Fattoria di Monti Società Agricola

In 2017, Tina and I made a mad dash through Tuscany looking for our new Oils! It was a very exhausting trip, we were without our partner Johnny, and so we had lots of responsibilities to "go it alone". We used Airbnb almost exclusively and relied on Google Maps to find our way!

MONTI was one of the only farms we had a very hard time locating, deep in the beautiful countryside of rolling hills between Florence and Pisa. We finally called for help and Vicky (the Producer) graciously drove out to find us and bring us to her home.

What a treat! She and her husband, Giovanni in their 16th century Medici hunting lodge, now, blessed us with some wonderful hospitality there spectacular home! Giovanni's family bought and renovated the lodge back in 1910. Vicky spent some time in school in London, so she had a great command of English, we communicated easily.

Lunch was served, and it was exciting watching Giovanni slice his fresh Prosciutto using his own hand slicing machine.

Vicky became interested in growing and milling olives by watching her father when she was a young girl. Since that time she has attended school in Perugia, learning about cultivating olive trees, harvesting and milling olives. She bought her own (Mori) milling machine and handles all aspects of production including bottling and packaging herself.

Note: her oils are mostly Denocciolato (pitted olives) and she uses the pits to heat her home! Very efficient and bio-friendly!

The farm is also home to a small herd of cattle (the mucco Pisano), horses and they grow cereals and hay. Giovanni has also planted a grape orchard and makes a fine wine!

We thanked our hosts for a wonderful day, our visit lasted several hours, and we left transformed by the history and landscape of the Tuscan countryside!