On the occasion of Tenuta Vallocaia’s 40th anniversary, Filippo Bartolotta spoke with founder Rudi Bindella Sr. about what drew him to Montepulciano, why art takes centre stage at his new winery, and what 2024 holds for the fine wine market. Opening with The Beatles’ All You Need is Love, Tenuta Vallocaia founder and passionate musician Rudi Bindella Sr. and his band marked the 40th anniversary of one of the most dynamic companies in Montepulciano. The occasion also marked the handover from Rudi Bindella Sr. to his son, also called Rudi. Heir to an Italian-Swiss family of wine merchant, who had been importing Italian wines into Switzerland since the 1960s and today with a €200 million turnover, Bindella Sr. fell in love with Tuscany, following his father on trips to the great Tuscan producers – primarily the Antinori family, who would become the main partner in Switzerland – and discovering the beauty of those territories. In 1983, while the local wine culture was in a primordial phase, Bindella Sr. purchased a small, semi-ruined property in the historical heart of Montepulciano’s wine production: Vallocaia, in the Argiano area. At the time it had two and a half hectares of vineyards, and Bindella Sr., a ‘humanistic’ entrepreneur who is passionate about art, culture and beauty, as well as great wines, saw it as an opportunity to show the value of this territory while maintaining a balance between earth, men and business in every production step. Over the years, the
This Article was originally published on The Drink Business - Fine Wine
