Ep. 1327 Hugh Preece Interviews Viviana Gangemi | Clubhouse Ambassador's Corner

By now, you've all heard of Italian wine Unplugged two point o. The latest book published by Mamma jumbo shrimp. It's more than just another wine book. Fully updated second edition was inspired by students of the Vin Italy International Academy and painstakingly reviewed and revised by an expert panel of certified Italian wine ambassadors from across the globe. The book also includes an addition by professor Atilio Shenza. Italy's leading vine geneticist. The benchmark producers feature is a particularly important aspect of this revised edition. The selection makes it easier for our readers to get their hands on a bottle of wine that truly represents a particular grape or region to pick up a copy, just head to Amazon dot com, or visit us at mama jumbo shrimp dot com. Welcome to this special Italian wine podcast broadcast. This episode is a recording off Clubhouse, the popular drop in audio chat. This clubhouse session was taken from the wine business club and Italian wine club. Listen in as wine lovers and experts alike engage in some great conversation on a range of topics in wine. It you enjoy listening, please consider donating through Italian wine podcast dot com. Any amount helps cover equipment, production, and publication costs. And remember to subscribe and rate our show wherever you tune in. Okay. Hello, everybody. My name's Stevie Kim, and welcome to the Italian wine club on clubhouse tonight. It's six PM in Italy. And we are right on time because you like you know that we like to be punctual. And this is a eighty fourth episode. Believe it on out on Clubhouse. Is that right, Leica? Yes. That's right. It's eighty fourth. Okay. I only know that because we actually did a recording yesterday because we are, I guess, rubbing up for the Vinetale marathon, actually in one week time, Vineetale Academy, flag ship edition will occur exactly in one week time next Thursday. So we are doubling up on our, clubhouse interviews. Is that correct, Leica? Yeah. That's true. Sorry about that. Yeah. It's fine. We love doing this. Leica, of course, is our, clubhouse manager, and she does so much work and make sure everything is running smoothly. And she's been doing it for a very, very long time. Were you doing it from the get go? No. Not in the beginning. Right? Or or yes. No. Yeah. Yeah. That's true. We started it together. So from the first, at Oh my god. You're kidding. Yeah. Yeah. No. I'm not So you've been working with me for more than eighty three weeks? Yes. I Yeah. I'm not even more. I can't even believe that. Well, thank you, Lika. You've been doing a wonder full job. And of course, we have Joy right next door. She's very, very busy because she's also working on our, YouTube channel, which is mama jumbo shrimp. By now, I see some familiar faces, Cynthia's at the office. Andresiro Pirona, too short. Are you coming to, and John and and Marcello and Edlena. So we're going to get this started. As you know, this is what we call the ambassador's corner. It's more like a fireside chat style. And one of our ambassadors at Lodge, they get to choose their favorite, quote, unquote, Italian wine producer, and they do kind of a deep dive interview for, which will last nearly an hour. When I when we first started doing this, I was like, who the hell is going to listen to this for, you know, an hour, sixteen minutes. But to my wonderful surprise, say, I was pleasantly surprised. And everybody at the office as well, these are the the, Ambassador Corner is actually one of our most popular shows. And one of the the most popular show actually was done by our Mr. Farmamented boss, also known as Hugh priest, and he interviewed Adiano Guipinci. I don't know how many, how many episodes ago, and that was definitely one of our most popular shows. So check it out because all of our interviews, I know clubhouse isn't as popular as it once was in the past, but you we get your replay on the podcast. That's Italian wine podcast, wherever you get your pods. And by the way, thank you very much all for supporting us. We've done, you know, three million listened just last year. It it has been It has been really wonderful. And if you like to subscribe, just, you know, follow us and and and give us a little review if you can. I know nobody does that anymore, but that would really be great. Okay. Let's bring Hugh Pre san. Chow. Chow, Steve. How are you? How are you? What are you doing? I'm I'm pretty sure you're, standing up. You never sit. Well, right now is, March Madness. So I'm watching a little basketball while we, what we go through with today was the kickoff of it. Uh-huh. Okay. Because, you know, we recently re he actually owned some restaurants. How many three restaurants? Is that it? I can't remember. That's correct. Three. Two or three. Two and three. Two in New Jersey and one in California. Right. And, the one in Princeton, we actually did a road show, and I discovered that he's actually officially the president or operating partner called Salt Creek Grill restaurants, but he never sits down. He