The first 5 hectares of the Santarelli family's current estate I Grottaferrata of 35 hectares in Castel de Paolis were acquired in 1974 by Giulio Santarelli, simply to follow his passion for the countryside and viticulture. Until 1985, the grapes from Castel de Paolis were sold to the local cooperative wineries to produce the typical local wines such as Frascati Superiore DOC.

In 1977 Mr. Santarelli began to acquire other small pieces of land next to the existing vineyards and little by little the estate grew to its current size of 25 hectares. In 1985, the friendship started between Giulio Santarelli, then Italian Secretary of State for Agriculture, and Professor Attilio Scienza, Professor at the Faculty of Agriculture at the University of Milan. Together they started the project of research, development and recovery of old local native grape varieties and international grape varieties.

The aim was to rebuild the oenology of the Roman castles, which turned from the crown vineyards to the row vineyards with a higher density of plants per hectare. By having a higher plant density, a lower grape production is achieved, which results in a higher quality wine. With a better solar irradiation of the clusters, the extraordinary natural volcanic soil composition in the area, which is rich in mineral salt, this is fundamental for the strength and richness of the wines. Many grape varieties were experimented and planted from 1985 to 1993 such as the following varieties: Malvasia Lazio, Bonvino, Grechetto, Cacchione, Bellone, Pecorino, Romanesca, Passerina, Cesanese, Montepulciano, Sangiovese, Moscato Giallo and Moscato.