The name means six hands in Venetian dialect, and that is exactly what drives the estate: Marco, Daniele, and Andrea Filippini, three brothers from three separate professions who made the unusual decision to abandon stable careers and dedicate themselves entirely to natural viticulture in the hills of their native Veneto.
Backstory
Marco worked in healthcare, Daniele as an engineer, Andrea as an accountant with a secondary passion for wine and craft beer. The three brothers began discussing the idea of farming together around 2013, guided from the start by Angiolino Maule of La Biancara, the founding figure of VinNatur and the "godfather" of the natural wine movement in Veneto. In 2014 they produced their first commercial wines, vinifying rented fruit while searching for a permanent home. In 2015 they acquired their current property in Villaga in the Colli Berici hills and began the full transition to biodynamic agriculture. The estate received organic certification in 2017 and biodynamic ICEA certification shortly thereafter.
The Region
The Colli Berici is a compact limestone massif rising from the Venetian plain south of Vicenza. Unlike the neighboring Soave and Valpolicella zones to the north, the Berici Hills remain largely unknown outside Italy, which has allowed a small community of natural producers -- including both Siemàn and Sauro Maule -- to work without commercial pressure. The soils beneath Villaga are calcareous sand, clay, and marine sediment, remnants of an ancient ocean floor that emerged during the Eocene epoch. The resulting geology gives the estate's wines a saline mineral quality that distinguishes them from Veneto wines grown on alluvial plains.
Vineyards and Farming
Siemàn farms nine hectares in total, with four planted to vines. The remainder is shared between woods, olive trees, and wild land that supports biodiversity across the property. Vines include indigenous Berici varieties: Tai Rosso (a local relation of Grenache), Turchetta, Corbinone, Tai Bianco, and Garganega, alongside Incrocio Manzoni and small plantings of other grapes. The brothers have begun replacing copper-based fungicide treatments with mushroom-derived products designed to stimulate the natural resistance of the vines, pushing their farming beyond certified biodynamic standards.
Winemaking
Fermentations proceed spontaneously from indigenous yeasts. Wines age in a varied arsenal of vessels: old wood, cement, and stainless steel, chosen per wine and vintage. Sulfur dioxide has been almost entirely eliminated from the cellar; the brothers add it only when they consider it absolutely necessary, and many vintages contain no addition at all. Wines are bottled unfined and unfiltered. Beyond wine, the brothers produce farmhouse and sour ales under the Ista label, using local fruit and grape byproducts from the winery.
The Wines
The current range includes Occhio al Bianco, a white blend of Garganega, Durella, Manzoni Bianco, and Bronner; Occhio al Rosso from Tai Rosso; Prato Alto, a more complex white; and the frizzante Camaleonte. The Doppio Gioco and Mosca Bianca round out the lineup. Each wine vinifies a single plot or variety to emphasize the character of the Berici terroir above all else.
