As Villa Sandi’s CEO and owner Giancarlo Moretti Polegato pointed out to me when we met a few weeks ago and I interviewed him at the winery, the Prosecco DOCG is one of the world’s only appellations where people actually live among the vines.
In most of the world’s greatest wine producing regions, the vineyards are located in the countryside, in other words, in sparsely populated farmland. The people live in the town and they go out to the vineyards to grow the grapes away from the population centers.
In the land of Prosecco, one of the world’s most parcelized appellations where the majority of the grapes are grown by small-scale family-owned farms, the people who grow and make the wine literally live in the vineyards. In some cases, there are even schools and other public spaces that stand adjacent to the vineyards.
As Giancarlo noted, it’s all the more reason that grape growers and winemakers in the Prosecco DOCG like Villa Sandi need to be extra careful about the environment.
Villa Sandi has been a pioneer of environmentally conscious farming and winemaking and has been among the first there to receive Biodiversity Friend certification for its vineyards where Prosecco DOCG is grown.
Here are some of the ways that Villa Sandi helps to protect the environment and minimize its carbon footprint.
In the vineyard: Villa Sandi’s vineyards are Biodiversity Friend certified by the World Biodiversity Association (WBA). Farming practices include conservation of soil fertility and weed and pest control through environmentally friendly methods using organic products. The estate also maintains wooded areas around its vineyards to support the presence of wild life. The vineyards are home to more than 90 types of insects and beekeepers manage hives at each site.
In the winery: Villa Sandi uses a number of alternative energy sources in the winery including hydroelectric power (thanks to its proximity to the Piave River) and solar panels which account for 40% of the total electricity consumed. It also has stringent protocols in place to ensure the sustainable use of water resources and to strictly limit CO2 emissions.
Packaging: All of Villa Sandi’s wines are bottled using lightweight glass to reduce their carbon footprint. Its labels are printed exclusively on biodegradable paper so as not to adversely effect the environment.