I Magredi

Partnership with Valdo — 2018

In January 2018, Valdo began a partnership with Azienda Agricola I Magredi, a Friulian winery owned by the Tombacco family and based in Domanins, in the Province of Pordenone. The relationship also involved Valdo acquiring an equity interest in I Magredi.

The partnership brought together two family wine traditions and combined I Magredi’s connection to the Friulian landscape with Valdo’s experience in sparkling-wine production. Its practical objective was to extend Valdo’s Prosecco activity into Friuli and give the company greater control over the production chain, from the vineyard and initial vinification to sparkling-wine production.

First joint release — 2019

The first result of the collaboration was presented at Vinitaly in 2019. Tenuta La Maredana Prosecco Treviso DOC was introduced as part of a special cru project intended to highlight both traceable production and the different territories of the DOC.

The collaboration subsequently developed a Cuvée I Magredi range. For its Prosecco DOC, grapes are harvested and vinified at I Magredi before the base wine is transferred to Valdo’s cellars in Valdobbiadene for sparkling-wine production. The related Ribolla Gialla sparkling wine uses fruit from the Grave del Friuli area and follows I Magredi’s vinification guidelines before undergoing the sparkling process in Valdo’s style.

Expansion into still wines — 2023

At Vinitaly 2023, Valdo introduced Le Tenute Valdo, a still-wine range developed with I Magredi. This marked Valdo’s expansion beyond its historical concentration on sparkling wines and reinforced the partnership’s activity in Friulian denominations.

The initial range comprised five labels: the red varieties Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon and the white varieties Pinot Grigio, Ribolla Gialla and Sauvignon Blanc. The wines were created through close oenological collaboration between the Friulian winery and Valdo, combining experience from Friuli and Veneto while broadening the partners’ offer to new markets.

The range was subsequently presented to the Milan public during the 2023 Milano Wine Week, including a masterclass devoted to the different terroirs and winemaking styles of Veneto and Friuli.

Current development

I Magredi also supplies white grapes for PURØ Alcohol Free Blanc de Blancs. This project uses Glera, Chardonnay and other aromatic white varieties from the Friulian estate, with the wine produced in steel at controlled temperature before dealcoholisation.

I Magredi follows a careful viticultural approach intended to reduce environmental impact as far as possible. This approach is presented as one of the points of alignment between the Friulian estate and Valdo.

The partnership is organised around control and traceability throughout the production chain. For Cuvée I Magredi Prosecco DOC, the grapes are both harvested and vinified by I Magredi. Ribolla Gialla for the associated sparkling project likewise comes from the Grave del Friuli area and is processed under I Magredi’s vinification guidelines.

The estate’s dry, lean and stony ground, combined with marked temperature variation, is central to its viticultural identity. The vineyard work supplies fruit for still wines, sparkling-wine bases and a dealcoholised Blanc de Blancs project.

I Magredi’s production is divided between still-wine vinification at the Friulian winery and integrated sparkling-wine projects completed in cooperation with Valdo.

For the principal sparkling projects, the grapes undergo gentle pressing and only the first-run juice is used. Fermentation takes place at approximately 16°C. The Glera base wine for Cuvée I Magredi Prosecco DOC is made from grapes harvested and vinified by I Magredi, then transferred to Valdo’s cellars in Valdobbiadene. Sparkling-wine production lasts three months in a pressurised tank and is followed by maturation in bottle. Ribolla Gialla is treated similarly, with gentle pressing, first-run juice and fermentation at 16°C, followed by a three-month Charmat process and bottle maturation.

The estate’s white still-wine practice is based chiefly on temperature-controlled stainless steel. Ribolla Gialla ferments at 18°C and matures in steel tanks. Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Grigio are destemmed and pressed; the juice rests under cold conditions before fermentation, and the wines mature in steel vessels.

The red still wines use red-wine maceration for 8–10 days at a controlled temperature of 20–25°C. Maturation then takes place in stainless-steel tanks held at 12–13°C. This steel-based approach is used for both Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon.

For PURØ Alcohol Free Blanc de Blancs, selected white grapes are vinified without skin contact. Fermentation takes place entirely in stainless steel at approximately 16°C. The wine is subsequently dealcoholised under vacuum in a distillation column, using gentle heating at 36–37°C; no flavourings are added.