Malauva

An old farmhouse, brought back to life

In 2017 the people behind Malauva bought an old stone house with 6 hectares of land — a mix of vineyards, olive trees and woodland — with the aim of reviving this centuries-old casa agricola. The estate sits in the municipality of Castel Giorgio (province of Terni), on the edge of the Alfina plateau: a vast volcanic high plain at around 550 metres of altitude, on the border between Umbria, Lazio and Tuscany.

In the vineyard

Today around 3.2 hectares of vines are farmed organically — 1.5 hectares owned, the rest rented. In March 2020 a half-hectare was planted via massal selection, with cuttings from an old vineyard where you can still find procanico, drupeggio, verdello and malvasia.

In autumn 2021 an old vigne maritata was added — a traditional “married vineyard” where fruit trees, willows, ash and maple grow alongside the vines and literally support them. A small ecosystem in itself.

The grapes that thrive here are typical of the area: procanico, drupeggio, verdello and malvasia for the whites, and sangiovese for the reds.

In the cellar

Spontaneous fermentations, no filtration, no fining and no oenological aids — that’s the Malauva cellar philosophy, short and to the point. The wines are allowed to become whatever they want to become.

The harvest

Picking usually starts in late August with the earliest varieties and runs through to late September for the reds. Everything is hand-picked, with careful field selection so that only perfectly healthy grapes reach the cellar.

The wines

At the moment Malauva makes eight wines: Malauva Bianco, Malauva Rosato, Osarella, Tierra, Rosarella, Rebelle Mariage, Rebelle Mariage Pink and Vigne Maritate. Each year new vinifications are tried, to better understand the different expressions of the grapes and broaden the range.

The project

Malauva wants to be more than a wine estate. The project aims for a small, diversified ecosystem in which vines, olive trees, vegetable gardens and animals are connected — producing food in a natural and respectful way, in dialogue with the place.