Company farm
The farm is situated in the heart of the Valpolicella Classica area. The name “Classica” refers to the unique small area north of Verona where Amarone, Recioto and Valpolicella have always been produced. That is, before the DOC and DOCG production area was extended in 1968. Our wine cellar and its surrounding vineyards are located in this privileged territory, in a wonderful elevated position on a south-facing hill. Since the second half of the 18th century, we, the Bonazzi family - initially as sharecroppers - have cultivated, with love and respect, a total of 8 hectares mainly planted with vines, as well as olive and cherry trees. Later, in 1962, Alessandro Bonazzi acquired the houses and the land and established the farm. At the same time, his sons Mario, Angelo and Luciano continued his work, enhancing the winemaking part of the business. They made important land improvements and received great recognition from the local market, also thanks to prestigious wine competitions, in which Bonazzi wines have always made the company excel. Nowadays, Giorgio and Ivo, grandsons of Alessandro, continue the farming and wine-making activities with passion and great dedication, focusing on certain aspects that we consider crucial: environmental impact, respect for traditions and hospitality.
As you have read in our history, we, the Bonazzi family, settled in Badin about three centuries ago and have never stopped cultivating this land since then. It therefore goes without saying that we love the land and have great respect for it. This explains our environmental principles: we have been pioneers in discontinuing the use of particularly harmful insecticides and joining territorial projects in order to eliminate the use of pesticides in favour of low-impact techniques, such as sexual confusion of pathogenic insects, soil tillage and other methods.
Since 2019, Bonazzi Badin achieved integrated pest management certification by joining the RRR project of the consortium for the protection of Valpolicella wines. Moreover, we have obtained certification to use 100% electricity from renewable sources, partly thanks to a large photovoltaic plant.
But for us, respecting the territory also means respecting traditions, as we firmly believe that the concept of ‘terroir’ is not only linked to the territory. People who cultivate that territory need to know it well, especially the grape varieties and how they react according to the seasons, during the raisining process and in the wine cellar.
Our wines are made in the same way as a century ago: seasonal operations are carried out, with spontaneous fermentation, without using selected yeasts, bacteria or adjuvants. Modern processes such as centrifugation, clarification treatments and finings are not used. In our wine cellar, ancient, pomace-friendly winemaking methods such as the submerged cap are used, as well as natural sedimentation and the use of conventional equipment including concrete tanks and wooden barrels.
We have recently built special facilities to welcome visitors, where you can comfortably taste and purchase Bonazzi Badin wines.
We also able to offer wine tastings with regional food peerings and also organize special wine evenings and cultural events.
Grape harvest
Harvest time is a special period for us. Our large family gets together and on this special occasion we recall funny anecdotes from the past, tell jokes, invent riddles, as well as eat and drink passionately together.
The harvest involves two phases: the first is picking the ripest and healthiest grapes that are put into crates for our raisin wines, and requires great care. Grape bunches must be cut very carefully to avoid damaging them and laid carefully.
Once the grapes have been placed in crates (plateaux), they are taken to rest in the drying loft for about 3 months, in a ventilated space to avoid any stagnation of moisture, where they gradually dry. These grapes are then used to make the most famous wines of the Valpolicella area: Amarone, Recioto and our ‘Beso’ IGT.
In the second phase, all the remaining grapes are collected in plastic buckets, and this is when we can relax more, of course, but not too much. Spontaneous competitions often start to see who can harvest the fastest, but being quick is not enough. No grape bunches should be left on the vine, especially ones that like to hide among the leaves. And when, at last, all the grapes have been harvested, all the workers gather together for the ‘Galzega’, a festive dinner dedicated to the end of the grape harvest. And this is when our hearts warm the most. A tradition that we really cherish.
