Tenuta Castello di Grumello will be present at the 56th edition of Vinitaly, the international exhibition of wines and spirits, which will take place at the fair in Verona from April 14th to 17th, 2024.
It's the first time for the company with its own stand in Pavilion 7 BOOTH E2. An important appointment that comes after almost two years of substantial and formal restyling of the estate. Castello di Grumello is indeed the oldest estate in Valcalepio, in the province of Bergamo, with over 150 years of history that marked the birth of the Bordeaux blend in the Lombard wine context. The recent acquisition by the Bergamo-based company Kask has initiated a long series of transformations that will continue in the coming years. An international fair like Vinitaly is the best stage to tell about the changes already underway and those planned for the future.
Stefano Lorenzi, director of the estate, emphasizes how Castello di Grumello represents the best part of agricultural history in Lombardy and especially in Bergamo, but at the same time, its example has long remained confined within regional boundaries: “We have all the credentials – stresses Lorenzi – to make ourselves better known nationally and internationally. We have a new brand image, a fascinating dwelling from the year one thousand, still operational and open for visits, we are expanding and improving the vineyard from an agronomic point of view, following careful sustainable protocols. We take all the time needed to do things well, in full respect of the times of nature, which we know are long." Nature that means vineyard but also woods and historical-naturalistic trails surrounding the rows: "Many when they think of Bergamo and its territory imagine industries and manufactures. It is true and the impact is there, but another image is emerging more and more strongly, that of hills and Alps, vineyards and agricultural products cultivated up to a thousand meters. Castello di Grumello is a perfect example of an ecosystem inserted in an urbanized context that has found the path of comparison and not of conflict."
The vineyard is also the focus of Paolo Zadra's interests, winemaker of the estate for thirty years. The goals are many: “We immediately focused on enhancing the oldest vineyards – Zadra explains – which in some cases exceed forty years. In particular, the estate believes a lot in its cabernet sauvignon, so much so as to dedicate a new wine to it, the Burdunì, made with 80 percent of this grape. Personally, I cherish the merera, a native grape that my father, Carlo Zadra, had already taken out of the oblivion it seemed destined for. To date, we are the only reality in Valcalepio to have marketed it with the Medera label. And then there is the Piwi project, related to resistant grape varieties, which we have been pursuing since 2014. The result in the bottle is called Le Noci. From the cellar's point of view, we are pleased with the first results coming from the two Nomblot, the cement eggs purchased a short time ago to work on white wines. The complexity that this material can give to the wine is such that we have thought of a new label that will probably be born in 2025."