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Piedmont, Italy
Contratto
Contratto was founded in 1867 by Giuseppe Contratto. It is known as the oldest producer of sparkling wine in Italy. In fact, the “Metodo Classico” 1919 Contratto Extra Brut was the first vintage sparkling wine ever made in Italy.
At the turn of the 20th century, its wines were leaving Canelli for destinations all over the world (predominantly to royal houses), and Contratto was personal supplier to the Vatican as well as the Italian Royal Family. Awards and medals from international exhibitions and contests of the time emphasize why the name of Contratto has long been synonymous with prestige and quality in the world of sparkling wine.
In 150 years of winemaking, Contratto went from producing Moscato and red wine to Spumante Metodo Classico, still white wines, as well as vermouth, tonic and syrups.
For many generations the winery remained in the hands of the Contratto family. In 1993, after 126 years, it was sold to Carlo Bocchino, owner of Canelli’s grappa distillery with the same name and lover of monumental real estate,undertook great efforts and investment to restore the historical cellars and the impressive representation and tasting rooms.
The historical cathedral cellars at Contratto are a real treasure for the winery, and among the finest of their kind. These huge underground cellars, covering more than 5,000 sqm, were built into the heart of the hill that protects the small town of Canelli, excavated from tuff limestone to a depth of 32 meters. The project took three years of manual work to finish. The cellars maintain a constant annual temperature of 12 to 13 degrees and sufficient natural humidity, an ideal environment for bottle fermentation and the slow and steady bottle maturation of “metodo clasico” sparkling- wines.
Today Contratto enters a new era; Giorgio Rivetti and the team of La Spinetta now stand behind the quality of the wines, proud to bring this jewel of a winery back to its previous glory. Since Spring 2011 Contratto is officially in the hands of La Spinetta, but the idea of taking over the Contratto sparkling wine production was already born in 2007. For 4 years La Spinetta has been secretly making metodo classico wines at Contratto, with Pinot Noir and Chardonnay grapes from Oltrepo Pavese. We are working closely with grape growers in that area who understand what it means to be a grape grower of quality.
It is our long-term plan to invest in own vineyards in Alta Langa to grow Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. Only with estate-grown fruit we may control fruit production, and with that quality, to 100%. Estate-grown fruit will then be the base for our special high-end Cru Spumante production.
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