Il Borro Toscana

Title – Name

Il Borro Toscana

Scope / Sector / Industry

Wine tourism

Country / Region

Italy, Tuscany

Why is it good practice?

The Il Borro Toscana estate is a very good practice wine tourism business, as it seeks to showcase the wine tradition and at the same time the cultural and natural heritage of Tuscany and the Il Borro region through a set of activities and experiences that meet the needs of a range of visitors. At the same time, however, it is a company that, through specific actions, essentially supports the local community and contributes decisively to the economic well-being of the place, strengthens the pride of the community and acts in accordance with the principles of sustainable development.

How is it applied?

Il Borro Toscana is a wine tourism estate in the hononymous village of Tuscany. It is 60 km from Florence and is a very small and medieval village, with a small number of houses and narrow sidewalks. In 1993, the village was bought by the famous Ferragamo family, who undertook a number of renovations of its stone houses, by local craftsmen in order to preserve the charm of the past. The settlement returned to its original appearance and all the huge restoration activity was recognized by the local authorities.
Today this small Tuscan settlement is the 750-acre Il Borro Toscana organic estate, which includes vineyards, a winery, accommodation, restaurants, bars, sports facilities, swimming pool, spa area and a set of services and authentic experiences that bring the visitor closer to the wine culture, nature and tradition of Tuscany, without lacking comfort and luxury in the overall experience.
Despite the special aesthetics of the settlement’s landscape, the Il Borro Toscana estate proceeded to create a set of activities and create services and benefits, which enable the visitor a) to get to know and taste the local wine varieties, accompanied by other local products of the estate or the region, b) to get to know the region, the cities and the special natural environment of Tuscany, c) to get close to the local traditions and arts of Il Borro and d) to live other special experiences. The result of all this effort is a multi-sensory experience of wine and culture.

The experiences designed and offered by the Il Borro Toscana estate are summarized below:

• Tasting experience for wine lovers. Each package includes a visit to the winery and a tasting accompanied by a gastronomic platter with organic products and olive oil from the estate.
• Tours in the vineyards and its cellar.
• Wandering around the organic estate, with visits to the vineyards, the olive groves and the animals of the estate. In addition, it is possible to have a picnic with the same products.
• Visit to the engraving exhibition of Il Borro Toscana, which is a private collection of the Ferragamo family, which captures the history of wine and its importance throughout the centuries.
• Riding lessons and rides around the estate with horses or ponies. The experience includes many alternative options such as lessons in the estate’s arena, riding in the countryside, riding with lunch or a picnic, etc.
• Sports activities such as hiking on nature trails, mountain or electric bike rides, tennis, soccer and golf on the estate’s courses, as well as fitness or yoga sessions on the respective facilities. Il Borro Toscana proposes 4 routes and offers guided tours.
• Art classes in the estate’s craft shops, where guests have the privilege of not only watching local artisans create their precious objects, but making them themselves. Weaving from wool, painting and decorating, making shoes, belts, jewelry and puppets, creating flower arrangements from the countryside of the area are some of the activities.
• Cooking classes in the estate restaurant with an emphasis on local produce, local recipes and local gastronomy culture. Cocktail course is also implemented.
• Meals at the estate’s restaurants, which are created from quality and fresh ingredients. The vegetables come from Il Borro Toscana’s organic garden, while the meat, fish and cheeses come from selected local producers.
• Truffle hunting based on traditional techniques, accompanied by tasting and lunch.
• Spa services combined with personalized treatments in a specially designed space.
• Guided tours of the main cities of Tuscany (Florence, San Gimiano, Volterra, Siena and Chianti).
• Hot air balloon tours over the regions of Tuscany.
• Buy local and Il Borro Toscana products from the estate shop, such as wines, olive oil and honey, as well as other organic products from the vegetable garden of the estate. Visitors can also find accessories, objects, selected clothing items, all of which are the result of a precise and authentic Tuscan stylistic research. Their selection is inspired by the ethical and sustainable principles of elegance and craftsmanship of the estate owners.

