Fattoria Le Pupille

Elisabetta Geppetti took over her family's property in 1985, at 20. Her grandfather, and later her father-in-law Alfredo, known to friends as Fredi, passed on to her their love for the vineyard. To that bond she added an ambitious aim: wines of excellence from the terroir of Maremma, then still largely undiscovered. Inspired by the oenologist Giacomo Tachis, creator of Sassicaia, Tignanello and Solaia, she planted Cabernet Sauvignon alongside Sangiovese, the turning point for the estate. With the late Tachis and her mentor Fredi she created Saffredi, first released with the 1987 vintage and a pioneer among the Tuscan IGT 'Supertuscans.' The winemaking story goes back further: the Morellino di Scansano Riserva began as 'Rosso di Pereta' and became the estate's first Morellino di Scansano when the denomination was created in 1978, and the first official label was released in 1982.

• 1985: Elisabetta Geppetti takes over the family property at 20, carrying forward her grandfather's and Fredi's love for the vineyard
• Inspired by Giacomo Tachis, she plants Cabernet Sauvignon alongside Sangiovese, the estate's turning point
• 1987: first Saffredi, created with Tachis and dedicated to Fredi, a pioneer among the Tuscan IGT 'Supertuscans'
• The Morellino Riserva began as 'Rosso di Pereta' and became the estate's first Morellino di Scansano when the denomination was created in 1978

Elisabetta Geppetti, known as the 'Lady of Morellino,' is both producer and the first president of the Morellino di Scansano Consortium. In 1992 she became the first woman to chair an Italian wine consortium, leading the Consorzio del Morellino di Scansano, and she chaired it again from 2011 to 2013. She now leads the estate with her children, Clara and Ettore. Ettore began studying enology and viticulture in high school, in a program at the enology school in Conegliano and at his high school in Grosseto, then continued at the University of Pisa. After a few years at Pisa he returned to Fattoria Le Pupille in 2019 to work a harvest with Luca D'Attoma, the estate's consultant for nearly a decade; in spring 2020 Ettore and the family decided he would take over vineyard management and vinification. Clara oversees exports and acts as a global ambassador, while Ettore manages the vineyards and cellar. Clara and her mother created the Le Pupille Syrah, the first wine made through their shared work, and Ettore oversaw the creation of Piemme, the estate's single-vineyard Petit Manseng.

• Elisabetta Geppetti: the 'Lady of Morellino,' first president of the Morellino di Scansano Consortium; chair from 1992, and again 2011-2013
• Ettore: studied enology and viticulture at Conegliano, in Grosseto and at the University of Pisa; winemaker since 2019-2020, succeeding consultant Luca D'Attoma
• Clara: oversees exports, acts as a global ambassador, and created the Le Pupille Syrah with her mother, their first shared wine
• Ettore oversaw the creation of Piemme, the estate's single-vineyard Petit Manseng, first released in 2014

The estate spans 420 hectares in the Maremma, on the southern side of the Tuscan coast: 85 hectares of vineyards, 20 hectares of olive groves, and land given to cereals, cork oaks and pastures. The vineyards sit between 150 and 350 meters across named parcels including Poggio Alberi, Le Piagge, Bozzino, Poggio Valente, Pupille Vecchie, La Carla, Pian di Fiora and Castello Alto. Saffredi comes from Pereta, about twenty minutes from the sea: two vineyards and four parcels on two soil types, with a historic core of three parcels on sandy soils low in organic matter and a second 12-hectare plot carrying Petit Verdot on tuff-rich soils streaked with red clay, at altitudes up to 280 meters. Elisabetta Geppetti acquired the Poggio Valente vineyard, source of the Sangiovese cru of the same name, in 1996. The Le Pupille Syrah draws on the 1.5-hectare Vigna del Palo, planted in 2000, and a 0.5-hectare plot within the Pian di Fiora vineyard, planted in 2002.