starts his day like six o'clock in the morning, maybe even earlier. He works out. And then he eats, like, he carries a little, little, like, pouch, like, like, gerbils, and he, like, with nuts and stuff, and he eats that. But he doesn't have any food all day until he goes home. Right? You? I love. I always I always snagged throughout. You didn't think we were going to talk about your diet. Right? I'm a I'm a gerbil gerbil in a hamster, I guess. Yeah. And he's incredibly energetic and and super fit, of course. He nearly killed me when he hugs you. He's a big hugger. And, he nearly crushed my, ribs because I'm, like, old, like, an old lady. But, So Hugh, of course, is our Italian wine ambassador and a huge fan of the Via community and devoted, I must say. So he's done this before, you did Ariana. Did you interview somebody else? I've I've done a I think this is my fourth or fifth interview. Oh my goodness. I've I've not been counting. Okay. So I might have been, absent on some of those. Anyway, so, so you know the drill and You for today, you picked Viviana Conjamie. Why did you choose her? How did you meet Viviana? I was in Aetna last, last fall, and, Viviana I was introduced to, when I visited the winery. And she, you know, showed us around the winery and just, you know, her personality was infectious with her enthusiasm of a family business. Yeah, so, I, I, fell in love with the wines and, you know, combination of the wines, the history, and and the infectious personality of Viviana. And were you on the Chitaskolastica with the Tarmina gormanger or an or you went on your own? No. I was with, fruit take home. It was a Aetna day's tour, a group of, I guess educators and and wine writers. Okay. Oh, actually, like I said, you could have said this yourself. Like I said, she sent me a message on WeChat. This is, your third interview. The second was with Benjamin Dagostino. Yes. Yes. Okay. So my This was another popular show. Yeah. So this is actually a third, just officially. And as you know, so we're looking forward to your third interview. As you know, we have some learning objectives because we're pretty geeky around here. What are we supposed to expect to learn from your call today with Viviana? Well, obviously Aetna wines are very, very popular. Popularity is growing, worldwide. But the the learning, expectations is to understand the the unique terroir of Mount Aetna and, antique even eyes, influence in in, in the area. Learning about the sustainability farming practices that they're employ they employ, and gaining knowledge about the ancient winemaking traditions and techniques that they still use today. Okay. Excellent. So, I didn't say this before, but, you know, Hugh is a serious businessman, but he actually is very devoted to, study. So he's not is only not, Italian wine ambassador, which is the most important thing, of course. But he's also Italian wine scholar from the guild. He is an official via educator, and he launched something called Native Graves, which is, dot com, which is an e learning academy. And, he writes as well. Right? You did some writing? I attempt to write. Yes. Okay. Alright. If you wanna tell us about that a little bit later, then please do So I'm going to leave you, with Viviana now, and I will mute my mic, which rarely happens, as you know. And then I'll come back, maybe towards the end to see if there are any questions. Okay? Sounds good. Thank you, Stevy. Okay. Over to you, you. Thank you. Thank you, everybody for joining us today. I'm very excited to introduce, my guest today, Viviana Gongeli. From Aetna. The winery, her family winery is, antique keep an eye eighteen seventy seven. And she is, fifth generation winemaker. So hello, Viviana. Hi, you. Hi, everyone. So, thank you. I'm so excited about this chat, and, thank you a lot for inviting me. Thank you, even, Stevie, for inviting me. So, before I get into the questions, Viviana, can, we learned a little bit of, where the location of your winery is, on Aetna? Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. So we are, we are best on the the northern side of Montana. So Montana is in the eastern side of Sicily, and we used to call it the island into the island because of its magic Terrar because it's so different from the other part of Sicily because it's, basically, Viticulture, mountain viticulture. Okay? So and we have been producing wine here since, eighteen seventy seven. And, as you said, I'm the fifth generation of the of the family. And, few years ago, I decided to start my studies in the physical terminology. To improve my knowledge of wine, of course. And I think that my love for wine increased when I tended in Italy for the first time when I was just seventeen years old. I saw a beautiful word full of business, appointments, tasting, flavors. So I decided to became a winemaker, and I still learn a lot every day from my father who is a winemaker as well. So this is my lucky point. And, since I work in my family on winery, of course, I don't operate just in the cellar and the in the vineyards, but, I manage the the winery tours and touch things and