Alto Adige/Südtirol lies at the very north of Italy, up against the borders with Austria and Switzerland. The area is one half of the Trentino-Alto Adige region, where Bolzano (Alto Adige) makes up the northern, predominantly German-speaking part, while Trento (Trentino) to the south is Italian-speaking. The linguistic boundary is marked near Magré and Roveré della Luna. Alto Adige belonged to Austria's Tyrol from the Middle Ages up until 1919, and the Austro-German cultural heritage is still clearly felt in the wine culture, far more than the southern Italian traditions.
The landscape is shaped by glaciers, with steep mountain slopes, glacially carved valleys and the Dolomites in the background. The Adige river runs through the region from the Swiss Alps towards the Adriatic Sea, and along the valley the vineyards alternate with apple orchards. The vines grow from the valley floor all the way up to around 1,000 metres of altitude on soils of gravel and limestone. The climate gets its distinctive character from cool alpine winds meeting warm, dry air from Lake Garda, and conditions are cooler and more extreme than in neighbouring Friuli-Venezia Giulia.
It is these conditions that give the area's white wines their hallmark: fresh, aromatic and crisp with minerality and a well-balanced acidity. Although more red wine than white wine is in fact produced today, it is the white wines that have won the greatest international recognition. Among the key grapes you will find gewürztraminer, müller-thurgau, sylvaner, riesling, chardonnay, pinot grigio, pinot bianco, sauvignon and the local nosiola. On the red side, schiava (vernatsch), lambrusco and marzemino play the leading roles.
A large part of the harvest goes through cooperatives, many of which were founded by local farmers around the year 1900. It is a way of working that here stands for both quality and continuity. In the neighbouring part Trentino, mousserende vin is moreover a chapter of its own, made by the champagne method from chardonnay and pinot noir.
With us you will find a selection that lets you explore both the aromatic white wines and the more terroir-driven reds from this cool-alpine corner of Italy.