Il Palagio

Sting and Trudie Styler bottled their first vintage of wine in 2007. The have been converting their vineyards to biodynamic practices supervised by consultant Alan York, who has worked with California's Benzinger Winery.

This 16th Century villa set amongst the Tuscan hills in the Chianti region, operates as an organic farm with both livestock and agricultural produce and is also the Sumner family’s holiday home.

Near the small town of Figline Valdarno, south of Florence, the secluded Il Palagio estate enjoys glorious weather, magnificent views and a great ambience.

The estate extends over 350 hectares of Tuscan land.

Cultivation of grapes and olives is at the heart of production, with 28 hectares of the land dedicated to the vineyards. Both red (sangiovese, canaiolo, colorino, merlot and cabernet grape) and white grapes (trebbiano and malvasia grapes) are farmed, and despite the current harvest being sold locally, consideration is now being given to reviving the tradition of on-site production.

23 hectares of olive groves also adorn the estate, and each year, after harvest, the olives are pressed and their oil filtered and bottled, ready for consumption.

The 1.5 hectare vegetable garden ensures that the kitchen is always stocked with fresh, organic vegetables, and the orchards provide a wide range of fruit, including peaches, apricots and plums which are used to make Palagio jams and marmalades.

Located in the forest, the beehives produce three types of honey – Acacia, Chestnut and Honeydew – and as with the olive oil, the honey is processed and bottled on-site.

Together with the farmyard goats, pigs and hens, life at Il Palagio verges on rural bliss…