When planning a trip to Italy’s most sought-after region, most people head to Florence, Siena, or Pisa, but now a remote village called Montaione is coming onto the map. Perched on a high hill and accessible only by winding mountain roads snaking through thickly wooded forests, this under-the-radar hamlet is Tuscany’s final frontier. Lacking the abundant vineyards of nearby Chianti, Montepulciano, and Montalcino, the countryside experienced a period of decline as young Tuscans decamped to the cities in search of better career opportunities.
But now Toscana Resort Castelfalfi is changing all that with a $250 million investment in the area. The 2,500-acre estate occupies about 20 percent of the town of Montaione, encompassing a nature preserve, olive groves, vineyards, new and renovated villas (some of Tuscany’s priciest), a 27-hole golf course, shops, restaurants, swimming pools, a 30-room boutique hotel La Tabaccaia, and a new energy-efficient five-star hotel known as Il Castelfalfi, a member of Preferred Hotels & Resorts. “This is a unique offering in all of Tuscany,” Castelfalfi CEO Stefan Neuhaus said, gesturing below at the panorama of rolling hills and valleys populated by stone farmhouses. “This is a completely unspoiled region because for the past 60 years it hasn’t had interventions like in Chianti and Florence.”
If you’re looking for a blissful respite in Tuscany’s peaceful countryside, this is the place to go. Removed from the typical tourist circuit, the town is home to hidden gems like Casa Masi, a rustic restaurant in a centuries-old former tobacco warehouse with stone walls and wooden beams, where the tables are illuminated by candlelight and fresh-cut flowers sit on the marble bar. “All the furniture is home furniture and each piece has a story,” proprietor Luciana Masi said from behind the bar, where she surveyed the scene. With a romantic atmosphere, efficient service, and simple but delicious home cooking, it’s the authentic version of the kind of Tuscan trattoria that’s often copied but impossible to replicate. Order the house-made gramigna al pecorino pasta and a local Chianti and you’ll understand why you need to come here for an authentic taste of Tuscany.
Equidistant from Florence and Siena, Montaione is the perfect base for exploring towns like Volterra—famous for its alabaster—and vineyards like Ruffino’s Poggio Casciano estate, where you can taste their portfolio of wines—including the coveted Chianti Classico Riserva Ducale Oro—in a meticulously maintained Renaissance villa. “Chianti wines are truly a symbol of Tuscan quality and tradition,” said Ruffino’s Global Ambassador Beppe D’Andrea, who over the course of his career has been a winemaker, cellar master, and certified sommelier. “Chianti comes from the heart of Tuscany, where wines have been produced for centuries. Traditionally wines here were made by the farming families of the region for energy and sustenance, but the quality and versatility of Chianti has made it one of the most well-known red wines in the world.” A few days here and—like German-born Stefan Neuhaus—you might decide never to leave.