If you haven’t heard of them yet, you really don’t know what you’re missing. Italian Winery of the Year three years running (IWSC, 2005-2007), Marco Scarinci helps explain how Farnese have managed to become one of the most consistent and highly rated producers in the Italian wine industry.

1. What is your favourite grape to work with and why?

Our favourite red grape to work with is Montepulciano for a number of reasons. It expresses the winemaking tradition of Abruzzo, and produces reds with great structure and tannins for long living. In the past this grape had huge production problems. More than 180 tons per hectare it was of low quality and mainly sold as bulk wine in Northern Italy to be blended with other grape varietals. Only in the last twenty years has quality really increased, with lower yields (no more than 10 tons per hectare), modern vinification techniques, new technology and more attention in the vineyard. The final result is a unique experience. It is easy to appreciate and drink.

With regards to a white grape, we love the indigenous grape varietal called Pecorino. It’s pretty new in the worldwide wine scene, but with a long tradition in Northern Italy. It has delicate and unforgettable aromas and flavours.

2. Considering the vast volumes of wine produced in Italy, what has made Farnese stand out from the crowd? What do you believe is your key to success?

Farnese was born in 1994 when about 85% of production was in the hands of cooperative wine growers’ associations and only very few of them bottled the wines they produced. They produced wines that were sold with no name to bottling companies from other regions. Throughout the years, the vine-growers experienced the value of their grapes decline more and more among vast quantities and average quality, so a greater appreciation of the regional wines was required.

This is the reason why we started our so called “Quality Project”, to which there was a prize for the vine-growers who chose to produce good quality grapes. Each vine-grower may ask the cooperative to which they belong to become a member of the “Farnese Quality Project”, our technicians will then inspect the vineyard and see whether the vineyard is capable of producing grapes of a high enough quality. Once the technicians have given their approval, an agreement is made with the producer according to which the vine-grower shall work under the careful supervision of our technicians that make sure they carry out their work as instructed. This includes a strict observation of the maximum quantities that each vineyard may produce and if this exceeds the limit at the beginning of August, then they will choose the amount of grapes that have to be removed from the vines in order to have the quantities required. All vine-growers taking part in our quality project do not get paid for the amount of grapes they produce but the quality of their stock as a result of lower yields per hectare.

Another aspect is related to the winemaking style, which is very far from the traditional approach to vinification. A more modern approach with the focus on indigenous grape varietals which produce easy drinking wines with expressive fruit and less of the heavy oak usage.

Essentially, we have been successful because we have a good team who are young, professional and very motivated. We have built up a good brand and we understand how the market is changing and how to act quickly.

3. What is your favourite everyday drinking wine, and what would be your desert island wine (if you could only ever have one more wine)?
With regards to the red absolutely Montepulciano d’Abruzzo because it is so strictly related to our history and traditions, while for the white Pecorino. My desert island wine would be Lagrein from Trentino Alto Adige.

4. If you could no longer grow grapes in Italy, where would you go to grow them?
We would like to go to Argentina or South Africa because there is great potential there.

5. What is your long-term outlook for the Italian wine industry?
The Italian wine industry has changed somewhat in the last few years, but the real chance and opportunity is in the worldwide market. We need to promote ourselves and invest more and more in the indigenous grape varieties which give a real expression of our territory.

Thanks to Marco Scarinci, Farnese.

Our range from Farnese.