December is the perfect time for analysis e new purposes for the future. How has 2024 been for me? As you probably know the year has begun with the third and last surgery for the finger of my right hand, after the accident in August 2022. Surgery itself has been quick, rehabilitation a bit longer, but we finally made it to the end. Does the finger work again? No, it’s still stretched and rigid: without being able to bend it, what can I do? Nothing, but it’s among the others and it keeps them company. Joking aside, I’m happy that this adventure has finally successfully ended. I’m 100% back to the life I lived before the accident, I’m able to do everything as before so I’m not thinking about it anymore.
In 2024 I have travelled a lot through Europa, USA and Canada. Last year I had already planned to visit some of the Countries where you can find my wines: in a moment of market stability, or sometimes even decrease, I visited my buyers to help them with the sales of my wines. So, I had the chance to visit Paris, New York, Boston, Burlington, Ottawa, Toronto, Bordeaux, Montreal, Zurich, Vienna and other cities. I’m already harvesting what I sowed, and I hope 2025 will be a great year on this point.
Since last Spring we have 6 new hectares of vineyard to take care of: our neighbors have proposed us these new vineyard and, even if we were a bit worried about the hard work, we couldn’t miss the chance. So we have rolled up our sleeves and have begun the new adventure.
Agronomic vintage has been very rainy since April, and it’s been fresh and humid until mid-July. By mid-July Summer finally started. By the end of August, we began grape harvest with the first grape varieties and Garganega for Primo Incontro. By mid-September until mid-October again it’s been very rainy. Harvest has been tough physically (often we were soaked wet and in the mud) but also mentally. Our great experience and the selection of the grapes in the vineyard gave us the opportunity to manage this difficult situation in the best way possible so we were able to have fresh and salty wines as usual, from the volcanic soil of Gambellara.
In these days I also have shown my new line of wines called “L’Orso” (The bear) with the first wine: l’Orso gentile (the kind-hearted Bear). The bear, watching the landscape from the top of the tree, has found a wonderful territory where Garganega is cultivated above pink limestone. So I have the chance to let people taste Garganega wines with a different taste from the Gambellara volcanic Garganega, a strong and brave wine, gentle and with an harmonious soul.
New purposes for 2025? I have many purposes for 2025, starting form going to the gym and begin a diet, but I have always said that it’s important to focus on what you can realize! I’d like to have more time for my passions, such as skiing, walking and the mountain and my family as well. My eldest daughter began high school while the youngest the fourth year of elementary school: time is flying and they are growing beautifully! In the work sphere it will be a year of harvest and new seedings: I’d like to visit and study Asian markets. It will be also the year of a new wine, during springtime: l’Orso saggio (the wise Bear), a wine that can wait, without hurries.
My wish for you for the next year is to “climb on the trees”, as a bear, to see new opportunities and follow your dreams.