A Strong Team: the 'Unione Viticoltori di Panzano'
The Winemakers of the Unione Viticoltori di Panzano
If you're into wine in Panzano in Chianti, you absolutely have to check out the "Unione Viticoltori di Panzano". This is the association of Panzano winemakers who organize the "Vino al Vino" wine festival every year, which is super famous far beyond the country's borders, right in Panzano in Chianti's Piazza. And it was also the Unione that played a big part in Panzano becoming Italy's first organic district. And none other than Cosimo Gericke, owner of Fattoria di Rignana and also a good friend of mine, recently became the new president of the Unione di Viticoltiori di Panzano.
1995: The year the success story began…
More than two decades have passed in the hilly Chianti Classico since the Panzano winemakers decided to found the "Unione Viticoltori di Panzano" in 1995. The reason for this merger – which initially also included other agricultural producers – was quite simple, but also super important: they wanted to organize a joint festival where only wines and local products could be tasted and promoted.
During the preparations for the festival, regular meetings took place in the following years. The winemakers didn't just talk about the upcoming event; they also shared their wine knowledge and experiences. Friendships were made, and they grew closer. The producers started developing more and more joint projects. And finally, they officially came together to form the "Unione Viticoltori di Panzano".
Currently, 22 wineries are part of the Unione. A winery can only become a member if the grapes, the winery, and the bottling all happen in Panzano. Since the beginning of August this year, Cosimo Gericke – who I've worked closely and friendly with for many years, and whose Fattoria di Rignana wines are, of course, also available in my shop – has been the president of the Unione. His job for the next three years will be to represent the interests of the Panzano winemakers externally and, of course, to make the excellent wines of the area known far beyond the country's borders.
Cosimo Gericke from Fattoria di Rignana has been President of the Unione Viticoltori di Panzano since August 2019
Panzano Sostenibile: More Sustainability = Intact Nature = More Quality
From the very beginning, one of the Unione's goals was to improve the quality of their wines. They gradually agreed that the best way to do this was through sustainable and, most importantly, organic viticulture. That's how the "Panzano Sostenibile" project – which means sustainable Panzano – was initiated by the winemakers with agronomist Ruggero Mazzilli. This project is fully committed to organic farming and was founded in 2005. And it truly fell on "fertile ground": sustainable thinking and practices are now firmly rooted in the minds of the winemakers.
Most of the wineries here are organic-certified. Some even take it a step further and practice biodynamic farming. The move to "organic" is backed by a special group called "Stazione Sperimentale per la Viticoltura" – or SPEVIS for short – who offer technical support and advice. Over 90% of Panzano's vineyards, which is about 500 hectares, are now organic-certified. More than ever, winemakers believe that thinking and acting sustainably not only protects our natural resources in the long run but also helps make even better wine.
And there's another wonderful, positive side effect of all this organic farming that I notice on my walks through the vineyards: you can once again see countless fireflies and butterflies dancing through the air in Panzano!
More than 90% of the vineyards in Panzano are farmed sustainably these days.
Vino al Vino - an awesome autumn festival for Panzano's winemakers!
A highlight of the wine year! Every year, the Unione winemakers put on this event on the third weekend in September – this year it was September 12-15, 2019, and next year it'll be September 17-20, 2020. If you want to keep up with "Vino al Vino," you can find the upcoming dates here.
To get into this festival, you just buy a special Vino al Vino glass right there on the Piazza. That glass lets you taste wines from the Unione winemakers for four whole days – and trust me, there are lots of famous and amazing ones! The Wall Street Journal even recently called this Panzano winery get-together one of the "Top Five" wine festivals globally! So, what are you waiting for?
Vino al Vino 2018