A Journey Through Tuscany - From Petra to Rocca di Frassinello

Hello friends. I’m continuing to share my memories from my journey through Tuscany with you. In this post I’ll talk about my visits to two fantastic wineries. We began the day at a holiday resort, the Calidario Terme Etrusche thermal baths. There are hot springs here, hotels and also a restaurant. It’s possible to relax and thoroughly enjoy yourself in these warm, healing waters.

Our first stop was the Petra Winery. As you might guess, what brought me here wasn’t only wine, architecture played an even bigger role. Specifically the architecture of the Swiss architect Mario Botta. It’s best if I start from the beginning.

This winery was founded in 1997 by Vittorio Moretti. He didn’t originally come from the wine industry, but from the construction sector. He was an innovator from northern Italy and particularly in the 1960s, one of the first people to bring prefabrication technology from the United States to Italy. Later on he purchased the winery we now know as Bellavista, located in Franciacorta, just north of where he lived. After that he began expanding his wine empire by acquiring different estates.

In 1997 he bought an old farm here and planted vineyards. By the way the old farmhouse is still standing. Today olive oil made from local olives is bottled there and it bears the name of Vittorio’s wife.

Naturally the old farmhouse did not meet Vittorio’s high expectations. So he decided to build a new winery and invited Mario Botta, confident that he could create a monumental, iconic structure for this region.

This place is in Tuscany, but the specific sub-region is called Val di Cornia. Cornia is the name of the river that flows here. The wines appellation, meanwhile takes its name from the nearby village of Suvereto.

Mario Botta has designed many impressive churches and here he chose to create a structure reminiscent of a temple. He was inspired by the pyramids of Chichén Itzá and by the symbolism of the sun, which shines here almost all year round. From this inspiration emerged a staircase of 141 steps, ascending upward and following the natural slope of the land.

The sun is also reflected in the plan of the building, in the cylindrical form of the main winery structure. Wings extend to the right and left, housing technical areas. On the right are the showroom, shop and tasting room, on the left are the bottling and logistics areas. Wine production itself takes place right at the center.

The building is clad in Pietra d’Abruna stone quarried in Verona, a material Mario Botta particularly loves. There is symbolism here as well, because of its iron content, the stone has a pinkish hue. The soils around Suvereto are also rich in iron and minerals, which gives the wines produced here a character distinct from other Tuscan wines.

On both sides of the staircase, we saw wider steps that resemble an ancient amphitheater. Of course they weren’t designed for performances, but to bring daylight into the production areas.

From a technological standpoint, the production process has an interesting feature, everything works on a gravity-flow system. Production takes place on three levels. Grapes harvested from the vineyards arrive at the top level and move downward naturally. This eliminates the need for pumping and avoids unnecessary intervention in the raw material. It’s said that this approach has a positive effect on grape and wine quality.

Light enters the production areas through slits between the steps. Inside, wooden panels reflect incoming light while absorbing excess heat from the warm Tuscan sun. Even in the production spaces, a special color known as Botta blue is used in the interior design. This color combines the tones of the sky and the nearby Tyrrhenian Sea, while also helping to create a suitable microclimate for production.

The cellar where the wines mature in barrels is extremely impressive. It resembles a cathedral or a temple, with its vaults and characteristic columns. It’s also worth noting that the technologies Vittorio Moretti learned were applied here, the entire building was manufactured in Brescia, transported here and assembled on site.

Behind this temple, as an architectural statement by Vittorio Moretti, there is a tunnel extending into the mountain. A tasting room was created there. In fact, this tasting room was used only three times, because the microclimate inside significantly altered the taste of the wine. As a result the tastings did not reflect the true aromas and flavors. Today the space exists more as a design and architectural expression.

At the end of this former tasting room are two unique design objects by the designer Giuseppe Rivadossi, who is well known for his original furniture designs.

There are two more interesting points related to production. First the Petra winery uses striped barrels. These are actually barrels made of French oak, but the middle sections are deliberately painted. During production, a process called batonnage is performed, the barrel is opened, the wine is stirred and droplets form. On light-colored oak, these droplets look unattractive, so the middle part is pre-coated.

And wines here are aged not only in steel tanks but also in concrete tanks. This technology had lost popularity for a while, but it is now making a comeback in winemaking. Concrete tanks give the wine different and distinctive notes.

The second winery I visited was Rocca di Frassinello. Once again the reason for coming here was the extraordinary architecture. This building was designed by Renzo Piano and it is the only winery he has ever designed. After Petra, Mario Botta went on to design two more wineries, it seems he enjoyed the experience.

Here we see signature elements of Renzo Piano’s architecture, which we also encountered at the Beyeler Foundation and the Stavros Niarchos Foundation in Athens. These are heliostats, shading devices that reflect and direct sunlight into interior spaces. At the same time, they function as trellises for plants and help the building blend into the landscape, despite its vivid color.

That bright color is the color of Tuscan brick, known as Siena color, a very traditional and respected tone. It harmonizes perfectly with the terracotta tiles of the flooring. The terrace is truly magnificent, offering an incredible view over the Maremma Valley. The winery sits on a hill, with several small ponds nearby, creating a deeply pastoral atmosphere.

The wine shop and reception are located in a glass pavilion. This pavilion reminded me of the museum spaces at the Stavros Niarchos Foundation and the Beyeler Foundation. However, there is also a tower here, a reference to the historic towers of Tuscany that once adorned the villas and palaces of Florentine and Sienese merchants, nobles and princes.

Unfortunately since the day we visited was a Sunday, there was probably a shortened working schedule and no one was inside. We couldn’t go in, but it was still possible to enjoy the atmosphere.

I hope you were able to feel, at least a little, the atmosphere of contemporary architecture thoughtfully placed within these magnificent Tuscan landscapes. Perhaps one day, when you visit Tuscany, you’ll want to see these wineries and taste the wonderful Tuscan wines. Maybe you’ll be luckier than we were, especially if Rocca di Frassinello is open.