they take care of our foreign customers. And I think that, it is the heterogeneity of this world that makes me love the wine industry a lot. Excellent. And I appreciate, everything you do and your tours are fantastic. I mean, that's, what drew me into, into this interview was your, infectious personality talking about your family, the winery and then introducing the wines themselves, well, as we tasted through. So, incredible job you're doing. Thank you. Thank you. Sorry. You're ready to get into the questions? I'm sure everybody else is. Yes. Yes. Alright. So, how did the gang, gangemi family maintain their winemaking traditions and business throughout multiple generations, you being the fifth, despite facing the challenges of economic crisis and the changing market trends, over the century? Well, I have to say thank you to my grandfather, Jagumo Ganemi. That is the third generation, that now passed he passed away, few years ago. And despite the by the bad period that the wine world suffered by, for example, the methanol scandal, and despite the economic crisis after the second world war, And, even despite the death of his father at the age of eighteen, so he remained without any fear. Okay? He had the strength to start over. To restart. And, we we started a very, happy situation. So, as, as you remember, we started in an inn by selling wine by the hour, So, you can just stop in and ask for an hour of wine, an hour of wine, and you can drink whatever you want for that time. So it was so funny, but so that the the nowadays happy hours are are not so anything new. And, day by day, the the family increased the, four child, grew up and, every child, every son decided to have a role in the in the company. And, and then, of course, like, in all the big families, then, someone else, someone wouldn't continue the, this business, so my grandfather remained alone, even because his father died when he was eighteen years old. But thanks to my grandfather, we maintain some traditions like the use of big bottle, of chestnut. And thanks to the work of my grandfather, we have the power to rebuild our winery with all the state of the art technologies in the, in the eight in the nineties. That is the same seller where we still continue to produce our wine. So my grandfather did a a great job. It was a very forward thinking person. Yeah. Amazing story. And, you know, selling wine by the hour, that was at your family in. Correct? Yes. Yes. In my family in my family in. Yes. It's truly truly happy hour, the start of happy hour. Love it. So in the nineteen eighties, you all, when you were making wine, you chose to produce quality wines rather than quantity. How did this, transform the business and, did it inspire other wineries in your region to, produce the quality over quantity? Yes. Yes. The the there was this big changing because and I think that the reason, is due to the methanol scandal because in Italy was a very big scandal because a lot of people died. So from that period, people, no longer trusted than wine. So my grandfather, Jacamo, had to change direction, of course. So no more wine in bulk. He decided to invest in, in a very good winery with all the technologies possible, including filtration, micro filtration plant, bottling plant, temperature control for each tank. So, he created something that in the eighties in Sicily was interpreted as an insane action. So he was Yeah. He was told he was a crazy man, but, he was a very, very, visionary person. And So he goes in the he he he he goes in the right direction in my opinion. In fact, from that period, in these thirty years, now we are a lot of producers in Montecetera. Instead, when we started, we were just, five wineries. And nowadays, we are more or less a two hundreds. Okay? So things changed a lot in Sicily in in Atlanta. Incredible insight to make that, to make that leap for quality, over quantity. And it's funny how people don't talk about, brilliant, brilliance. They always called them crazy until, decades down the road when they see what that vision actually turns into. So you being the fifth generation, wine producer, what are you taking to what are you doing to the winery to modernize and digitalize the business? And in doing that, are you trying to preserve the family legacy with the unique character, the volcanic terrain, and where their wines, you know, where the wines are being produced? Okay. Well, the hardest part was, accomplished by by my family. So there were very few little things left to do. But, however, I think that a new and young figure in the business can refresh the brand. And, because it creates connection with the younger audience of and create a sense of affection and tenderness in the more mature audience. Yes. But anyway, the the key steps, I wanted to take, when I became actively involved in the winery, were to create, first of all, a new website full of information that would attract the white lovers, aimed the first to introducing them to the peculiarities of our territory. Then introducing them to our family history, and finally to the many products we produce from