About us

Stefania was 7 when she first tasted her grandfather’s must. Her parents lately found her sleeping under a concrete barrel.

Her grandfather Pietro was very passionate about wine and Stefania used to spend a long time with him among grapes, vineyards and cellars, helping out with the production of wine and grappa.

Pietro was an amateur. He used to produce wine out of his vineyard in Cortona (Arezzo), by harvesting whatever his land would give him, without paying too much attention to details. However, he managed to pass down so much of his love and passion for the world of wine to Stefania, that she decided to make a living out of it and develop the amateur family-run business into a professional one.

Stefania was still a girl when she used to accompany her mum to the grocery store and put expensive Sauternes bottles in their cart, just for the sake of collecting them! With time, her personal taste became more sophisticated and she came to especially appreciate Merlot, Cabernet and Syrah. That is why she decided to plant special rooted cuttings and clones in the family vineyard, alongside the traditional Sangiovese that was already there.

The opportunity to do this presented itself when the Mezzettis purchased the holiday farm in Vernazzano (Perugia). Stefania gave up her University studies in Perugia, in order to devote herself full-time to this holiday farm in Umbria, which is very special as it is not only surrounded by vineyards, but can also boast a soil that is rich in history and source of inspiration for wine names.

As a matter of fact, Vernazzano is home to several archaeological artifacts. In 217 BC, during the Second Punic War that saw Hannibal fighting against Gaius Flaminius Nepos, the Battle of Trasimene took place exactly here, where we can still find remains that get the attention of the international community.

To commemorate this historical event, the red wine produced in Vernazzano was named “Annibale”. On its first label, the image of a coin with Hannibal’s face on it was printed, and that was a coin that had been found in the vineyard.

With the help of a wine expert and an agronomist, Stefania renewed the vineyard and planted clones that were more in line with her tastes, without the use of any chemicals, in order to get an organic product. This is actually one of the key factors of the winery: Stefania is able to recognize if a wine has been modified in a lab, maybe thanks to her allergy to sulphites.

That is why she has always put a lot of effort in working on the characteristics of the soil and the plants, in order to keep a high-quality product.

When Stefania started to give shape to her projects in 1996, she wasn’t a highly experienced entrepreneur, but her philosophy was already strong and well defined. It is the same philosophy you can find today in our natural wines, which allow you to taste their aroma without the help of any chemical process or additives.

Our mission is to give priority to quality rather than quantity. Every year, we produce about 23 thousand bottles which we take care of in every detail, from the product properties to the packaging and the labelling.

After Vernazzano, two additional holiday farms surrounded by vineyards have been acquired, i.e. Villa Giulia and Fontanicchio. Today the winery “Azienda Agricola Stefania Mezzetti” can boast 10 hectares of land stretching from Tuscany to Umbria.

Though these lands are close together and we apply the same processes of farming, harvesting and wine-making, they can give us really different flavours.

This happens because the soil is very different. The Tuscan soil is red and rocky and gives us stronger and more structured wines than the Umbria soil.

The latter one is influenced by the presence of Lake Trasimene which, during the Winter, releases the warmth it has previously collected during the Summer, and therefore the resulting wine is more delicate and velvety, and contains less alcohol.

Stefania has managed to stand out in a working environment where men are the majority and women are sometimes underestimated. However, prejudices have just contributed to push her further in her entrepreneurial efforts.

As a result, after participating in the Vinitaly in 2001, the winery Stefania Mezzetti opened their doors to the international market. As of today, 60% of their production is exported to Belgium, Germany, Switzerland, United Kingdom and Canada.

In the latest years, thanks to the holiday farms, Stefania Mezzetti has been able to offer Italian and foreign tourists a true experience of the local culture, food and wine. Our facilities are the perfect location for your Tuscan holidays, because they allow you to easily reach cities of art like Arezzo, Perugia and Florence and other hidden gems of central Italy.

Our online product range includes stay and taste packages for your holiday in Tuscany.

If you want to have Made in Tuscany on your dinner table, wherever you might be, you can have our products delivered to your door.

All our wines are available to buy online. We draw inspiration for their names from the history of our wonderful land. Serve on your table Etruscan kings, like Dardanus, Lucumone or Servans, with their labels written in the Etruscan alphabet, and get ready to taste a little piece of history, made with love and passion by the winery Stefania Mezzetti!