Noelia Ricci

Pandolfa is located in Predappio, on the Tuscan-Romagna Apennines and covers 140 hectares, immersed in the heart of the Rabbi Valley.

30 of these are cultivated with vineyards and are located between 80 and 250 metres above sea level, on a typically Predappiese soil, which is the result of the decay of ancient sandstones and calcareous marls rich in mineral salts and sulphur.

Pandolfa is also a place of historical importance in the territory, where the valley is dominated by an 18th century villa, also known as "Villa degli spiriti" and "Casa dalle 100 finestre".

The name Pandolfa seems to derive directly from Sigismondo Pandolfo Malatesta, also known as the "Wolf of Rimini", who would have stayed in these places for a long time before plundering the Castle of Fiumana in 1436.

From 1626 to 1941, the owners of the Estate were the Marquises Albicini.

In 1941 the property passed to Commendator Giuseppe Ricci, an entrepreneur from Forlì. In the years of the Second World War, the history of Pandolfa changed its mark. It was occupied by the Germans and then attacked by Polish troops, while many displaced people found refuge in its cellars. Once peace was restored, in the 50s, Giuseppe Ricci began the renovation of the Estate and also began to rethink agricultural production, he bought two adjacent farms and planted vines of Sangiovese, Trebbiano and Albana. Pandolfa is still owned by Ricci's granddaughter, Paola Piscopo, who has used all her enthusiasm to give the Estate back an important role in the territory.

Today it is her son, Marco Cirese - the fourth generation - who has taken over the ranks of this history, with the intention of making the winery a place of excellence, linking the family history with the territory, in a constant dialogue with the traditions of these places and the native grape varieties.