Graziano Prà

Graziano Prà is one of a small group of talented winemakers who have demonstrated to the world that the Soave area also has storable top-quality wines to offer. Since his oenology apprenticeship in the early 1980s and taking over the family's vineyards, formerly managed by his grandfather and father, Graziano has been guided by the concept of transparency. "The task of a winemaker is to transform the grapes into a wine that reflects the unique taste of the terroir," the winery owner tells us in conversation.

His farm now covers 48 hectares of vines, which have always been cultivated organically. The majority (40 hectares) grows near the town of Monteforte d'Alpone on the unique volcanic soils of the Soave hills and is planted with the autochthonous grape varieties Garganega and Trebbiano di Soave. These grapes are used to produce Prà's sought-after Soave Classico wines, such as the fruity "Otto" - named after the winemaker's dog, a beloved Border Collie - as well as the multi-layered single-vineyard wines "Staforte", "Monte Grande" and "Colle Sant'Antonio".

In the international wine scene, Graziano has long been considered the old master of Soave. After a gentle grape pressing, his white wines ferment at low temperatures, which above all preserves the fresh fruit notes of the grape varieties. In addition, malolactic fermentation is dispensed with during maturation and vinification takes place under inert gas to avoid contact with oxygen.

In the meantime, Graziano Prà is also making a name for himself as a red wine expert: In the nearby hills of the Valpolicella region, the winery has eight hectares of vines that thrive on calcareous soils. Here, the cold air currents from the Lessini Mountains ensure longer ripening phases, thanks to which the red grape varieties Corvina, Corvinone, Rondinella and Oseleta develop mineral flavours. These grapes are used at Prà for the Valpolicella and the Valpolicella Ripasso as well as for the incomparable Amarone.

In addition to enhancing the value of the area's autochthonous grapes, Graziano is particularly concerned with another element: his wines should stand the test of time without developing undesirable off-flavours such as troublesome cork notes. In fact, the longevity of the wines is precisely the factor that influenced the choice of screwcap for the storable single-vineyard Soave. "Buying a bottle of Soave with a screw cap," Graziano Prà points out, "means buying a wine that depends on the vintage and never on the closure."

The Prà winery is therefore a true pioneer that will continue to inspire us with spectacular red and white wines in the future. We can therefore only echo the enthusiasm of the famous wine critic Antonio Galloni: "Whether it's Amarone or Soave, Prà has got it covered." SUPERIORE.DE