Restoration work
Wines and monuments given new life by Giusti Wines in Italy’s Montello region
On a warm summer’s evening this year, a concert was held to celebrate the re-opening of the Abbey of Sant’Eustachio, thanks to the intervention of the Giusti Family. This Benedictine monastery dates back to 1062 and was where Monsignor Della Casa composed his opera “Il Galateo” in the 16th century. Badly damaged in the First World War, the Giusti restoration project of 600 days’ work has brought the site back to life. Open all year round, visitors arrive for excursions, walks, tastings and special events.
It’s not only monuments that Giusti has restored. The Abbey of Sant’Eustachio is surrounded by estates belonging to Giusti Wine, where vineyards cultivated with passion and dedication provide the grapes for several different wines.
One of the grape varieties cultivated here is Recantina, an ancient native variety that was at risk of extinction before Giusti and other wineries in the region, rescued it and discovered how to use it again. In fact, Recantina has been used in the Montello hills for about four centuries, despite almost disappearing in Napoleonic times, and was always considered to be a high quality grape.
Today, its quality can be seen in the Giusti wine called Augusto (100% Recantina), which is very popular internationally. The quality of the Recantina originates in the vineyards: grapes come from south-facing densely planted vines (up to 5000 per hectare, grown in the company’s Tenuta Aria Valentina) in chalky, iron-rich soil. Grapes are picked in the first 10 days of October and after vinification the wine is left to mature in Slovenian oak casks for 12-24 months. A period of bottle-ageing follows, before the wine is released. the market.
Passion for Italy
The hilly area of Montello, where the Giusti company is based, is located in the North East of Italy, in the Veneto, a region famous all over the world for its beauty, from the city of Venice to the Dolomites.
In 2004, Ermenegildo Giusti, a Canadian entrepreneur with family origins in the Veneto, decided to
produce wines in the Montello region, whose reputation for quality went back to the time of the Serenissima Republic of Venice.
Starting with only two hectares of vineyards, Ermenegildo has developed the project with passion and enthusiasm, and his estates now comprise over 100ha of land, of which 75 are cultivated with vines. The aim is to produce quality wines, from Asolo Prosecco Superiore DOCG to Pinot Grigio, from classic Bordeaux blends to distillates.
“The objective of Giusti Wine is to promote our territory and, more generally, Italy. We are proud of our nation that has so many riches, from beauty of the environment to art, from history to fashion. Wine is the ideal interpreter of Italian style,” comments Ermenegildo Giusti
The enhancement of the territory also includes development of wine tourism, which means wine lovers from all over the world can have a personal experience of the beauty of the region. To best accommodate those who want to spend a weekend in contact with nature or who want to have a very special setting for a wedding, the Giusti estates have two special locations: Country House Abazia and Country House Case Rolando.
A new winery: harmony with the environment
Today, Ermenegildo Giusti’s new goal is to complete the construction of the new winery, conceived as a work of art perfectly inserted into the natural landscape. It will respect some fundamental parameters, such as the production of energy from renewable sources, the protection and recovery of water, and being in harmony with the surrounding environment. Its shape will blend in naturally with the ground. Built on five floors, up to a depth of 8 meters below the surface of the ground, the winery will be topped by a vineyard and a panoramic viewing point overlooking the beautiful Montello hills with their ever-changing colours.
Visitors will be welcome, and a special tunnel will lead them on a path through the various sections of the winery. The route will end in an underground “square”, covered with vineyards above, furnished with trees and enhanced by a waterfall down a sloping wall. The result will be a sort of “architectural promenade” with 360° views over the surrounding landscape.