Numerous generations of the Tedeschi family have dedicated love and devotion to viticulture in the Vapolicella, giving them an enviable wealth of experience, of tradition, and of nobility, all of which is used ,above all, to achieve the highest quality and in specialization. The first purchase of vineyards was drawn up in1630, according to old documents which have recently come to light. The descendants followed suit bringing, by the by, prestige, respect and esteem to their family, so much so that they were called upon to carry out important political and religious duties.
In 1824, Nicolò Tedeschi then purchased some vineyards. He became a genuine personality of his time, renowned for his skill and moral stature. Subsequently, for all his successors vines and wine became their "raison d'etre" and a way of upholding the the good name and prestige of the family.
Lorenzo Tedeschi, for example, who was amusingly nicknamed "Damigiana" (demijohn) because he was always busy transporting demijohns in his cart, received the Gold Medal Diploma for Art and Work at the Exhibition of Modern Industry In Verona in the spring of 1908. Later on, in 1918, Riccardo Tedeschi, who was considered a true patriarch by the inhabitants of Pedemonte, had the foresight to buy the two vineyards of Monte Fontana and Monte Olmi, considering them to be two "premiere cru". His two sons, Silvino and Lorenzo (Renzo) continued his work. Silvino was totally dedicated to the meticulous care of the vines and Renzo, together with his wife Bruna, to carrying on and personifying the "Tedeschi Style", making the family business known throughout Italy and the world.
And although he himself was a vine cultivator with a deep respect for the old traditions , for paying attention to the long peasant heritage of experience and knowledge, of respecting the phases of the moon when bottling the wine and for acknowledging the imperceptible signs given by the vines, Renzo was still able to introduced those innovative and rational elements capable of making his wines even better. For Renzo, roots were important and he grasped the "Tedeschi Style" , a way of living he shared with his wines, but to all this he also brought modern and innovative techniques which rendered his products still more refined and prestigious. For each of his "cru" there was a "Capitel" as an appropriate symbol that the vine growers use in honour of popular devotion to this and that saint called up on to protect the harvest from the fickle weather. The Capitel has now become the trademark for all the products of the Tedeschi company.
The most recent generation of the Tedeschi family are Renzo's children, Antonietta, Sabrina and Riccardo. Antonietta is responsible for the sales in Italy and for the administration. Sabrina, a food technician, and for years a teacher and researcher at the institute of San Michele all'Adige ,is responsible for marketing and helps Riccardo with sales abroad. The latter, an oenologist, apart from exporting responsibilities takes care of the entire production processes.
Around 180 years have passed since Nicolò decided that our family should concern itself with wine and vineyards in the Valpolicella, but the spirit of the Tedeschi family has not changed: we are more convinced than ever that each of our wines must not only be as good as possible, but also as personal as they can, having there own style and a clearly distinguishable character, a genuine "Tedeschi trademark". In order to achieve this objective we try to comply with nature in every phase of working, from the vineyard to the cellar, without ever trying to substitute her or her laws in any way.
The grapes have always been at the centre of our attention, even more so now that our firm has acquired international fame and prestige and has carved itself out a well-defined space within the extensive and lively panorama of wine production in the Valpolicella area. It may appear banal to state, for the umpteenth time, that good wine, authentic and genuine, can only come from a great vineyard, but we truly cannot find a better way of illustrating our daily work to achieve this goal: the careful attention which we dedicate to our vineyards, the search to identify and follow the most effective interaction between microclimate, exposure, training system, yield per hectare and the choice of the right varieties to best heighten the quality of the land.
Variety of vines used
The current production regulation for wines specify that the mixture of grapes should be made up principally of the Corvina variety (from 40 to 80%, but within these limits, the presence of Corvinone is allowed up to a maximum of 50% in substitution for an equal quantity of Corvina), of the Rondinella grape (5-30%) and relegates the Molinara, classifying it among "the non-aromatic varieties of red grapes authorized and recommended by the Province of Verona," to a maximum of 15% of the DOC.
