Beauty and the Brunello: A Wine Love Story in Tuscany

Quick--how much time and labor do you think goes into making a world-class wine? According to Emilia Nardi, owner of Tenute de Silvio Nardi, a legendary Brunello di Montalcino, one should budget about 300 hours per acre and $675,000 in labor costs per year. When I hear these numbers, as I stand in her impossibly beautiful vineyards scribbling notes, my mouth gapes. Emilia smiles and nods knowingly, reading my mind she adds, “If you aren’t a bit crazy and don’t like risk then you cannot be a winemaker.”