Rotaliana

Historical setting

Cantina Rotaliana stands in Mezzolombardo, in the heart of Piana Rotaliana, at the foot of the Dolomites and near Trento and Lake Garda. Mezzolombardo was once the final stronghold of the Lombard kingdom. The area was crossed by the Via Claudia Augusta, a Roman route built in 15 BC, and for centuries served as a meeting point between northern and southern European cultures as well as a centre of trade and political and ecclesiastical authority.

The physical landscape has an older history. A glacier broke through the area now occupied by Passo della Rocchetta and formed the mountain-enclosed plain. The Noce subsequently deposited a layered alluvial subsoil. In the mid-19th century, the river was diverted from the centre toward the southern part of Campo Rotaliano; its former bed is now associated with the western sector where most of the cooperative’s Teroldego vineyards lie.

1931: the original cooperative

Cantina Cooperativa di Mezzolombardo was founded in 1931. It gave local small and medium-sized growers a collective structure through which they could address shared economic, social and cultural needs.

1968: creation of Cantina Rotaliana di Mezzolombardo

In 1968, Cantina Cooperativa di Mezzolombardo merged with the local Società Enologica Rotaliana. The resulting cooperative adopted the name Cantina Rotaliana di Mezzolombardo and became an important economic institution in Mezzolombardo’s rural community.

The 1970s: equipment, bottled wine and a broader market

During the early 1970s, the cooperative invested in modern equipment and introduced new winemaking techniques. It also became active in promoting Trentino wine, combining innovation, tradition and environmental awareness. Commercial activity expanded beyond bulk wine into a broad range of bottled wines. This shift responded particularly to hotels, restaurants and wine shops serving the growing tourist traffic to Trentino and its mountains.

Teroldego Rotaliano received DOC status in 1971, formalising the identity of the native variety most closely associated with the cooperative’s home territory.

1980: carbonic maceration in Trentino

In 1980, Cantina Rotaliana became the first winery in Trentino to use carbonic maceration successfully for grapes intended for Novello. The English-language account identifies these as Teroldego grapes.

The early 1990s: expansion and environmental measures

The premises in central Mezzolombardo were expanded in the early 1990s with an underground cellar that provided additional fermentation and maturation capacity. Growth nevertheless continued: turnover increased, more grapes were processed and membership reached 292 growers. These pressures led the board to seek a new headquarters.

The cooperative also began selecting lower-impact products for vineyard use during the 1990s, an early step in the environmental programme later developed through integrated production, water management and renewable energy.

1996: the Clesurae quality project

The Clesurae project began in 1996 to develop a more complex and extensive expression of Teroldego. Historically prized vineyards in central Piana Rotaliana were identified, particularly sites with vines averaging at least 40–50 years. The programme introduced rigorous crop thinning to balance vegetation and production, alongside work with small French-oak vessels. Its name recalls the Latin clesurae, fields enclosed within a larger cultivated area because they were regarded as the finest.

1999–2002: construction and relocation

Construction of a new winery began in 1999 on the outskirts of Mezzolombardo. Cantina Rotaliana moved into the building in August 2002. The new headquarters was conceived to provide the architecture and production infrastructure needed for a growing, increasingly competitive international market.

2006: the first Trentodoc

Cantina Rotaliana’s Trentodoc project took shape in the early 2000s. Increasing quantities of Chardonnay and Pinot Nero with differing structures and flavour profiles gave oenologist Leonardo Pilati the basis for a sparkling wine intended to express Trentino’s cool, sunny hills and valleys. The cooperative produced its first Trentodoc in 2006.

2011: more than 5,000 m² of new space

A major further expansion was inaugurated in 2011. More than 5,000 m² of multifunctional space was added, including areas for fermentation, storage and maturation, together with meeting and tasting rooms.

2014 and 2018: the Cortuta protocol

The Cortuta project was created in 2014 to identify vineyards particularly well suited to varieties other than Teroldego. Experience accumulated by the cooperative’s growers was used to map these crus and match varieties with individual sites. The programme combined specific vineyard-management practices, controlled yields, manual picking at vine-determined maturity, tailored harvest methods and differentiated winemaking.

The protocol initially covered Lagrein and Chardonnay. Beginning with the 2018 harvest, Leonardo Pilati extended it to Pinot Bianco and Müller Thurgau. Each year, the raw material is assessed to determine whether it can express the identity of its variety and place of origin to the required standard.

