Gerardo Cesari SPA Winery
"Amarone for five continents."
Gerardo Cesari
The Cesari winery was founded in 1936, making it almost as old as Amarone. The winery and wine style are inextricably linked.
Some of Italy's most famous wines today are not even that old in terms of their origins. Amarone is one of these wines that emerged from the far more traditional Valpolicella. That was in the 1930s. Back then, in 1936 to be precise, Gerardo Cesari founded his winery in Fumane and, together with his son Franco, developed it into one of the leading Veronese producers within 30 years. The name Cesari became synonymous with wine from Verona, not least abroad. Franco Cesari was a tireless ambassador for Veronese wines and was one of the first to have his Amarone represented on all five continents since the 1970s.
In order to successfully lead the winery into the modern age, the Cesaris have gradually brought two other families on board who have invested in the winery. Alongside Franco Cesari, Rinaldo Corvi and Annibale Materossi steer the fortunes of the winery. The Corvis have been involved in the company for 30 years, while the Materossis joined 15 years ago. Among other things, this made it possible to build a new winery in Cavaion Veronese. While the wines are pressed and stored there, the grapes for the Amarone are dried at the headquarters in Fumane using the so-called appassimento process, which can take four to five months. The grapes for Amarone come from the four famous single vineyards Bosan, Bosco, Jèma and Centofilari. The Bosan vineyard is home not only to today's typical Valpolicella grape varieties such as Corvina, Corvivone and Rondinella, but also to historically significant grape varieties such as Negrara and Rossignola. In addition, there are many other vineyards in the Veronese hills and on Lake Garda, so that Gerardo Cesari now cultivates around 100 hectares sustainably.
photos: Gerardo Cesari SPA
