The Brandolini Family became the owner of Vistorta, a small village of the eighteenth century in the heart of Western Friuli. The first settlements date back to the Roman time but it has been part of the Venetian Republic from the twelfth to the sixteenth century. The Brandolini family boasted among the best–known mercenary leaders who fought for the Republic of Venice protecting the northern borders.
Vistorta is a fraction of Sacile, that is called the Garden of Serenissima for its architecture which recalls Venice and is crossed by the river Livenza. In half of the nineteenth century Guido Brandolini built the current structure with innovative concepts for those times.
In the 50s Brando Brandolini restructured the villa and the park with a special attention towards the landscape, which integrates seamlessly with the foothill area that touches.
The author of this charming park is the Englishman Russel Page, who puts the villa at the center, as the very heart of all the activities that take place there.
In the DNA of the family, in addition to the style and respect for nature, there is the love for this land and the passion for its wine. Brandino Brandolini, who graduated in Agriculture at the Texas A & M University, treasured his experience in the family winery of Chateau Greysac in Bordeaux and decided in the 80s to retrain Vistorta on the French model, focusing attention only on a great, but above all of quality, red wine.
His obstinacy in pursuiting quality brought him to analyze in all its aspects the relationship between the characteristics of the territory, applied to the great historical experience, and quality that characterized the red wines of the French. Its cultural Melting Pot was evident in every aspect of his farm, which fitted perfectly with what was happening in wine and with the elimination of all barriers of culture, language, and in this case, of taste and smell.
With the collaboration of Georges Pauli, a known winemaker of Chateau Gruaud Larose, he began to plant new varieties that integrated perfectly with this land. The careful choice fell on the Merlot of grape variety originating from Bordeaux.
The company has two manufacturing facilities, the one of Vistorta of 200 hectares and that of Cordignano and Fontanafredda with 150 hectares more.
The soil of Vistorta is calcareous–clayey, ideal for red grapes, while the soil of Fontanafredda is sandy–muddy, ideal for the typical Friulian white wines.
The wine–making facilities are included in the Barchessa of Cordignano, where the architectural tradition is perfectly integrated with the new barrels that allow the malolactic fermentation. After the various assemblies and selections that last twelve months the wine can assume the status of Merlot di Vistorta.
Merlot di Vistorta is now one of the great Italian red wines that, in addition to having an international market, was consecrated among the best by Vins & Vignobles and obtained a great review by Wine Spectator, that in the United States is considered the leading magazine in the wine world. The land of Vistorta is perfect, having the same features found in Bordeaux and Medoc. The idea of integrating new French clones and a selection of native clones, together with rigorous local culture techniques, that allow to harvest the grapes completely healthy, have proven to be successful both in the results of quality and in the commercial ones.
Tre Anni is a wine that combines three different vintages of Refosco, Cabernet Franc and Merlot.
The idea, inspired by the philosophy of the non–vintage champagne, contains its secret in the blend that managed to create a wine with the original flavor profile.
It is a wine that fits perfectly with the tastes of the younger generation who are approaching wine and are beginning to understand how much work there is behind a good product.
The other classic wines that have a 100% original vine are Merlot, Chardonnay, Gewürztraminer, Cabernet Franc, Refosco, Sauvignon, Pinot Grigio and Tocai.
Guy de Maupassant said that passion has no limits: Brandino Brandolini has shown it, as results widely in his wines.