2024: SQNPI integrated production

By 19 June 2024, Cantina Rotaliana was participating in the Sistema di Qualità Nazionale Produzione Integrata under the protocol of the Provincia Autonoma di Trento. The system calls for synthetic chemical inputs to be minimised and fertilisation to be managed rationally, with attention to ecological principles and the health of growers, residents and consumers.

2025: renewable energy and the KönCeRT community

In 2025, the cooperative installed a 240 kW photovoltaic system and joined the KönCeRT renewable-energy community under a 20-year arrangement. The installation supplies approximately 70% of the winery’s electricity consumption. From December through August the facility can be energy-independent and return surplus electricity to the grid; during the energy-intensive harvest period from August to November, crushing, fermentation and other cellar work still require additional grid electricity.

The energy programme builds on water meters, purification and reuse systems designed to reduce consumption. Surplus power shared through KönCeRT can also generate support for local social activities, linking the cooperative’s environmental programme with its community role.

Piana Rotaliana and Campo Rotaliano

The cooperative’s principal territory is Piana Rotaliana, at the foot of the Dolomites. The plain was formed when a glacier broke through the area now occupied by Passo della Rocchetta, creating a valley floor enclosed by high rock walls. The Noce and Adige river systems subsequently contributed fertile alluvial material.

The soil is light, shallow, fertile and predominantly silty-sandy. At approximately 80 cm, the subsoil becomes a well-drained, layered structure of gravel and alluvial pebbles derived from granite, Alpine limestone, dolomite and porphyritic sandstone. The western side of the plain occupies the former bed of the Noce and is particularly rich in glacial and river sediments. Most of the cooperative members’ 160 ha of Teroldego vineyards, planted with selected clones, are concentrated in this sector.

The surrounding mountains block cold winds from the north and retain summer heat, helping Teroldego ripen. Teroldego’s combination of freshness, mineral character, intensity, power and elegance is associated with this interplay of shallow cultivated soil, free-draining stones, retained warmth and mountain protection.

The vineyards of Mezzolombardo have long been especially valued for Teroldego and average more than 30–40 years of age. The historic Clesurae selections include vines averaging at least 40–50 years.

The hills around Piana Rotaliana

White-wine and Trentodoc grapes come from the hills surrounding Piana Rotaliana and from Val di Cembra and Val di Non. At elevations above 650 m, sunny exposure, moving air and pronounced nocturnal temperature drops contribute fragrance and flavour intensity.

Maso Cadino Alto occupies a hollow high on the Faedo hillside and is sheltered by tall rocky cliffs. Maso Saracini, founded in 1550, lies on the Trento hillside beneath Monte Calisio. Müller Thurgau and Chardonnay are associated with this historic estate.

Trentodoc Chardonnay and Pinot Nero are grown on hills around Piana Rotaliana and in Val di Cembra and Val di Non at 400–650 m. These sites restrain vine vigour and encourage balance while preserving the acidity required for sparkling-wine bases.

Val di Cembra

Val di Cembra lies in eastern Trentino between high rocky walls cut by the Avisio stream. It has a continental Alpine climate and marked temperature variation, especially before harvest. Its soils contain porphyry, limestone and sand.

Vineyards occupy sunny, steep slopes on dry-stone terraces, sometimes exceeding a 40% gradient. This is described as heroic viticulture. Müller Thurgau, Chardonnay, Pinot Nero and Gewürztraminer are grown here; Chardonnay and Pinot Nero are used particularly for sparkling wines because of their freshness and mineral profile.

Adige-side and other vineyards

Pinot Bianco, Pinot Grigio and Chardonnay are also grown outside Piana Rotaliana in S. Michele all’Adige, Nave San Rocco, Zambana and Lavis. Fertile vineyards near the Adige provide their characteristic microclimate. The wider vineyard base also extends into the hills of Trento, Faedo, Pressano, Valle dell’Adige and Val di Non.

Cantina Rotaliana combines full-time agricultural enterprises with members who tend small or very small vineyards alongside other work. Long-established members descended from founding families work beside a younger generation, often trained in agriculture and increasingly involved in cooperative management.

The cooperative provides growers with continuing technical assistance to introduce modern, sustainable cultivation techniques and improve grape quality. Since the 1990s, vineyard inputs have been selected with the aim of reducing environmental impact.

