The CEO of Il Borro Wines believes it's the best way to produce quality wines sustainably
As fashionable as some of the world’s best wines can be, the key to sustainable success for any winery lies in its ability to achieve and maintain a high standard. It’s also an ethos the grandson of a fashion icon, Salvatore Ferragamo, knows all too well.
Tradition has led to him adopting his grandfather’s first name, but after strong consideration, and having completed his undergraduate studies in New York, Ferragamo chose not to join the family’s feted fashion brand. Instead, he decided to pursue his passion for fine wine, and is now chief executive officer of Il Borro, the estate and winery his father, Ferruccio, purchased in 1993 and which he and his sister, Vittoria, manage; although she mainly oversees the organic vegetable garden and special projects.
“We are incredibly fortunate to have had the opportunity to make the right investments and to have a lot of passion for this property, so we can do things without taking short-cuts,” Ferragamo tells T.Dining during a recent lunch event to mark the reintroduction of its wines to the Singapore market, which is now distributed by Enoteca. “And you will see it in the wines.”
Il Boro, he explains, is a winery that “believes in terroir”, which translates to planting the right vines—vines that perform best—in the different types of soils found on the property, which stretches across 1,300 acres from the mountains to the valley. It’s located on an estate that enjoys unique soil and climate conditions that result in high quality wines, despite being located about a 45-minute drive from Florence.
“You have the rocky soil that is more suited for growing sangiovese, the pebbly soil for the syrah, the sandy soil for the cabernet, and as you come further down into the valley, you have more a compact clay soil that is ideal for growing merlot.”
