout the Esino river valley. It’s here that Lombard settlements gave way to the walls and bastions of the 25 villages of the Castelli di Jesi wine district- a unique location for the production of one of the most important Italian white wines, thanks to the centuries-old union with the Marche’s best-known native grape: Verdicchio.

A denomination of great differences - “from each Castle, a Verdicchio” - with altitudes ranging between 80 and 600 meters and slopes that determine diverse microclimates on each side. A territory crossed by rivers and valleys perpendicular to the coast, natural corridors that connect the hills of Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi and the sea; whose oldest area of cultivation is known as Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi Classico.

OUR VINEYARDS

Our vineyards’ 30 hectares are located in Staffolo, 300 meters above sea level, at the heart of the highest quality sub-zone of the Classico area, a natural amphitheatre around our winery - immersed in a microclimate that combines continentality with the influence of winds from the Adriatic coast.

Giovanni Tombolini chose these hills in the 1970s based on ancient knowledge. Today we know that these lands are formed by the retreat of the sea that once submerged Staffolo, between Miocene and lower Pliocene. Compared to more recently formed areas in the DOC, they have a higher rate of calcareous-clayish veins with a prevalence of sand and sandstone (FAA2), alternating with azure clays (FAA), which are very rich in calcium carbonate, as all lands of marine origins.

A nutrient-poor soil which pushes the roots deep into the ground and which dissipates heat, allowing the grapes to ripen more slowly, maintaining a perfect balance between acidity and sugar.

An unparalleled territory that extolls the versatility of Verdicchio – a grape variety that only here manages to produce wines expressing both power and elegance, great longevity while maintaining a surprising freshness.

TOMBOLINI VINEYARDS

SOIL COMPOSITION

43% FAA2 - Borello Sandstone - the oldest, dating back to the lower Middle Pliocene. A very high rate and a unique feature compared to the average 10% of the Castelli di Jesi territory.

ALTITUDE

220-300 m a.s.l.

DiURNAL THERMAL
EXCURSION (JUL-SEPT)

15-20 C degrees

ANNUAL
RAINFALL

800-900 mm

ASPECT

The ancient village sits upon a hill at the heart of the historic area of cultivation of Verdicchio, at 440 meters a.s.l.. Its name originates from the Lombard staffal - "border post" - and appeared for the first time in notarial deeds dating back to 1078.

A free municipality, never subjugated by Jesi or the Holy Roman Empire, whose symbol is the Albornoz Bastion (14th century), built on the orders of the homonymous Spanish Cardinal to re-establish the supremacy of Pope Innocent VI in Avignon. Thanks to Fulvia, the Bastion is now our property and inextricably united with our family wine: Castelfiora.

STAFFOLO, THE HILL
OF VERDICCHIO

Staffolo has always been one of the most reknown towns of the Castelli di Jesi for viticulture, so much that, while looting it in 1354, the mercenaries of the Provençal condottiero Montreal d’Albarno already found it "full of a lot of wine".

THE "VERDICCHIO D'ORO" AWARD

Restaurateurs from Staffolo were the first ambassadors of Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi.

In the early 1900s, resourceful wineries from Staffolo opened taverns in Rome and inaugurated the first Verdicchio “export” outside the Marche region - a special connection between the Eternal City and the Castelli di Jesi, united for centuries by the Papal rule. Severino Severini, one of the fathers of Italian sommellerie, was from Staffolo - and in the 1960s his Michelin-starred restaurant in Rome served Verdicchio to his regulars customers: Gary Cooper, Grace Kelly, Marlon Brando and Sophia Loren.

From this tradition, Staffolo gave birth to one of the first national food and wine culture awards with the patronage of the Italian Academy of Cuisine: the "Verdicchio d’oro".

We may then start from Staffolo to explore the Marche’s gastronomy, with its unique combination of sea, countryside and forest that pairs well with the versatility of Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi; defined by some as the best wine on earth to enjoy with seafood, but which also pairs exceedingly well with appetizers and white meat: the perfect white for the modern diet.

YOU KNOW THE TERRITORY,
NOW DISCOVER ITS AROMAS

OUR WINES

THE MARCHE ANDTHE CASTELLI DI JESI