• 420 hectares in all: 85 hectares of vineyards, 20 hectares of olive groves, plus cereals, cork oaks and pastures
• Saffredi vineyard: two vineyards, four parcels in Pereta, up to 280 meters; a 12-hectare plot on tuff-rich, red-clay soils carries the Petit Verdot
• Poggio Valente vineyard acquired by Elisabetta Geppetti in 1996
• Le Pupille Syrah: Vigna del Palo (1.5 ha, planted 2000) and a 0.5-hectare plot within Pian di Fiora (planted 2002)

The current range has ten wines. Saffredi, the icon wine, blends Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Petit Verdot; its earliest vintages (1987-1989) were 100% Cabernet Sauvignon, and the blend now sits at about 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot and 10% Petit Verdot, matured 18 months in French oak barriques and up to 6 months in bottle. Poggio Valente, from the vineyard acquired in 1996, is a Sangiovese matured 15 months, 25% in large 20-hectoliter French oak casks and 75% in French oak tonneaux. The Morellino di Scansano Riserva, which began as 'Rosso di Pereta,' matures 15 months in Slavonian oak casks of 10, 20 and 40 hectoliters, and the Morellino di Scansano has been made since 1985. Pelofino blends Sangiovese with Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon, a red the estate describes as smooth and fruity. Among the whites, Poggio Argentato blends Sauvignon Blanc, Petit Manseng, Semillon and Traminer; Piemme is a single-vineyard Petit Manseng from a 1.5-hectare plot on soils rich in gypsum and clay, first released in 2014 and one of the estate's rarest labels; and Solalto is a passito from naturally dried Traminer, Sauvignon and Semillon, its label a childhood drawing by Clara. Rosamati, a pure Syrah rosé from a 2.5-hectare parcel near Magliano in Toscana, was created by Elisabetta in 2007 and is dedicated to Rosa Mati, Fredi's mother. Le Pupille, a 100% Syrah created by Elisabetta and Clara, is the most recent addition to the red range.

• Saffredi: earliest vintages 100% Cabernet Sauvignon; now about 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 10% Petit Verdot, 18 months in French oak barriques
• Poggio Valente (Sangiovese, from the 1996 vineyard) and the Morellino di Scansano Riserva (formerly 'Rosso di Pereta') anchor the Sangiovese-based range
• Whites: Poggio Argentato (Sauvignon Blanc, Petit Manseng, Semillon, Traminer), Piemme (single-vineyard Petit Manseng, first vintage 2014) and Solalto (passito)
• Rosamati (Syrah rosé, created 2007, dedicated to Rosa Mati) and Le Pupille (100% Syrah, created by Elisabetta and Clara) complete the range

Saffredi has drawn sustained critical attention in recent vintages. Wine Spectator ranked the 2019 No. 8 in its Global Top 10, and Bruce Sanderson described aromas of black currant, blackberry, plum and violet woven into a dense structure with extraordinary persistence. The 2021 ranked No. 46 in Wine Spectator's Top 100 and received 100 points from Falstaff, and James Suckling included the 2023 in his Top 100 of 2025. Robert Parker scored Saffredi 98 for 2023 and 2022, 97 for 2021, 95 for 2020 and 98 for 2019; James Suckling gave 97 for 2023, 99 for 2022 and 2021, 98 for 2020 and 99 for 2019.

• Saffredi 2019: No. 8, Wine Spectator's Global Top 10
• Saffredi 2021: No. 46, Wine Spectator's Top 100; 100 points, Falstaff
• Saffredi 2023: James Suckling's Top 100 of 2025
• Robert Parker scores of 95-98 and James Suckling scores of 97-99 for Saffredi across the 2019-2023 vintages

Primary sources (producer's own site): https://www.fattorialepupille.it/en, https://www.fattorialepupille.it/en/the-family, https://www.fattorialepupille.it/en/la-maremma, https://www.fattorialepupille.it/en/wines, https://www.fattorialepupille.it/en/wines/saffredi, and the individual pages for each of the estate's other nine wines. Secondary sources: Armit Wines, 'Women behind the Wine: Elisabetta Gepetti'; Berry Bros. & Rudd producer profile for Saffredi di Maremma Pupille; Apron and Sneakers, 'Fattoria Le Pupille: How Elisabetta Geppetti Redefined Maremma's Winemaking Tradition' (10 January 2025); Ethica Wines, 'Ettore Rizzi Shares Fattoria le Pupille New Viewpoint and Future Endeavors' (27 October 2022); Decanter, 'Fattoria Le Pupille's next-generation: Piemme & Le Pupille' by James Button (21 August 2021). Last verified 2026-10-12. Where the producer's site and a secondary source disagree, the producer's site governs.