The quiet Tuscan village of Montalcino has undergone few changes since medieval times, when it was a stronghold pertaining to the nearby city of Siena. Montalcino was once a strategic point along the road to Rome and offers a panoramic view of the beautiful Asso, Orcia and Ombrone valleys. The town’s fame derives from its production of one of Italy’s finest red wines known as Brunello di Montalcino.
The history of Montalcino dates back to the Etruscan and Roman periods, and its name was formed from the Latin ‘mons ilcinus’ (holm-oak mountain). Though independent for a time in the 12th century, the town later became subject to Sienese rule. During the 14th century, the city’s fortress was built to better defend the southernmost border of the Sienese Republic. However, four years after Florence defeated Siena (in 1555), Montalcino landed within the jurisdiction of the Granducato di Toscana of Cosimo dei Medici.

In addition to its sleepy medieval streets and sun-soaked vineyards, Montalcino presents other sights such as the Piazza del Popolo (People’s Square) and the Palazzo dei Priori (old Town Hall), as well as the medieval churches of San Francesco, San Egidio and San Agostino. The city’s fortezza (fortress) is almost perfectly preserved. The Cathedral (of San Salvatore) and the Diocesano Museum are full of sacred works of art by 11th to 16th century painters, and contain other medieval objects and archeological artifacts from San Antimo Abbey (which is located 10 km from Montalcino).


Brunello di Montalcino made its appearance in the middle of the 19 C, prepared by Clement Santi from a selection of Sangiovese Grosso grapes, the larger-berried clone of the Sangiovese variety. in 1980 Brunello became the first wine in Italy to obtain Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita.
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DOCG Brunello di Montalcino
Member companies of the DOCG Brunello di Montalcino

The organizers of the 2010 Giro d'Italia announced a rigorous 2,118-mile route last weekend for the bike race that rolls out from May 8 to 30. The Giro d'Italia route starts in Amsterdam, and ends in Verona. Stage 7 on Saturday, May 15 runs from Carrara to Montalcino.

The abbey of Sant’Antimo 10 km

Pienza 24 km
Montepulciano 37 km
Buonconvento 14 km

Castiglione del Bosco | 12 km

Castiglione del Bosco, known in the Middle Age as Castiglione on the Ombrone, was a small important fortress due to its strategic position between the towns Montalcino and Buonconvento. Today the ruins of the castle rises in the garden of a private villa, built enclosing the north-east angle of the external castle walls. In the chiesa di San Michele fresco by Pietro Lorenzetti (1280/1348) l’Annunciazione dei Santi. Pietro Lorenzetti paints the fresco Annunciazione dei Santi in 1345. It was rediscovered in 1876 and fully restored to its original glory. Pietro and his brother, Ambrogio Lorenzetti, who painted the Allegory of Good Government and Bad Government fresco in the Palazzo Pubblico in Siena, belonged to the famous Sienese School which flourished during the late Middle Ages and foreshadowed the art of the Renaissance.
Castiglion del Bosco is a privat estate and one of the founding members of the Consorzio del Vino Brunello di Montalcino.

The Blue Guide also mentions the town of Sant'Angelo in Colle, as being an "enchanting well-preserved village on the top of a hill ... contained in its circle of walls". You can drive there on a white road (dirt road) from Sant'Antimo or on a paved road from Montalcino.
Sant'Angelo in Colle is located in the southwestern subzone of the Brunello di Montalcino and Rosso di Montalcino appellation. Sant'Angelo in Colle is a typical medieval village situated on a hill (450m) within the Natural Park of Val D’Orcia
(included by UNESCO into the list of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage). Sant'Angelo in Colle is called Sant'Angelo in Colle or Saint Angel on the Hill because it is one of the highest elevations points in our appellation of Montalcino.
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