Participation in the SQNPI integrated-production system follows the Provincia Autonoma di Trento protocol. The programme seeks to minimise synthetic chemical substances and rationalise fertilisation according to ecological principles and the health of growers, local residents and consumers.

All grapes are harvested by hand. Harvest is treated as a shared family activity, with growers selecting fruit and picking it at the appropriate stage of ripeness. Grapes destined for Trentodoc are picked comparatively early to retain acidity and moderate sugar, then delivered in small containers.

The Cortuta programme applies site- and variety-specific vineyard management, harvest timing and picking methods. Crus were mapped through growers’ experience and historical memory. Sustainable practices, crop reduction and manual picking at vine-determined maturity are central to the protocol; the oenologist decides each year whether the crop can adequately express its variety and origin.

In Piana Rotaliana, some growers preserve the traditional practice of tying dormant shoots with natural willow bindings called strope. Willow with flexible reddish wood is grown near ditches or other damp places. Between late winter and early spring, the bindings secure shoots to pergola wires. The knot must hold firmly enough to prevent wind-driven movement on the wire while remaining loose enough around the shoot to avoid damage as it grows.

Training systems include double and simple Trentino pergola and Guyot, selected according to site and variety. Val di Cembra’s steep, sunny dry-stone terraces, with gradients above 40% in places, require particularly demanding manual work.

Winery and cellar organisation

The winery occupied central Mezzolombardo until its 2002 move to a purpose-built facility on the edge of town. A 2011 expansion added more than 5,000 m² for fermentation, storage and maturation, as well as tasting and meeting rooms. The cellar includes a dedicated barrique area and spaces where Trentodoc bottles mature on their lees.

Cellar work combines research and experimentation with traditional styles. The cooperative uses differentiated protocols according to grape, site and intended expression rather than applying one uniform process across the range.

Still-wine approach

Steel is used where the objective is to retain freshness and varietal fruit. Wood ranges from small barrels and barriques to French-oak vats, with the Cortuta philosophy calling for restrained, measured use so that primary grape aromas, fermentation-derived secondary aromas and maturation-derived tertiary notes remain balanced.

The Clesurae project introduced vinification and maturation in small French-oak vessels. Its programme uses 225-litre French barriques and extended maturation to build complexity and soften Teroldego through controlled oxygen exchange.

Trentodoc production

Chardonnay and Pinot Nero are harvested early, when sugar is lower and acidity higher. Grapes arrive in small containers and are softly pressed to draw must from the best part of the pulp.

Following the first fermentation, base wines are assembled into a cuvée. Yeast and a small quantity of sugar are added with the liqueur de tirage, and the wine undergoes a second fermentation in bottle. Bottles rest horizontally on their lees; the minimum period described for Trentodoc is 15 months, while Cantina Rotaliana also matures individual bottlings for 30, 60 and as long as 100 months.

Riddling follows lees ageing and lasts approximately six to eight weeks, gradually bringing the sediment into the neck. The bottles are then disgorged, receive the liqueur d’expédition and are corked. The cellar allows visitors to observe both the prise de mousse and remuage stages.

Cantina Rotaliana defines quality as the intersection of innovation, tradition and environmental responsibility. In the vineyard, this means sustained technical support for members and adoption of cultivation methods that improve raw-material quality while reducing impact. In the cellar, research and experimentation are pursued without abandoning established styles.

The cooperative presents growers as custodians rather than masters of the land. Protecting the territory and its native varieties—above all Teroldego—is treated as part of preserving agricultural values for future generations.

Its cooperative identity embraces both professional growers and members tending very small holdings. The land may support viticulture alongside livestock, bed-and-breakfast accommodation or agritourism, making its preservation both an environmental and an economic concern.

The Clesurae and Cortuta programmes translate this philosophy into selection. Clesurae pursues uncompromising Teroldego quality through historic old-vine sites, strict yield control and long maturation. Cortuta begins with matching other varieties to their most suitable crus, then allows the oenologist to decide each vintage whether the grapes reach the level required to express both variety and origin.

The environmental programme extends beyond the vineyard. Water use is monitored through meters and reduced through purification and reuse systems. Renewable energy is shared through KönCeRT when production exceeds the winery’s requirements, linking environmental protection, economic resilience and benefits for the local community.