Tuscany’s Il Borro Blends Tradition And Luxury With Forward Thinking

In 1993 Ferruccio Ferragamo (son of Salvatore Ferragamo, of shoe and design renown) purchased a medieval village and 1,700 acres (700 hectares) of land between the Tuscan cities of Florence and Arezzo. He began creating a combination resort, winery and organic farm. Today this embodies several trends that have since become mainstream throughout the world: an all-inclusive destination resort, organic farm-to-table cuisine, on-site energy production and a winery associated with excellent accommodations and dining. In addition, this site named Il Borro marries medieval Tuscan history and contemporary culture with modern facilities.

Now a luxury Relais & Châteaux property, Il Borro is named after a deep gorge that surrounds, and once provided defense for, a medieval hilltop village included on the site. That village and the stone bridge leading to it have been renovated and merged with modern, though architecturally harmonious, structures. The layout of Il Borro is both linear and organic: linear in that the property aligns along a general axis; organic because structures were built over centuries based on differently evolving plans. A property map clearly differentiates Il Borro from other resorts: in addition to a fitness room, infinity pool, spa and tennis/soccer facilities, there are also features such as stables, wine cellar, amphitheater, medieval village, craftsmen shops and a church. Some of these locales are based on original medieval facilities. Part of the site is strung over, or close to, a steep and darkly vegetated ravine. Compact electric white vehicles—narrow enough to navigate medieval alleys—buzz over stone roads to deliver guests and luggage.

Each of thirty-nine luxury suites in the medieval village are both numbered and named. 101, 102, 103 and 104 are also Cacciatore (hunter), Scrittore (writer), Soprano and Poeta (poet), while 300 and 302 are granaio (barn) and canonica (rectory). Many windows look out to a private vista of tall trees. Visitors walk through bird chirps and jasmine scents while crossing an ivy-covered stone bridge. Imagine a scaled down version of Montepulciano, or Montalcino, absent any throng of daytime visitors.

Il Borro is less than three miles (4.5 kilometers) from the mighty Arno River—which cuts an impressive swath through Tuscan history. In the year 217 BC General Hannibal Barca—after crossing the Alps—marched 30,000 soldiers and a few elephants through ancient riverside swamps southward to defeat Roman armies at Lake Trasimene. In the 13^th century, on the Campaldino Plain to the east of Il Borro, 24-year old poet Dante Alighieri, as a young soldier, fought in the battle between Florentine Guelphs and Arezzo Ghibellines. During the Renaissance in the year 1504 Michelangelo and Leonardo Da Vinci squared off in a contest for whose painting within the Council Hall of Florence would be judged as superior. Any visit to this region, in other words, is likely be saturated with insights into pivotal moments of history.

In the mid 1990’s Ferruccio Ferragamo began replanting 10 acres (4 hectare) of existing vines. The land now includes over 110 acres (45 hectares) of vineyards producing a total of 280,000 bottles annually. Wines include sparkling, rosé, red and one white—a Chardonnay. The 32,000 square foot (3,000 square meter) cellar was designed to match architecture with an already existing structure.

On a recent trip to Tuscany I visited and tasted the wines. The flagship wine Il Borro includes a 50/35/15 blend of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah that matures in wood for 18 months and in the bottle for an additional eight months. The 2018 we sampled from the barrel included tastes of cherries and balsamic and—truthfully—would have been ideal for sipping all afternoon long. The Cabernet Sauvignon, harvested from a horse tended vineyard, includes a big bold structure and a refreshing taste of deep, dark fruit.

Their Rosé del Borro, made from 100% Sangiovese, is both crisp and hefty and will go well with an appetizer (think pea soup) while the 2016 Il Borro Polissena, also made from Sangiovese, includes aromas of charcoal and blueberries, and is lively in the mouth with a taste that includes morels.

After tasting wines, I spoke with Executive Chef Andrea Campani. After working in America and Japan he returned home to Tuscany to manage Il Borro restaurants—and a dozen staff—named Il Borro Tuscan Bistro (one restaurant with this name is inside the estate and another is in Florence) and Osteria del Borro. He also provides oversight for an associated restaurant in Dubai. A glance at his menu showed marinated wild boar and Jerusalem artichoke, or lasagna with nettles, pheasant and olive Ragusa and pecorino cheese.

Visitors have an opportunity to have an authentic experience with traditional food that is not monotonous; we try to give a personal touch, and also have to be contemporary. Many local producers supply, say, chicken and cheeses. Changing seasons also give us the opportunity to create new dishes.

A sizable number of visitors to Il Borro are Americans. If suffering from jet lag and slightly grumpy when they enter either restaurant, Campani enjoys witnessing how the food and atmosphere can transform them.

Sometimes people come a little stressed, and then leave the restaurant completely happy. It’s nice to see such transformation, to know that we make people happy. Satisfaction comes when guests come back often. We try to keep traditions, culture. That’s why we don’t like to transform certain dishes. When we talk about pappa pomodoro, we don’t want to add fusion ingredients—I want to keep the same recipe from my grandmother. Dining is an opportunity to share experiences and ideas and to meet. I think the time we spend at the table is important.

Beginning in 2012, under Il Borro CEO Salvatore Ferragamo Jr., the estate began placing strong emphasis on organic production, gaining certification in 2015. Il Borro’s five-acre (two-hectare) organic farm produces olive oil, eggs, honey and vegetables, including beetroots and potatoes. Nearby fields also include white Chianina cows. This is managed by Vittoria Ferragamo—who energetically visited different portions of the property during our visit, but said hello and glowed with obvious enthusiasm for her work. The farm provides ingredients for both on-site restaurants. Additionally, a few days each week custom wood boxes of produce weighing up to 11 pounds (5 kilograms) are delivered to homes in Arezzo, Siena and Florence. Solar panels on the roof of what was once a tobacco warehouse as well as those in a solar panel field provide the compound with an effectively negative carbon footprint.

Il Borro’s on-site Wines & Art gallery is compact, warm in atmosphere, tastefully laid out and includes art from Ferragamo’s private collection. The current exhibit, titled Bacchus and Venus: the role of the female in wine history includes originals from Picasso, Warhol, Chagall and Albrecht Dürer.

This sizable countryside location of Il Borro includes ample Tuscan character in terms of architecture, food and wine. What stamps it as unique (beside including an ancient village and an art gallery) is its progressive association with a thriving and sizable organic farm.

This post first appeared on Forbes.com. To see the original, click here.