The Antinori family has been involved in the production of wine for over six centuries, ever since, in 1385, Giovanni di Piero Antinori entered as a member, the “Arte Fiorentina”, the Winemakers’ Guild of the city of Florence. During this entire long period, through twenty six generations, the family has always directly managed this work with courageous and, at times, innovative decisions, but always maintaining, unaltered, a fundamental respect for tradition and for the territory in which they have operated.
Today the firm is run by Marquis Piero Antinori with the support of his three daugthers, Albiera, Allegra, and Alessia, directly involved in the work of the house. Tradition, passion, and intuition have been the three driving principles which have led the Marquis Antinori firm to become a leader in Italian wine.
I am sure, our readers would love to know and understand some aspects of your incredible success in the world of wine and international recognition – what are the qu a lities that have propelled you to be one of the leading wine pro ducers both in Ita ly and the world?
A great commitment to constantly follow strict standards, or in other words, continuous work aimed at improving quality in various fields, such as re se arch and experimentation, the purchase and planting of new vines. This has always been part of our philosophy, but has especially characterised the last 10–15 years.
Above all, research and innovation, we are always experimenting, working on the selection of clones of Italian and in ter national grapes, new growing techniques, researching the effects of altitude on the vines, fermentation methods and temperatures, traditional and modern winemaking techniques, the study of the wood, size and age of the barrels, and varying the length of bottle ageing. No less important has been advertising, because quality, once achieved, must also be transferred to the market. This has meant a great commitment in travelling to foreign markets and taking part in events, fairs and establishing contact and a good relationship not only with experts in the sector, importers and customers, but also with the international massmedia.