indigenous grapes, because I really think that, people nowadays want to learn, learn, learn more about what they're what they're drinking, what they are eating. So information was my first, goal. And in addition to this, I wanted to introduce the concept of hospitality, the winery, So I knocked down the wall to involve as many people as possible to visit us and to taste our wines directly with me that I put my hands in the, in the wine, and to give them the possibility to learn more and more about ethnos winemaking tradition. Fantastic. And it it's really important to be telling the stories and focusing on the on the native grapes, I think. I think that helps, in today's world, you know, eat drinking what grows naturally in the area. Yeah. So what challenges and benefits come with using this sustainability cultivation, methods in wine making? Well, using organic, organic growing method that can affect, not what we perceive directly, but can affect the healthiness of the product. Okay? So it's very important. Maintain a sustainable cultivation method, so organic growing method. And, of course, the, it's a force us to be more careful about, any possible disease that might arise due to bad weather. So we have to, check every day, every hours, the the metro, to predict and to enter in the in, in the vineyard in the correct period of time. Okay? But it doesn't affect the taste of the wine. It just give a more, healthy, healthier product. And the sustainability practices that you're using are are organic. Do you use any bi biodynamic practices? Well, no. We just use just, organic, organic, medicines that are not medicines, but are just a natural, like a sulfur, copper, just to prevent any any disease. Okay? So not biodynamic, but just sustainable cultivation. We use, to plant other other other plants into the row just to increase the the fertility of the soil. Okay? So just this. But the weather, fortunately, the weather is, is very good on montagena. So we don't suffer of a lot disease. So it's more or less simple to control. Excellent. Thank you. So, In what ways does, Antiquis traditional, method of production, including the use of the inert, nitrogen, large oak, and chestnut casks for aging, contribute to the wine's unique characteristics and personality. Okay. The use of, in earth nitrogen, for example, during Raqing, and Butler is, one of the most innovative technique that was introduced by my grandfather with the building of the new winery, along with the micro filtration plant. So clearly, this allows allows us to have a longer lasting wine because nitrogen takes the place of oxygen. So, it give us the possibility of limiting the oxidation in the wine. And what we borrowed state from tradition, is definitely the large and chestnut casks. And, because, my grandfather, say that, it was a such delicate grape variety. So, using a small barrel is not a good idea for Nerelló Masquez because we are going to lose the delicate aroma, aromatic characteristic of Mira Loma Scalia. We lose the authenticity. And, we can remember that, with my grandfather, say, that is a white shirt. So any stain even the smallest stain, would be visible. Because, it's a very delicate grape. So Nederlandskalese is a white shirt. Yes. This is, it is very delicate, and I do agree that the smaller barrels will, overpower the wines, characteristics. So I I wanna talk about the the soil now. The, you know, how does, how do the thousands of years of stratifications and volcanic ash in the soil impact the flavors and characteristics of your wines. Mhmm. Yeah. I love the volcanic soil, because it is alive. So this because each lava flow, each lava eruption, in different generation, are different in, in terms of mineral composition. So the soil was enriched, from time to time with different minerals. And this clearly affected wines in terms of minerality. Fuctible canic wines are definitely more savory, and mineral with, marked the note of flint, especially in the whites. Agreed. It just gives this distinct smoky, minerality to to the wines I find. That are that just adds so much, depth and complexity to them. How do the different, terawatts affect the the taste of the same grape variety? Well, I I love the the term terroir because terroir means, it's a mixture of different things. So it's the soil. It's, the human the the the the the the the humans, the human tradition is the weather. So it's a mixture of all these things. And, Montana is full of different micro climates, different terrace. So and, in fact, the thickness of the grapes changes depending on the specific terrain. For example, Nerel Lomascaleza in the Eastern the slope, but ribbons very difficulty, with difficulty. So it is better to produce it as a white wine, for example, for sparkling wine. Or, for example, Carricante, the Carricante grown in the eastern side, retains more acidity, which allows which allows for light aging, and compared to Carigante grown in the north. Okay, which will be much more mature, with more structure because it changed the, the, the microclimate. So how many, different microclimates, would affect