Azienda Agricola Capanna di Cencioni

Giuseppe Cencioni founded Capanna in 1957 to break free of the mezzadria sharecropping system. At great sacrifice he bought the Capanna farm, 25 hectares of woodland and fields in complete disrepair, made worse by the freeze of 1956 that had damaged most of the plants. In 1960, with a mortgage from the Agrarian Credit Institute of Tuscany and help from relatives, he planted the estate's first specialized vineyard. The Brunello di Montalcino DOC was established in 1966, and in 1967 Giuseppe became one of 25 founding members of the Consorzio del Vino Brunello di Montalcino. The 1964 vintage was the first Capanna Brunello sold on the market, and from then on the company grew, with profits reinvested in the farm.

• Founded 1957 by Giuseppe Cencioni to escape the mezzadria sharecropping system
• Bought a 25-hectare farm damaged by the 1956 freeze; first specialized vineyard planted 1960
• One of 25 founding members of the Consorzio del Vino Brunello di Montalcino in 1967
• First Capanna Brunello on the market: the 1964 vintage

In 1975 the estate began exporting Brunello DOC and Rosso di Montalcino, then labeled Rosso dai vigneti di Brunello, to Germany. The importer was Harald L. Bremer, a stone and building-materials importer and wine lover. Visiting Montalcino, he was directed to the Capanna land, found Giuseppe in the vineyard thinning grapes, tasted the wine and decided to import it. Exports later expanded into Belgium, Japan, Canada, Switzerland and the United States. Franco Cencioni (d. 1990), one of Giuseppe's two sons, had run the agricultural and livestock side of the business. His brother Benito, the remaining son, then closed the livestock operation and, with his sons Patrizio and Francesco, focused the family on vineyards and wine production.

• German exports began 1975 through importer Harald L. Bremer, who found the estate while visiting Montalcino
• Exports later expanded to Belgium, Japan, Canada, Switzerland and the United States
• Franco Cencioni (d. 1990) ran the agricultural and livestock side
• Benito Cencioni closed the livestock operation and refocused the estate on vineyards and wine with sons Patrizio and Francesco

Capanna has always been run exclusively at a family level. Patrizio and Amedeo Cencioni, the third and fourth generation, now run it and personally oversee the vineyard and cellar work. Amedeo, Patrizio's son, is an enologist who also built the family's hospitality business: the Capanna Suites project began with a renovation in 2004, resumed in 2013 to create luxury agriturismo accommodations, and opened to the public in 2019. Alongside it sits Il Passaggio by Capanna, the estate's restaurant. Amedeo developed both to showcase the family's winemaking and open the property to guests.

• Patrizio (third generation) and Amedeo (fourth generation) Cencioni run the vineyard and cellar work
• Family-owned and family-run since 1957
• Amedeo, an enologist, led the Capanna Suites agriturismo, opened to the public in 2019, and the Il Passaggio restaurant
• Capanna Suites began with a 2004 renovation and resumed in 2013 as luxury accommodations

All of Capanna's vineyards lie in the Montosoli area north of Montalcino, long considered one of the best sites in the territory. Wide day-to-night temperature swings and galestro soils give the wines structure, acidity and elegance. New Sangiovese vines went in from the 1960s, and the vineyard area has since grown to more than 20 hectares, all trained to bilateral spurred cordons at 250 to 300 meters on mainly clayey, skeleton-rich galestro soils. Over the decades the family selected the best Sangiovese clones and kept ancient strains of Moscato Bianco, present in the area since the 16th century. Plantings are about 80 percent Sangiovese, with about 3 hectares of Moscato Bianco, about 1 hectare of Merlot and about 5,000 square meters of Pinot Grigio. Grassing and green manuring maintain soil structure and fertility; the season brings spring bud selection, canopy management, bunch thinning before veraison, and a manual harvest with grape selection.

