Blog: Masseria Surani | Toskana

The Tommasi story was born in 1902 from the pioneering spirit of a visionary farmer who inspired four generations. When the fourth generation joined the company, the heirs brought resources, experience and fresh blood to manage two decisive moments of expansion. Today, the Tommasi family owns 599 hectares of land in some of Italy's most famous and important wine regions.

The latest chapter of the Tommasi family begins in Manduria, which is interwoven with Greek mythology. This region fascinates the Tommasi family so much that in 2014 they decided to renovate an Apulian farm and press the typical wines of Manduria there, naming their wines after the gods of ancient Greece.

Oenologist Fabio Mecca tells the story of Primitivo, lost in the mists of time: it was traded throughout the Mediterranean by the ancient Phoenicians and later cultivated by the Greeks during the colonization of southern Italy, then Magna Graecia, in the seventh century BC.

However, its origin is disputed. Some scholars have sought a noble relationship with Bordeaux, but the genetically identical Croatian grape variety Crljenak kaštelanski makes the hypothesis of a southern Mediterranean origin the most likely.

Pliny the Elder described Manduria as a town 'viticulosa', i.e. full of vineyards. The fame of this fine wine was so great that in the Middle Ages monks from the East operated a discreet export trade from the ports of Taranto, Gallipoli, Otranto and Brindisi.

And it was also here that pilgrims and crusaders gave meaning to the word 'toast': their good wishes on setting off for the Holy Land. The first reliable records date back to the second half of the 18th century, when Don Francesco Filippo Indellicati from Gioia del Colle noticed the characteristics of the grape in detail and was so fascinated by it that he selected it and planted the first monoculture of 'Primaticcio'. The Murge is still a popular growing area for Primitivo, but many experts agree that Primitivo finds its true soul in Manduria.

The Masseria Surani originated as a typical Apulian farm in the early 1900s. It remains a shining symbol against the blue sky and the green expanses of the vineyards and today stands next to the winery building. The story of Masseria Surani began at the end of August 2014 with the first harvest on the 80 hectares in the heart of the Manduria doc and ended in September with a celebratory leap onto the golden, pristine beaches of the Ionian Sea. - Gerardo [TS11/23]