Alto Adige

Geographically the Alto Adige/Sud-Tirol wine region is most northerly in Italy. The epicentre of the region is the pretty town of Bolzano which has more of an Alpine Austrian flavour about it than an Italian one. Its common to see signs in both German and Italian, national dress and culture draws its influences from north of the border rather than the national identity of the South. An indicator of how good place this is for growing grapes is the fact that Bolzano has as many sunshine hours as Palermo at the opposite end of Italy.

Vineyards on south east/west facing valley sides of the River Adige create perfect viticultural conditions with short dry summers and minimal rainfall during the growing season. One thing this region has in common with all our other Alpine regions is that most of the vineyards experience a wide diural range due to their altitude. This helps to prolong the growing season leading to white wines which are both aromatic and elegant such as our Gewürztramminer and reds wines that are complex yet light like our Sonntaler and Pinot Nero.

• 6% of national production.
• Cultivated area, 5500 ha approximately .
• 62% white and 38% red.
• average 30°C in summer and a minimum -4°C in winter.
• Sun exposure,  1946 hours per year.
• Average annual rainfall,814mm with rainy days.
• Lowest elevation 200 metres, highest elevation 1000 metres.
• Soils are volcanic around Bolzano, weathered rocksoils with quartz, slate and mica in the Isarco Valley and the Val Venosta. Calcereous and dolomite rock in the southern part of the province.

some of the most typical varieties in our Alto Adige