• All vineyards in the Montosoli area north of Montalcino, at 250 to 300 meters
• Clayey, skeleton-rich galestro soils; bilateral spurred cordon training
• About 80 percent Sangiovese, plus roughly 3 hectares Moscato Bianco, 1 hectare Merlot and 5,000 square meters Pinot Grigio
• Ancient Moscato Bianco strains, present in the territory since the 16th century, kept in the vineyard

The cellar occupies an eighteenth-century property, still partly in its original, renovated rooms and enlarged as the vineyard area grew. It holds a grape reception room, a large fermentation area, an aging cellar, and packaging and storage rooms. At reception, grapes pass through a destemmer and an optical sorter. The best Sangiovese ferments in traditional truncated-conical oak vats for Brunello and part of the Rosso di Montalcino; since 1988 temperature control and pump-over have been automated, including on the stainless steel tanks used for Sant'Antimo, Moscadello and other wines. Aging takes place in Slavonian oak in an underground cellar built around a stone gallery and the restored rooms of the original farmhouse. Brunello di Montalcino DOCG (100 percent Sangiovese, 25-30 day skin maceration) ages in 10 to 32 hectoliter barrels for about 30-36 months, then at least 6 months in bottle, and goes on sale in January of its fifth year. The Riserva, from the oldest vines and best harvests with 30-35 day maceration, ages in 10 to 25 hectoliter barrels for about 36 to 40 months, then at least 15 months in bottle, for release in January of its sixth year. Rosso di Montalcino DOC (100 percent Sangiovese, 18-20 day maceration) spends 6-10 months in 20 to 32 hectoliter casks plus 3-4 months in bottle. Moscadello di Montalcino DOC is 100 percent Moscato Bianco from native, massal-selected clones, macerated 1-2 days, fermented in stainless steel at 12 degrees C and aged only a few months in bottle.

• Brunello DOCG: 10-32 hl Slavonian oak, about 30-36 months, then 6-plus months in bottle
• Brunello DOCG Riserva: 10-25 hl Slavonian oak, about 36-40 months, then 15-plus months in bottle
• Rosso di Montalcino DOC: 20-32 hl Slavonian oak casks, 6-10 months, then 3-4 months in bottle
• Moscadello di Montalcino DOC: 100 percent Moscato Bianco, stainless-steel fermentation, released 4-6 months after harvest

Capanna holds a founding place in Brunello di Montalcino's institutional history: Giuseppe Cencioni was among the 25 producers who formed the Consorzio del Vino Brunello di Montalcino in 1967, and the Cencioni family has owned the estate since 1957. Its Montosoli location is a long-recognized site north of Montalcino. The estate makes about 80,000 to 100,000 bottles a year across the DOCG and DOC wines of the area: Brunello (including the Riserva and the Nicco selection), Rosso di Montalcino, Moscadello, Sant'Antimo Rosso and Sant'Antimo Pinot Grigio, plus IGT wines, olive oil and grappa.

• One of 25 founding-member producers of the Brunello Consortium, 1967
• Owned by the Cencioni family since 1957, now in its fourth generation
• About 80,000 to 100,000 bottles a year across DOCG and DOC Montalcino wines
• Range includes Brunello, Brunello Riserva, Brunello "Nicco," Rosso di Montalcino, Moscadello di Montalcino, and Sant'Antimo Rosso and Pinot Grigio

Primary sources (producer's own site and its affiliated Capanna Suites site): https://www.capannamontalcino.com/en/, https://www.capannamontalcino.com/en/vineyards/, https://www.capannamontalcino.com/en/cellar/, https://www.capannamontalcino.com/en/products/, https://www.capannamontalcino.com/en/awards/, https://www.capannamontalcino.com/en/visit-and-tastings/, https://www.capannamontalcino.com/en/where-we-are/, https://www.capannamontalcino.com/en/prodotto/brunello-di-montalcino/, https://www.capannamontalcino.com/en/prodotto/brunello-di-montalcino-riserva/, https://www.capannamontalcino.com/en/prodotto/rosso-di-montalcino/, https://www.capannamontalcino.com/en/prodotto/moscadello-di-montalcino/, https://www.capannasuites.com/en/capanna/storia-della-nostra-famiglia/, https://www.capannasuites.com/en/dining/, https://www.capannasuites.com/en/. Secondary source: Consorzio del Vino Brunello di Montalcino (the appellation body), https://www.consorziobrunellodimontalcino.it/en/1415/capanna. Last verified 2026-10-12. Two secondary attempts to independently confirm the critic scores the estate lists on its own tastings page (Decanter World Wine Awards, Gardini Notes, Falstaff) failed the fetch integrity check (Cloudflare block on falstaff.com; empty JS shell on results.decanter.com) and were dropped; those specific point scores are therefore not asserted in this article, per PRIMARY-GOVERNS boundary on third-party award claims.