your your vineyards, or is it all just one microclimate? Yes. There are thousand of different micro climates. Because, I don't know if, our audience have seen have ever seen a, Aetna Viticulture map. Because it is a sort of half moon from north to the east, to the south. So we have the influence of the sea, of the Mediterranean Sea, and and we have a lot. So we have a lot of different microclimates. For example, in the north and the south slopes, we receive one hour, more sanction per day than in the eastern slope. Is that in the eastern slope, we get usually five times more rainfall than the north and the south. So this clearly leads to different friteness and different types of wines we can produce. In fact, Northern the south is more suitable for red wines for long aging. Okay. So very different micro climates, even, every kilometers. In fact, we used to talk about a contrada that is, more or less the same meaning of a crew, because in, in the scene, in a say a little village. We have a different crew, that change a lot for this characteristic, even thanks to the altitude that change a lot because we can cultivate from four hundred meters to one thousand meters. So this affects a lot. Yes. A lot of variation between, between the different, levels above, sea level of planting are the grapes. So, you know, what would you say are the unique characteristics of the vines that are planted within your vineyard? Oh, well, Of course, the, the the salary, the the minerality. Okay. The the minerality is the the, the best things that we can that we can find when we taste the, itinerary wine. So the mineralities, humidity, that is due to the volcanic soil that is full of minerals, as we said. But, it's also important, the elegance. Because actin wines are never have intense aromas, but they are every, every time always very delicate. And I really appreciate this kind of wine where there is a lot of smell of, red fruit, that cover everything. So, Ethanol wines are very elegant. Elegant and great complexity I find. Yeah. Yeah. That's true. So, let's talk, obviously, you're on a, you're on a a volcano and it's a Big hill. So let's talk about the steepness of of those, of the mountain and, the dry stone walls, that are used to help terrorists ultimately, do they have an effect on the, the profile of the wine? Yeah. Well, the steep terraces and dry stone wall are so impressive because it seems they are made by hand, but sometimes they are very huge and they are made by excavator by machines. So it's a very masterpiece. I I saw how they are built and this, wow. I I couldn't do anything about. So, but these, the the terraces and the dry sun walls are built, just to make a very steep soils, cultivable. Otherwise, the steepness, couldn't allow us to, to plant. So, what affect the wine is, just the the volcanic, the volcanic, so the composition of the soil. Okay. Yes. Those walls are very impressive. And they're you can really see the difference between the the manmade and the, and the s the ones that use the machinery to, to to build them up. But it's so impressive. Italian wine podcast brought to you by mama jumbo shrimp. So, So let's talk about the experience of five generations, cultivating this land. How does it contribute to the quality and character of the wines produced, in your region? Well, first of all, the experience accumulated over the centuries allows us to understand which areas are best suited for the cultivation of a grape variety for, specific, type of wine. Okay? So, for example, we would never plant in the eastern slope to make excellent red wine for long aging. Okay? Because we know that in that specific area, it doesn't rip very well. So, and what's more, our accumulated experience now allows us to play around. So, we experiment here year by year, with less classic plants, such as in the, in the last, three years ago, we produced, a new blend of Nerel Lómas Clazing White and Karigante that no one has done before. In fact, it it is not in the Etna DOC disciplinary because, it is not allowed more or less, but we can do it. We we experiment and it is a very great wine in my opinion. So we like to play. And what do you call this wine? Nero Subianco. So black and white because it's from and the white. And was this the wine we we tasted? We're with the prickly pear? No. With the pickle pear, we tasted the, sparkling. Danera Lomascales in white. Solution. Yeah. A very fantastic one, Barry. A very strange one, Barry. It was act actually very good. I loved it. So, Emily, we've been talking a lot about the winery, the the soils, the toar. So let let's talk about the wine. So you produce sparkling and still, red and white. So tell us a little bit about, your your wines, and and I know there are, a number of award winning, wines in the portfolio, but let's talk about your, your start with your sparkling. Yeah. We have been producing sparkling wine for more than thirty years. So when we build the winery, we start to produce even sparkling because to produce sparkling, we need, a good technologies. Because we produce both, the Shearmouth method and the classic