Contra Soarda

Family roots in farming and hospitality

The Gottardi family’s agricultural and gastronomic history began in 1904, when Giovanni Battista and Giovanna Gottardi established a farm known locally as a frasca in the countryside outside Bassano del Grappa. They served travellers food and wine made on the farm.

During the 1960s, Marcello and Beppa Gottardi transformed the small farm into a traditional, family-operated trattoria. Gloria and Mirco Gottardi assumed responsibility for the restaurant Pulierin in 1986, continuing its focus on local ingredients and regional cooking.

Founding Vignaioli Contrà Soarda

In 1999, Mirco and Gloria Gottardi extended the family’s relationship with farming into winegrowing. They acquired a hillside property near Bassano del Grappa that had been derelict for twelve years and founded Vignaioli Contrà Soarda. The intervention begun that year encompassed the agricultural reorganization of the site, regulation of its emerging springs, recovery of land almost impenetrable with brambles, vineyard planting and construction of the cellar.

Years of work returned the abandoned hillside to cultivation. More than 60,000 vines and 1,000 olive trees were planted. From the outset, the objective was to interpret the site through wine while following a conservative approach to viticulture and low-intervention winemaking.

Cellar and estate development

The cellar was constructed within the hill according to bio-architectural principles. Its underground position reduced its visual and environmental impact while enabling gravity transfer, geothermal temperature control and natural regulation of temperature and humidity. The barrel cellar drew architectural inspiration from Antoni Gaudí and Eladio Dieste, using double-curved vaults, sinuous forms and local materials.

In 2011, Pulierin moved to the San Michele hills at Contrà Soarda, bringing the family’s activities in agriculture, wine and regional food together at the estate.

Second generation and environmental projects

Marcello and Eleonora, the founders’ children, subsequently joined Mirco and Gloria. Marcello became the winemaker, while Eleonora participates in the family enterprise and its hospitality and wine-related activities.

The estate achieved organic certification after applying organic practices from its earliest years and developing additional measures beyond the mandatory standard. Its environmental work later expanded through a partnership with Carbon Jacked. The collaboration measured the carbon footprint of the entire operation, including Scope 3 emissions, and created TERRA, presented as Europe’s first carbon-negative wine. The project reduces emissions at source, incorporates carbon sequestration through estate land management and offsets twice the emissions associated with the wine through independently verified carbon credits.

On 14 October, the TERRA project received Coldiretti’s Oscar Green in the “Coltiviamo Insieme” category.

Contrà Soarda occupies entirely hilly terrain at San Michele di Bassano del Grappa, below the Altopiano di Asiago. The local place-name means “on the slope.” The wider site has been associated with vines and olive trees since the period of Ezzelino da Romano, between the 10th and 11th centuries.

The vineyard area is known as le acque because of its numerous emerging springs. These waters had to be regulated during the initial agricultural works. The soils are predominantly volcanic, including lava lapillus with an “onion-like” structure, with alluvial material and pebbles present in some vineyards. Their hygroscopic capacity and permeability help the vines withstand dry periods. Rocks absorb and release heat, while the soils bring a pronounced mineral component.

The Brenta river influences the site. Cold currents arriving through the Valsugana create marked temperature differences between day and night, while a regular breeze moves through the hills. Solar exposure is another defining element. One documented single vineyard lies on steep slopes at 300 metres above sea level, faces east–west and receives sunlight from sunrise to sunset. Its position in the foothills is both sheltered and cooled by the constant Valsugana breeze. A separate Pinot Nero vineyard lies at close to 600 metres, where elevation and a cool climate support aromatic development.

The interaction of slope, exposure, volcanic geology, springs, air movement and diurnal variation creates distinct conditions within the estate. The family treats these site variables as fundamental to the identity and expression of its vines.

The vineyards are certified organic, while the estate describes its guiding outlook as “organic viticulture, biodynamic mind.” Organic practices have been followed from the beginning, with additional estate-developed measures introduced where the mandatory requirements were considered insufficient.

Pruning follows a soft approach that respects the vine’s sap flow, allowing vigour to move naturally without being obstructed or unnecessarily damaged by cuts. Selection begins during pruning and continues through the growing season and harvest. Grapes are harvested by hand and undergo a further selection on a sorting table before destemming and crushing.

Seven-species green manure is sown to increase biodiversity and maintain a suitable vineyard habitat. Cover crops between the rows improve soil structure, reduce erosion and help regulate the nutrients available to the vines. Winter work includes green manuring and organic fertilization in the inter-row area.

Compost is produced on the property from grape stems and pomace collected during harvest, combined with manure from the family’s animals. Herbicides are not used; weeds beneath the vines are removed mechanically. The intended result is living soil that supports healthy, deep roots and a clear relationship between the vines and their place of origin.

Natural bread-based preparations are also applied. Their yeasts are used to strengthen the vines’ resistance to disease, allowing organic sprays to be reduced and applied according to need. Habitat breaks and natural corridors support birds, insects and farm animals, contributing to a more self-regulating ecosystem. The estate’s donkeys help manage vegetation and transport cases in the vineyards.

The winery was designed as an integral part of the production process. Built entirely within the hill according to bio-architectural principles, it receives hand-harvested grapes at roof level and uses gravity to move them directly into the vinification area. This layout enables rapid handling while reducing the need for mechanical transfer.

The underground structure provides natural control of temperature and humidity, supplemented by geothermal temperature regulation. Its arrangement separates operational areas while preserving a close physical relationship with the hillside. The barrel-ageing room uses double-curved vaults, sinuous forms and local materials, with architectural inspiration drawn from Antoni Gaudí and Eladio Dieste.

The estate’s general winemaking philosophy is low-intervention. Spontaneous fermentation is used across much of the range, with vessels chosen according to the grapes and intended expression, including stainless steel, truncated-conical vats, French and Austrian oak barriques or tonneaux, large casks and ceramic eggs. The cellar accommodates both temperature-controlled fermentation and fermentations without temperature control. Bottle ageing is an important part of several long-maturing selections.

Contrà Soarda was created to recover an abandoned hillside and communicate its character through grapes, olives, wine and food. The family regards soil, microclimate, slope and exposure as active variables rather than a passive setting. Vineyard work is therefore based on observation: reading the condition of the soil and plants, identifying the vines’ actual needs and creating conditions in which each plant can retain its original expression.

The agricultural outlook combines certified organic practice with what the estate calls a biodynamic mind. Its emphasis is on living soils, biodiversity, natural disease resistance, reduced treatments, deep roots and a self-regulating vineyard ecosystem. Animals are regarded as participants in the farm rather than decorative additions; the donkeys manage vegetation, carry loads and inspired the MUSSO project’s humorous message, “Terroir? I’m part of it.”

In the cellar, the goal is low intervention supported by architecture and thoughtful technology. Gravity, underground thermal stability and geothermal control are used to simplify handling and limit environmental impact. Tradition and experimentation coexist through native and international varieties, spontaneous fermentation, unconventional vessels and long maturation.

Environmental responsibility extends beyond organic certification. For the TERRA collaboration, the entire operation was measured under a process based on the Greenhouse Gas Protocol, including Scope 3 emissions. Emissions were reduced at source, carbon sequestration in land management was recognized, and independently verified credits were used to prevent twice the carbon associated with the project from entering the atmosphere. The broader objective is for winemaking to contribute positively to the environment rather than merely reduce harm.

Family continuity remains central. Mirco and Gloria’s founding work is now shared with Marcello and Eleonora, linking the winery to the Gottardi family’s agricultural and hospitality tradition that began in 1904.