Californian-based Daou Brothers expand into Tuscany

Californian winemaking duo the Daou Brothers have bought a 70 hectare (173-acre) estate in Val d’Orcia in Southern Tuscany, it has been reported. 

Daniel and Georges Daou, who founded the Daou Family Estates in Paso Robles, will focus on Bordeaux varieties to produce an IGT Toscana wine, which will be farmed using biodynamic, organic, and dry-farming techniques and a dense planting strategy that is also employed at the Paso Robles estate.

The duo are reported to be planning to build their own winery on the estate, which includes 20 hectares (49 acres) of vineyards and restore the existing farmhouse so that it can be used for events and tastings.

Winemaker Daniel Daou told Decanter they were attracted to the property, which lies between two hills, Monte Cetona and Monte Amiata at an elevation of around 1,150 feet, because of its similarities to their existing Californian vineyards, which sits on a hilltop in the Adelaida District.

The first harvest is planned for 2025, with around 60,000 – 84,000 bottles of wine produced each year. It will be called Coroglie, after the farmhouse that has been on the site for hundreds of years.

“We want to take all our knowledge from the last 19 years, incorporate that in our project in Tuscany. To show that our family can excel not just in Paso but beyond,” Daniel, who manages the winemaking for the property (while his brother George takes care of sales and marketing), told Decanter.

The duo, who escaped war-torn Lebanon as children for France and later settled in the US, are fast-gaining a name for their serious Cabernet red blends, using Bordeaux grapes in a region that is better known for mid-priced wines from Rhône varieties.

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