2024 will be a year to remember for Lungarotti. The historic Umbrian winery celebrates two anniversaries: 50 years of the Torgiano Wine Museum MUVIT and 60 years of Rubesco Riserva Vigna Monticchio, Lungarotti’s world-famous flagship wine.
1974-2014. The Torgiano Wine Museum turns 50. A very special birthday that will be celebrated during 2024 with numerous cultural initiatives to celebrate the art, culture and pleasure of wine that the MUVIT has been narrating for half a century. Inaugurated on April 23, 1974 by Giorgio and Maria Grazia Lungarotti, owners of the eponymous winery which has made Umbrian wine famous throughout the world, the Torgiano Wine Museum has been described by the New York Times as ‘best in Italy’ for the quality of the collections on display: over 3,000 artifacts, including archaeological finds, ceramic wine containers from the Medieval, Renaissance, Baroque and contemporary periods, engravings and drawings from the 15th to the 20th century, and other evidence documenting the importance of wine in the collective imagination of the civilizations that have inhabited the Mediterranean basin. For the occasion, Lungarotti has created a limited edition of its Brut Millesimato celebrating MUVIT’s 50 years, featuring a label inspired by the Infantia de Bacho by Mastro Giorgio Andreoli (Gubbio, 1528), one of the Museum’s most representative works.
An adventure embarked upon by Giorgio and Maria Grazia Lungarotti who, back in the 1970s, had already sensed how viticulture could generate satellite activities linked to specialized tourism, accomodations and hospitality, thus proving themselves as pioneers in wine tourism.
1964 – 2024. Rubesco Riserva Vigna Monticchio (Torgiano Rosso Riserva DOCG) turns 60. It was 1964 when Giorgio Lungarotti, a pioneer of modern Italian oenology, first produced what would soon become Lungarotti’s flagship wine, considered by critics as one of the best Italian reds. Giorgio had immediately realised that from the Monticchio vineyard on the hills of Torgiano, thanks to perfect exposure and unique soil, extraordinary Sangiovese grapes could be obtained. Innovative for its time, this Cru was immediately noted for its clear personality and delicate balance between power and finesse. Produced only in vintages that deserve to be recounted, Rubesco Riserva Vigna Monticchio has evolved in style, always respecting tradition, and today reflects the acumen of the members of the Lungarotti family at the helm of the winery. “Tasting in sequence from the first vintage to the one currently on the market,” explains Chiara Lungarotti, “is like leafing through a book that reveals how the expression of Sangiovese has evolved over all these years, based also on environmental and climatic changes. Changes that have demonstrated the extraordinary ability of this grape variety to adapt when planted in a highly vocated territory as Torgiano has proven to be”.
At Vinitaly this special birthday has been celebrated with the presentation of a commemorative packaging where some of the accolades received by this cru are reproduced, revealing its decades-long history.
Lungarotti has contributed to writing the history of Italian wine in the world. A story which began with Giorgio Lungarotti, a pioneer of modern Italian viticulture who after the Second World War transformed the family’s agricultural estate in Torgiano into a successful winery. A story that continues, thanks to the commitment, passion and expertise of the 3 generations of the Lungarotti family who now conduct the activities, innovating without losing sight of the unmistakable character of iconic wines such as Rubesco Riserva Vigna Monticchio – Torgiano Rosso Riserva DOCG, considered one of the best Italian reds, and Rubesco – Rosso di Torgiano DOC.
Lungarotti totals 250 hectares of vineyards situated in the Torgiano Estate (230 ha, VIVA certification) and the one in Montefalco (20 ha, certified organic); the viticulture practised at both wineries is based on sustainability and biodiversity. One of the winery’s cornerstones is wine tourism and promoting the culture of wine, olive oil and artistic heritage through the Wine Museum (MUVIT) and the Olive and Oil Museum (MOO) of Torgiano. www.lungarotti.it
