Interview with Vittorio Moretti, entrepreneur from Franciacorta.

The connection between history, love for beauty, nature, and family emerges from Stevie Kim's conversational interview with Vittorio Moretti, a highly experienced and astute entrepreneur.

Those like him who begin as builders know how to think big, understanding that the foundations are the basis of the entire masterpiece. Moretti has excelled not only in the construction sector but also in managing sustainable companies related to wine, caring for the environment while consistently challenging himself to make his work profitable.

The interview takes place in the evocative Convento dell’Annunciata in Rovato, a town at the foot of Monte Orfano, in the southern part of Franciacorta. Here, at 400 meters above sea level, Monte Orfano creates favorable conditions for Franciacorta: by dividing the plain from the hill, it allows for a temperature difference of 2-3 degrees and manages to halt humidity, thus ensuring drier soil. These factors have resulted in this area having the oldest vineyard in Franciacorta, which has enabled the production of an extraordinary product like its fine wine.

Vittorio Moretti loves challenges just as much as he enjoys designing and structuring his companies in the wine sector. He owns numerous renowned companies such as: Bellavista, Contadi Castaldi, Petra, La Badiola in Tuscany, Teruzzi in San Gimignano, and Sella & Mosca in Sardinia, the largest vineyard in Europe with 550 hectares where work is being done on a completely sustainable vineyard.

Finally, there is his great love for the Convento dell’Annunciata, a place not only for wine production but also for the study and recovery of ancient knowledge and sustainable redesign.

How did your love for the Convento dell’Annunciata begin?

This is an extraordinary place for me, right here where Franciacorta is born.

In my book “Renaissance of Wine Culture at the Convento dell’Annunciata” there is a photo of me and Gianni Brera in 1990 when I took over the vineyard that the friars could no longer manage. Subsequently, there followed a careful study and research work of the place conducted together with the University of Milan, aimed at discovering what was originally on Monte Orfano and the history of the convent. An in-depth study then followed to understand the quality of the vineyard. Through these clonal and mass selection research, we began to regenerate the entire existing vineyard to create a unique product, the result of the union of ancient and new Chardonnay plants.

The regeneration work is a true challenge, proceeding with the laborious and dangerous work of terracing the vineyards due to the slope of the land. It is a difficult, complex job, but I am always in search of demanding challenges, which are the ones that bring the most satisfaction and extraordinary products.

Your family works with you, and you have created the Vittorio Mariella Moretti Foundation; can you tell us about it?

Yes, my three daughters, Francesca, Carmen, and Valentina, each have a role in the company: they have directed themselves into different areas between oenology, hotel management, and architecture according to their inclinations to best manage every aspect. The Foundation, conceived together with my wife, aims to focus on what all cultural foundations do: in our case, the culture of the vineyard. Its mission is to spread the culture of sustainability, indeed, of eco-sustainability, so that even the small worker can reach full awareness and then apply it in their activity.

Today here in the Convent, a conference on sustainability is taking place. What does sustainability mean to you, and what is the goal of this conference?

Sustainability is a difficult word and is often misused today. In vineyard management, eco-sustainable processing means, first and foremost, keeping it healthy and not creating problems for the surrounding environment, eliminating all chemical products from cultivation methods in favor of a final product that is completely genuine, natural, and eco-sustainable.

Eco-sustainability is at the base of everything.

What would you like to leave one day to your grandchildren as a lesson from your passion in the world of vineyards?

I would like to have taught people to live well, and to live well, one must live in an environment where ecology comes first. Simplicity, at times, helps to better understand complex concepts, and it is the real secret to living life well.