The famous brand is 45 years old, but the mill that interprets it in the commercials is 800.
In 1975, Barilla launched its now famous ‘Mulino Bianco‘ (white mill) brand. Since then, its concept aimed at evoking a traditional life-style. In 1990, the brand began to communicate this concept through TV commercials portraying a traditional family living in a mill. This family – father, mother, older son, younger daughter – with an apparently perfect life has entered the current language and it is commonly referred to as “the Mulino Bianco Family.” Once the advertising company had the idea to use a real mill, they started to hunt for the perfect place. After a long search, they found ‘Mulino delle Pile‘.
Set within a wonderful panorama, the Mill is 48 km from Siena, near the village of Chiusdino. The surrounding farmland, dotted with medieval villages and watchtower on top of the hills, is so charming to seem magical.
And the 12 hectares property around it is part of the Natural Park of Val di Merse, of which the Abbey of San Galgano is the most famous sight.
In this context, in the early 1200s, monks of the nearby Serena Abbey built the beautiful and still fully functional mill by a lovely river. However, in reality, it is not at all white as it is depicted on the Logo and in the commercials. Being a wonderful medieval building, it is completely made of stone.
Throughout the centuries, Mulino delle Pile changed many owners, but its wheat grinding function has been kept until 1970s. Even if, in the 1920s, a Tuscan energy company restored it as a power plant. It was both powerful and useful. It provided electricity to the people living in nearby villages throughout WWII, especially when the public supply system did not work. Today Mulino delle Pile is a cozy holiday farm with a pool and great hotel services.
Ilona Catani Scarlett