method, but to produce the Shearmouth method, you, you need, a lot of technology, even for the for battling. You need to maintain the pressure. So, it's a little bit complicated. And, we produce the Nerellum Escalese, as a white wine. And then, we we do the second fermentation for with the Champenoise method and the Shermat method. But for with the Shermat method, we we age, for at least six months on Easter. Instead, with the Schumpernos method, we are going to, to play, to play because, we we have been producing for ten years, a Champona's method with, forty eight months, of aging on Easter. But this year, we are going to release that sixty months on its aging. That will be released, brutinated, so without, no sugar, with no sugar. And, it's incredible because, the more you age on the Easter, the the creaminess of the of the bubble increases. So it's wonderful. And, we love to to pair the sparkling wine with, for example, fruits, with, fries, and, with, with all the meals. So no no sweets. Please. Uh-huh. And, Kirk, when do you release that, sixty month? Well, I think December. Yes. December. But maybe I'm going to take some bottle without the labels, dispin Italy. So if you want to to taste, we can do. We can do a testinger. Excellent. Either that, or I'll come by, in the summertime and come visit. Well, I I I hope so. I hope so. So let's talk about, your Caracante and your whites. Yes. So we produce, a classic blend of, Carigante and Colorado for the Eta, you see white, and we produce it from the north, the northeast side. And, here, the, thanks to the weather, the the Caricante ripened very, very well. So we obtain a full maturation. That means that we will have a very structured white wine. So with a good acidity, but full bodied. Instead, if you if you taste the the from the eastern side, There you can find, Karicante, an external white that is, suitable for a light aging. It's more mineral, more, with more acidity. So it's a it's quite different. Instead, we produce it in the north, so it's more strong. And, we also use the caricante, as we say, in the blend. With, with, nevertheless in white. That is, not bad. I invite you to taste. Yes. Absolutely. So you, you have an award winning red that I'd love, our listeners to to learn about. The the key, I hope I'm Yes. I was gonna crush that. So thank you for your help. No worries. Yeah. So it's it was pretty excellent. Yeah. It's it's my favorite because, it's Arvis Erba. And, in in Etonagiosi ResERba, a huge you have to age for at least four years. So, like, for like the bravo. Okay. So, we usually stay in the big caskets of chestnut and ok for at least two, three years, depending on the, on the vintage, and then we stay at least one year in the in the bottle. So we obtain a very strong red but with soft onions, because of the of the aging. So, and this this wine come from Anarello Moscalese and Narello Capucio. From very old vines in two little vineyards, one in the north and one in the south. And, the harvest is usually in, middle tober, later tober, and these are grape full of structure full full of color, and it's very good for long aging. For example, we, I led vertical testing the last year, of Aetna reservea from the from the vintage two thousand and six, two thousand and seven, two thousand and eight, and was, excellent. Was excellent, really. So it's, amazing. Incredible. And and you said that's a blend of the Masaleesi in up with you. Yes. Is that is that always the same percentage each year? Or do you all play with the percentages? Yes. So we usually play. We usually play with the percentage. Because the the color, give the intensity of the color, because the is very delicate in color. It's very light, light purple. Instead, it give more intensity and even it gives, good notes of, cherry, of, little red fruits. So we, we play with, with them, blending. So you said the coine is your favorite. So, with your favorite wine, what what food are you gonna pair with this? Well, of course, I I love cheese, all the cheese, but it's very good with the mature pepper cheese, of course, from Sicily, and the prosciutto Crudo, of course. It's lovely. Because this kind of wine is, a wine for chatting, for meditation, but it's good even with gamay, with, roast beef, but I like more for aperitif. I'm very strong about it. I was about to say. It is a pretty strong, pretty strong start to the evening. Let's talk about climate change in the environment and the the impact it's had on on your winery and and the region. Yeah. Well, Sicily in this two year is suffering a lot. Because we the in the last, in the last season, we didn't have a drop of rain from April to August. So the grapes were like the sun dried was, I was scared a lot. But at the end, in August, we have a a very good rainfall. So, it, it, it went it went well. But the climate change that we are experience is experiencing, primarily affect the success of planting new vines. Because of course, small plants and needs, so much water. And, instead, the mature plants, all, old vines already have, very long roots. So they are able to up or water