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Monks make wine, and my neighbour used to make it in his garage. But drug addicts? Recovering drug addicts, that is, at San Patrignano, the largest drug rehabilitation centre in the world, located just outside Rimini in the Italian region of Emilia-Romagna.

Although San Patrignano's four reds and two whites are exported internationally, they've just become available in Ontario, exclusively at Toronto's Terroni restaurants.

Unlike the plonk made in that garage, the wines produced at San Patrignano are excellent. Their top crus consistently score tre bicchieri, the top grade from the most authoritative voice in Italian wine, Gambero Rosso, and 90 points in the Wine Spectator.

San Patrignano's working ideology also scores enthusiastic reviews. The idea is simple: Teach young people dealing with addiction how to work hard, be responsible, and take pride in producing something of the highest rank, and you help build their self-esteem. San Patrignano founder Vincenzo Muccioli believed that with that kind of positive work ethic, these ragazzi, as they are known, stand a good chance of integrating into society.

In 1978, Mr. Muccioli and 20 volunteers started to build San Patrignano's community on 250 inherited hectares. Today, members are fed, housed and provided with legal, medical and psychological attention.

They can even complete a university degree.

During their three- to four-year stay, members of the 1,800-strong community don't just make wine: The ragazzi choose from about 50 trades, from horse training to graphic design, taught by industry experts, most of whom volunteer their time.

Remarkably, it's all free of charge, and not funded by the government. San Patrignano is able to generate €13-million (almost $20-million) annually, roughly half of its operating costs, by selling its homemade wares. The other half is obtained through donations.

Wine sales contribute only modestly to the community's income, but Mr. Muccioli's son, Andrea, has a particular passion for wine. He was barely 30 when he became leader of the community after his father's death in 1995. It was the younger Muccioli who took San Patrignano's viticulture program from a modest production and turned it into a commercial venture. If they were to profit, Andrea Muccioli wanted the wines to be well crafted, in keeping with San Patrignano's creed of creating only first-rate products. And if the wines were to be top quality, they'd need some help. So he called on Italy's most famous wine consultant, Riccardo Cotarella, whose modern style is often awarded accolades by U.S. wine critic Robert Parker.

“Riccardo fell in love with San Patrignano,” says Federico Rainero, San Patrignano's wine agent. “He helped us with everything; where to buy the plants, where to plant them, where to find the barrique in France. He's a fantastic person.” Mr. Cotarella has been the centre's chief oenologist ever since, working pro bono.

With its first commercial vintage in 1999, San Patrignano's Avi (100 per cent sangiovese) earned top reviews from Mr. Rosso. “We had three bicchieri with our first wine, which is not happening very often,” Mr. Rainero says. It's a standard the community has maintained: Since then its three high-end reds have consistently earned top scores internationally.

Mr. Rainero was invited to Toronto by Terroni owner Cosimo Mammoliti in early October to speak to the Terroni staff about the wines and the environment in which they're made. Mr. Rainero is capable of doing both: Not only is he one of San Patrignano's original vintners and a trained sommelier, he also successfully completed the rehabilitation program in 1987.

The irony of recovering drug addicts producing an alcoholic beverage that can lead to dependency is not lost on Mr. Rainero, now 62. However, San Patrignano approaches it differently: “Our philosophy, and we write this on every bottle, is, ‘Wine is pleasure and health. Drink with sobriety.' Which means you can enjoy a glass of wine and it's good for you. A bottle, maybe not.”

It's hardly controversial to say that drinking wine has health benefits. What raises eyebrows is Andrea Muccioli's opinion on the nature of addiction. He views it less as a disease and more as a manifestation of problems that have taken root before the drug use. By treating these social problems, which San Patrignano aims to do, there is a good chance of beating addiction, he believes. The ritual of making the wine is a form of treatment in itself. “We've always made wine because the moment of the harvest is a moment in which everybody is taking part,” Mr. Rainero says. “It's a moment of being together.”

Because of Mr. Muccioli's beliefs, and perhaps because wine is considered Italy's sixth food group, each of the ragazzi is allowed a glass of wine with lunch and dinner. And every year, those who graduate contribute to San Patrignano's astounding statistics: Of the guests who spend at least three years at the facility, 71 per cent find a job for which they utilize their new skills, and only 8 per cent suffer an addiction relapse. So far, a staggering 20,000 people have graduated.

Four San Patrignano wines joined the roster of Terroni's strictly Italian wine list in late September. “They've been so well received that we might run out before the second shipment arrives,” Mr. Mammoliti says with a smile. “They're probably on a boat crossing the Atlantic right now.”

Special to The Globe and Mail