As producers of Valpolicella (as well as Amarone and Recioto) in the Valpolicella area, we could not do otherwise than give preference to Corvina, Corvinone and Rondinella not only because they represent our native varieties which have always been the basis of our wines and the heritage of local and ancient wine-making traditions, but also because we are firmly convinced of their value and their "modernity". However we must not forget, because they are extremely important economically for the wines in which we believe, lesser-known cultivars such as Oseleta, Dindarella, Negrara, Rossignola and Forselina, which are worthy of rediscovery and re-evaluation if it is intended to make the wines produced in the area more complex and varied in terms of expression.
Our family propriety comprises 99 hectares, some in the "classica "area (in the communes of San Pietro in Cariano, where our winery is situated, of Fumane and of Sant'Ambrogio di Valpolicella) and some in the valley to the east of Verona (in the communes of Mezzane di Sopra and of Tregnago).
Monti Olmi is the name of the vineyard in Pedemonte di Valpolicella (commune of San Pietro In Cariano) in the heart of the Valpolicella Classica area which was bought by Lorenzo Tedeschi in 1918, as mentioned above. It extends for 2.5 hectares and faces south-west. The vines are gown on terraces contained by dry stone walls ("marogne") some of which have recently been reconstructed: the steep slope ensures the drainage of water in the case of heavy rain while the depth and largely clay composition of the soil allows retention of water in dry conditions.
The soil, of morainic origins, is red clay and calcareous (30% of which 5% is active). The system of cultivation is the traditional pergola technique and the density of wines is low, being about 2500 plants per hectare with a production of 6000 Kg per hectare.
The Pontare is a vineyard that has only recently been planted. It is situated in part in the commune of Fumane and in part in the commune of Sant 'Ambrogio di Valpolicella. It is in an enchanted position from where you can admire a panorama not only of the entire valley of the Valpolicella Classica but also of Verona and Lake Garda. The vineyard is at an altitude of 450 metres a.s.l. and has a marly limestone bed, it extends over 7 hectares and faces south- east. The cultivation is "Guyot" which has an elevated density of 7200 plants per hectare.
The vineyard is destined for the production of wines of the high quality Fabriseria line; Amarone la Fabriseria and Valpolicella Classico Superiore la Fabriseria.
The Lucchine vineyard is in Pedemonte at the foot of the hills, in the historical heart of the Valpolicella. The cultivation is in part "guyot" and in part pergola. The soil is clayey and calcareous of alluvial origins and stony and the production is 10,000kg /hectare (well within the limit of 12,000kg/hectare set by the Production Norms for Valpolicella DOC). From this vineyard, thanks also to the traditional vinification method applied to the grapes, we produce a Valpolicella Classico which is fresh and fruity and ideal with any food.
Adjacent to the vineyard, in July 2007, the new centre for the withering process of grapes was completed. It has a capacity for 350,000 kg of grapes. By means of a computerised system, the ambient temperature and, above all, the humidity can be controlled during the withering.
Maternigo means" land of the mother" and it is the latest property to have been bought in the Valpolicella. It is between the communes of Tregnago and Mezzane di Sotto(The area DOC of the Valpolicella). Maternigo was chosen after a painstaking research undertaken by a team of agronomists and geologists who have studied the land and found their perfect vocation in viniculture and, in particular, to that relative to the vineyards of the Valpolicella. The new property includes a building which was probably a monastery originally, the oldest part dating back to the 15th century. It is on a hill that dominates the whole area which is made up of 53 hectares of woods and 2 hectares of fruitful olive trees. The extra virgin olive oil from the Maternigo olive is actually made according to the regulations of production of the"DOP Veneto Valpolicella". The new area to be cultivated covers an area of 30 hectares (to be planted over two years starting from 2008).
The area allocated to vines is a band between 200 and 400 metres a.s.l. and it faces south-east and south-west. The analysis by the expert showed the soil to be composed of detritus calcareous in a lime matrix. The vines being planted are the classic varieties of the Valpolicella and are destined for the production of red wines already existing in the gamma of our wines.