deeply. And in mont in montectina, the the the soil of, of montectina, in the deep in the in the depth, are very full of water. So no problem for all plants, but, for new plants, it's a big problem. Yeah. I could only imagine the challenges for for new plants with with the lack of water. So, let's talk about special projects in the works. Do you have any special projects in the works? And if so, you know, can you tell us about it or is it top secret? No. Yes. I can talk now. Because in these four years, yes. When I start to work in the in the family business, We start to, the restoration, of a vineyard that that was submerged by the eighteen seventy nine lava flow. Very very bad lava flow that destroyed everything because it arrived until uh-uh six hundred meters above sea level where we have the cellar. Of course, the cellar was built after the eruption fortunately, and but the the vineyard that we have that we had, was submerged by the by the lava. So, of course, after the lava, we cannot plant. Because it's, unfertile. In fact, we usually call it Shara. Shara is an arabic terms, to, to define an unfertile soil. In fact, the the terms, Shara, you can hear it, a lot. When you when you when you talk about ethanol wine, so the Shara is, and to naturally, to become again, first time, we should wait, more or less five hundred years. So, of course, we want to speed the process. And, we started these laborers and the expensive job, pretty expensive, but we were fit because the, the, here, the, the weather is fantastic for the production of red wines. And what we did is, thanks to the to the excavators. So we've removed the lava without for fertile soil that come from much older lava flows. And, we insert lava stones for drainage, and then we covered with fertile lava soil. So now we are, finally planting, is almost ready for the production of my my crew that will be released, I think, in two, three years, the crew failed to demand. So that is the a little contrada where we are. Yes. The other project we we say that will be released in the in this month, that will be the the Champpinas method, the Ethanol DOC sparkling wine with sixty months of Beijing. And so these are our projects. It's pretty exciting. So so the the vineyard that you just spoke about, and those vines are already, three or four years old that you're working with? Yes. Yes. Okay. So that that's pretty cool. So it'll be another three years before we get to taste it. Exactly. Yes. Alright. So, you know, that kind of wraps up my questioning, for today's call, but, we could do fun facts about your winery, or we could answer any questions that anybody out in the audience might have. Yeah. If if someone want to to have something, I'll be happy to to answer it. Okay. Whoa. Thank you. Yeah. I'm back with my special effects. Missiana, thank you very much. And, of course, too. We have a few minutes. I don't see any questions from the audience, but, of course, I always have questions, thousands of them. And I like the idea of going back to a little bit of the fun facts. Can you just I mean, we spoke about few of your wines, but can you I see that you have three, sparkling lines. Is that correct? Three labels? Yes. And then you have IC on your website. Three, six, nine, twelve, thirteen, fourteen, other labels? Yes. Totally you have seventeen. Is that correct? More or less. Yes. Okay. And what is the production? Can you give me a little bit about, you know, in terms of volume in production for for your just to contextualize a little bit. How big is your winery? Yeah. So, we are a small winery compared to the rest of the world, but in the in the Montechina, we are quite medium. Yeah. Because we produce three hundred and thousand bottles, but from Aetna, just one hundred one one hundred thousand bottles. Then, of course, we can cultivate, binds, after the the the the limit of it. And I just see, so we produce even, IGT or Cecilia Doc wines. Mhmm. So if how long have you been working, in the wine or in the family business, Viviana? Four years because I graduated. I You're still a baby. Yes. I'm a baby. I can see that by your your Instagram page. So you've been working with the family for about four years. Yes. Yes. Right. And do you have any wine training? Yes. Yes. I have a degree in, Viticulture Technology. So you're an technologist? Yes. I'm a web maker. Yes. Yeah. Okay. Excellent. And, I've seen some pictures. I think you're with your dad, but, I see some other men. How big is the company and what is the team formation like? I see some other men around you. I don't know if they're part of your family. Yes. If you if your, sibling works, if your brother works in the family, have you got any brothers and sisters? Yes. I've just a sister, but she choose, another, the the the music. So she's a just singer, but she else me, during the winter sting, by singing. Oh, great. Anyway, yes. We, we are a small one. So we are just in seven. Four in the in the cellar, the others in the, in the, in the offices. And, beside me, there is my grandfather, my father, and my uncle. Is he the one with the glasses or the