Most of the above experiences are also adapted for children.
Another important reason why the Il Borro Toscana estate is a good wine tourism business practice is because it makes a significant effort to provide services in terms of sustainability.

Sustainability at the Il Borro Toscana estate begins in 2012 with the conversion of its agriculture from conventional to organic, with the aim of respecting nature and the crop cycle. The sustainability of the estate is achieved in a variety of ways. The following are indicative:

• Utilizing the principles of organic farming, using natural fertilizers, organic pesticides and integrated treatments for pests to cultivate the vineyards as well as the rest of the products produced on the estate.
• Absence of the use of chemical products for the cleaning and hygiene of the premises. For example, the winery’s tanks are washed with high-pressure water jets, while in the catering areas cleanliness is achieved by the existence of an innovative ozone disinfection unit.
• Use of renewable energy sources resulting in zero carbon dioxide emissions and savings of 930 tons of CO2 per year.
• Use of a system that recovers rainwater, which is then directed to special tanks during the rainy season and later used to irrigate the gardens.
•  Offer guests a reusable water bottle to eliminate plastic. In fact, on the official page of the unit there is a map with the points where the taps with drinking water on the estate are marked.
• Respect for the animals that live on the estate (horses, chickens and cows), which are fed with organic feed produced on the estate itself.
• Support the ecological system through the development of beekeeping. The protection of pollinating insects is essential to the estate, as they play an important role in pollinating a wide variety of crops and wild plants. The bees colonize the natural organic reserve on the estate with its 30 hives and the 1100 organic acres, where the apiaries are located, make it possible to produce completely organic honey that further characterizes the area.
• The development of an organic and sustainable estate through the creation of an organic garden. It is managed with respect for seasonal cycles, natural balances and protects local seeds and farming traditions that produce genuine and diverse crops. In addition to producing seasonal vegetables and raising different breeds of chickens, such as the white Valdarnesi, the white Livornesi and the red Toscane, the Il Borro Toscana estate has now taken over the production of flour from ancient cereals, buckwheat (gluten-free) used for production of handmade pasta, raw flour, puffed grains and cookies.

As part of achieving sustainability goals, in 2020 the Il Borro Toscana estate published the company’s first sustainability report and continues to do so on an annual basis. At the same time, it published the Code of Ethics with the aim of safeguarding fundamental human values and respecting the general principles of legality, honesty, integrity, transparency, impartiality, fairness, diligence, professionalism, efficiency and good faith. The Code of Ethics focuses on the well-being of the people who work and collaborate with the company and the company’s responsibility to the local community. The visitor can find the above on the company’s official website.

Where is it applied?

The Il Borro Toscana estate is addressed to all those who wish to get to know the wine tradition of the Il Borro region, through a variety of authentic cultural and heritage experiences, which cover different preferences and needs.

When did it applied?

The Il Borro Toscana estate was bought by the Ferragamo family in 1993 and has acquired its current form after many renovations and restorations of the medieval village

Results

From the above business activity of the Ferragamo family, the Il Borro Toscana estate obtained the following awards and distinctions:

•  Gold award from the Winehunter organization for 4 wines of the estate.
• The highest recognition from the Tre Bicchieri 2024 wine guide for one of its wines.
• The BEE Good Award 2023 from the environmental and social project BioBienenApfel for the beekeeping activity of the Ferragamo family.

In addition to the above, the company joined the voluntary program ¨Global Compact¨, an initiative of the United Nations, which is a network of leading companies worldwide engaged in the development, implementation and dissemination of responsible business practices to create a better and sustainable world. Under this initiative, the Compact calls on businesses around the world to align their operations and strategies based on the Ten Principles, shared globally, related to human rights, labour, the environment, anti-corruption and to act in support of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals defined by the UN 2030 Agenda. In this context, Il Borro Toscana has committed to operate with the aim of incorporating the above Ten Principles to contribute to the achievement of the 2030 Agenda goals.

Other Information

Other information
The official website of Il Borro Toscana is:  https://www.ilborro.it/