Marco Tinessa

Background

Marco Tinessa was born in 1975 and studied economics at Bocconi University in Milan. He then worked for many years as a stockbroker and financial analyst. He fell in love with wine at 18 and has since been a wine collector and traveler. Visits to estates such as Château Rayas, Coche-Dury, Soldera and Frank Cornelissen inspired him, and more than ten years ago he decided to make his own wines in his native Campania.

2007–2016: Wines made at Frank Cornelissen's winery

Tinessa leased an old vineyard in Montemarano, considered one of the best areas for Taurasi. His friend and mentor Frank Cornelissen, a natural winemaker, offered the use of his winemaking facilities. The grapes were taken to Sicily in a temperature-controlled truck, with Tinessa following on his motorcycle, and the wine was made and aged at Cornelissen's winery. This continued from 2007 to 2016.

2018–2019: Cellar in Milan

Tinessa opened his own wine cellar in Milan, a space of only 40 m².

2020: Own winery in Montesarchio

Tinessa moved into his own winery in his home village of Montesarchio, Campania, fulfilling a long-held dream.

Montemarano, where Tinessa leased an old vineyard, is considered one of the best areas for Taurasi. The winery is in Montesarchio, Campania.

Yields are kept low. Grapes from the Montemarano vineyard were transported in a temperature-controlled truck.

From 2007 to 2016 the wine was made and aged at Frank Cornelissen's winery in Sicily. Tinessa opened a 40 m² wine cellar in Milan in 2018–2019 and moved into his own winery in Montesarchio in 2020. Sulfur use is reduced and sometimes avoided altogether, fermentation is spontaneous with natural yeasts, and the wines are not aged in wood.

Tinessa's approach centers on reducing, and sometimes completely avoiding, sulfur, keeping vine yields low, allowing spontaneous fermentation with natural yeasts, and not aging the wines in wood. The winery describes the wines as reflecting the passion and perfectionism of a wine-obsessed character, and considers them among Campania's most distinctive, rare and exciting.