other one? Maybe they are both with the glass. But the, those were, that one with the glass the the the glass the, yes, with, with the glasses. Yes. Is my father. Okay. Without glass. Probably is your uncle. My uncle. Yes. And how are the the roles divided? Well, my my father is a a one maker as well. Okay. And my my uncle is, just the director director of the, the economic director. Okay. I don't know. So what which which wine would you say? I know you have, so you have seventeen labels. Which wine is your signature wine? If you were to choose one. I know they are all like your children, but which wine most represents, Antiki Vinaya. Of course, the coina, the ethanol. Coina. Okay. And the the the Champona's method, I guess, the forty eight. Because that's quite unusual, right, to, to have sparkling wines from Aetna? Yes. But, since we can cultivate it from four hundred meters to one thousand meters above sea level. We can, decide, whichever is best is better to to produce white wines from red instead of red for long aging. So in the highest part of the volcano, we usually picked the Nerello Escalesa for the the sparkling. Or in the eastern side. So I see that you have the, Kwanna. How do you say it again? Kwanna. Kwanna. Kwanna. Okay. Kwanna. I saw that you were in London recently, right, doing a portfolio tasting? Yes. Yes. Yes. Okay. So how do how do, how does that get, proposed to the market? And, like, how do you fit yourself? How do you position your wine coin with other other, competitors because it's quite new. Right? Well, we produced this wine. The first vintage is the nineteen ninety four. Okay. Yeah. So So people know, it's been well established for some time. Yes. Yes. It's a, quite, not famous, but it's, our pillar, yes, our one of the best product. And, of course, we, we, we give it, when someone wants something, very structured, a wine to, for meditation, as I said before. Yeah. For meditation. I love the Italian say that for meditation for chatting. So during this chat, we should have a glass of peanut. It just means they want to drink. You know, don't bother me. I'm enjoying my drink. Alright. Listen. It's I I we are coming, to a close because it's nearly seven o'clock. I actually have another call. But thank you so much, Viviana. Hugh, did you want to say something else? Well, one, I I wanna thank everybody, especially Viviana, and and Stevie and Leica for putting this all together. But I also wanted to just tell you about the picture, that I posted as my cover. It's it's three generations of the family. It's, Vivian, I think that's your grandmother, Yes. And your uncle. Yes. Uh-huh. I can't really see. You mean your avatar? Yes. My avatar. They're so small. Oh, yeah. That's why I couldn't see. Okay. I thought it was a wine label. Oh, you just changed it? I did. I just changed it. Okay. Alright. Yeah. I was like, that was a wine label before. It was. It was a Oh, okay. That's so nice. And and I do love the bolognese, sparkling, and the rose is pretty pretty, magnificent as well. Thank you. Thank you. Yeah. I'd like to taste it. Exactly. This been Italy. Please, come come and we can taste everything together. Yeah. He are you around? You're staying till Vinately? I am. Yeah. Yeah. Yes. I am here through April. Yes. Right? My name's very confusing. Sorry, Viviana. I'm there till April. I'm there till April third. So I I leave on the morning of April third, but, I'll be attending Vin Italy on, Sunday. Okay. And, of course, you're going to be coming to, Five star and Five stars. Yeah. And opera wine and all of that good stuff. So I'll see you very, very soon. Viviana. Hopefully, I'll get a chance to come and, visit you. The, during Vinitally, actually, everyone's like, let's meet at Vinitally. The only problem is I get a little bit busy during Vinitally. So that is actually the worst time for me, but you never know. If not, definitely next time I come back to Aetna. I haven't been to your winery yet. I'd love to come for a visit. Please, please. You are you are welcome. Okay. Well, thank you very much, and that is it. Like, come back up and tell us what's happening next. Okay. Next week. So there's gonna be on March twenty one. So it's Wayne Young. I'm going to co moderate with him for the first time. So he will be interviewing with, from Le Duet Terre. So that's it. Who's interviewing? Who? Wayne Young. It's called. Oh, Wayne. Yeah. Wayne. Okay. Of course. Okay. And is that it before the before Vinitzley? Yes. That's it. So we've covered the Vineitzley marathon from there. Okay. And then we will be, shut down for Vineitzley marathon. Is that correct? Mhmm. We will be. Yeah. Because I'll be busy, otherwise, like, you'll have to do everything. Yeah. Alright. Thank you, everybody. Set. And what's that again? Here we go. Listen to the Italian wine podcast wherever you get your podcasts. We're on SoundCloud, Apple podcasts, spa qualify, email ifm, and more. Don't forget to subscribe and rate the show. If you enjoy listening, please consider donating through Italian wine podcast dot com. 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