I Castagnucoli

I Castagnucoli is run by Nicola Dal Santo in the National Park Colli Euganei near Padova. Here Nicola oversees his farm of 3.6 hectares that you rarely find anywhere else with a mixture of vineyards, olive groves, vegetables, orchard and forest, all certified organic since 1992. Respecting the environment and preserving a diverse agriculture with multiple crops comes before production goals, and consequently Nicola only makes a few thousand bottles of wine each year.

The grapes are local varieties such as Garganega, Glera, Marzemina Bianca, Raboso Veronese and Moscato Giallo. In the cellar, work is done completely low-tech: destemming by hand, no pumps, no fining or filtration, no cultured yeast and no added sulphur. I Castagnucoli’s wines reflect the area and the person behind it: fermented grape must without make-up or oenology. An agricultural product that is unpretentious and refreshing, but with a pure expression at the same time. If only we could get more bottles.