Azienda Agricola Custodi

Common questions

• Can you visit Cantina Custodi? add remove
  Yes, by arrangement. The estate runs guided visits of its cellar and vineyards with a tasting all year, at a time agreed in advance. Book by phone on +39 0763 29053 or by email at [email protected]. The price is given on request, and the local wine road association lists English among the languages spoken.
• Where is Cantina Custodi, and how do you get there? add remove
  The winery is on Viale Venere at Canale Nuovo, 05018 Orvieto, a short drive south of the old town. From the Orvieto exit of the A1 motorway, head for Orvieto Scalo and follow signs for Viterbo. After about a kilometre, turn left for Bagnoregio onto the SP Bagnorese, which the estate calls the quickest and most scenic way up. You pass the tufa cliff of Orvieto and the Abbey of Santi Severo e Martirio, then climb a few bends to a plain of vines. As you enter Canale Nuovo, look for a long country house with a wide portico.
• What wines does Cantina Custodi make? add remove
  Eight wines, four from white grapes and four from red, plus extra virgin olive oil. The whites are Belloro, a dry Orvieto Classico; an Orvieto Classico Superiore; Pertusa, a sweet late-harvest Orvieto Classico Superiore; and a white Umbria IGT. The reds are Piancoleto, the Merlot Austero and a Rosso, all Umbria IGT. The fourth red-grape wine is a Brut Rosé sparkling wine.
• What is Pertusa? add remove
  Pertusa is Custodi's sweet white, labelled Orvieto Classico Superiore Vendemmia Tardiva. The grapes stay on the vine until after 25 October, and some years into November, in spots where noble rot sets in easily. The cellar chills the fermenting juice to stop it with sugar still in the wine. It ends up soft and gently sweet, with notes of ripe fruit and sweet spice. The estate suggests serving it at 12 to 14°C.
• Can groups visit Cantina Custodi? add remove
  Yes. Groups are welcome all year for visits and tastings, at times agreed in advance. There is parking for cars, coaches and campers, and a meeting room that holds up to 60 or 70 people.
• Who runs Cantina Custodi? add remove
  Laura and Chiara Custodi, two sisters who carry on what their father began in 1965. Chiara is also one of the estate's two winemakers, with Maurilio Chioccia, according to the Strada dei Vini Etrusco Romana, the local wine road association.