Invest in the Whole Territory, Not Just the Vineyards

GIVING LIGHT ALSO TO THE HUMAN AND CULTURAL HERITAGE, THAT IS THE TERROIR', AS THE FRENCH SAY. THIS IS THE TRUMP CARD FOR ALUMNA ALESSANDRA QUARTA, VICE PRESIDENT AND BRAND MANAGER OF CLAUDIO QUARTA VIGNAIOLO

Three wineries, in the Puglia and Campania regions, united by a single brand: Claudio Quarta Vignaiolo. Behind the business idea, an overarching ambition: to give Italian Southern wines a recognition they are still struggling to acquire. Claudio Quarta, a professional biologist, decided to change his life and established his company in 2005. His daughter, Alessandra Quarta, who graduated from CLEACC in 2011, soon contributed her efforts, knowledge and enthusiasm. She currently holds the position of vice president and brand manager. “The concept around which our company was born”, explains Alessandra, “is that of contributing to enhancement of the local territory understood not only as the land and the grapes, but also the human and cultural heritage that surrounds them”. In other words, le terroir, as the French say. "We want to invest in the community that surrounds a wine, to make it unique in a certain sense, innovating but without neglecting the past, because in this industry there are very strong values ​​that must be safeguarded".

However, if you are a young company without generations of winemakers and history behind you, you need to find something that allows you to stand out in a market and that’s something that is becoming more and more complex: "It can only be done by innovating, by creating something that was not here before, a product that is both modern and sustainable: in a nutshell, qu.Ale., an IGP Salento red wine which blends the two most famous indigenous grape varieties, Negramaro and Primitivo, whose sales have trebled since its inception in 2014. “My intent”, says Alessandra, “was to create a great wine that was sustainable at all stages of production, using lighter glass bottles and environmentally friendly materials. Furthermore, part of the proceedings of wine sales are donated to charitable initiatives”. Because, as Alessandra claims, “In Italy, it often happens great wines are produced, but only the final product is judged, without dwelling on the process that led to that result”. This is what Wine Democracy is about: establishing a set of rules that link the production of great wines to respect for people and the planet. “We don’t do it just for qu.Ale.”, continues Alessandra Quarta, “since all our cellars follow the same production rules. We believe in this business model because, fortunately, that's what people want from us”.
 
 
SHORT BIO
Alessandra Quarta, VP & Brand Manager at “Claudio Quarta Vignaiolo”, and a CLEACC alumna: “CLEACC was the right springboard to develop my identity, since it gave me all the tools to carve my own path. I did an internship at UNESCO and from that experience my graduation thesis was born, which focused on the management of the world cultural heritage protected by UNESCO. A program that gave me a solid grounding but also taught me to think unconventionally. A memory in this sense? Massimo Amato's class of economic history, where creativity and unconventional thinking ruled".

by Davide Ripamonti