Monte del Frà: an Italian treasure from the Veneto!

MONTE DEL FRA'

Surrounded by vineyards and the morainic hills of Lake Garda, Monte del Frà, meaning Friars' Mountain, was founded as a monastery in 1492. The friars cultivated crops they needed, including corn for bread and grapes for wine, on these ancient hills formed by the accumulation of glacial deposits. Surviving different owners over many years, in 1958 it was finally taken over by Massimo Bonomo in 1958 and, following his death, by his descendants.

VINEYARDS

Monte del Frà has a large network of vineyards, with 137 properties and 68 leased hectares. The winery now owns vineyards in all the main denominations of Verona - Valpolicella Classica, Lugana, Soave and Bardolino - but continues to maintain a strong link with its Custoza roots. Indeed, the majority of wine production, as well as the wood-aging of most of its Valpolicella wines, are still based in the historic headquarters in Sommacampagna.

TERROIR

With vineyards planted, where possible, at the top of the hills, cool breezes help the vines benefit from a large diurnal range, maintaining the quality of the grapes. Many of the vines are over 50 or 60 years old, which adds depth and character to the wines.

Third generation family member and co-owner, Marica Bonomo, attributes the minerality in the wines to the white stone-rich soils. "We try to represent our land in a glass of wine", she says, "carrying on the vision from one generation to another. The passion and love we have for our land gives us a huge portfolio of different vineyards. These represent not just the different appellations of Verona, but also the identity, character and vision of my father in having a specific focus on the vineyards."

SUSTAINABILITY

Monte Del Frà takes sustainability and environmental initiatives very seriously. They utilise drip irrigation, saving over 70% of water compared to traditional irrigation and avoid pesticides, using natural pheromones to confuse male grapevine moths, thus protecting the vines. The winery has recently obtained SQNPI (National Quality System of Integrated Production) and RRR (Sustainable Production Protocol) certifications. Additionally, they only use recycled paper for their packaging. "We like to be sustainable in every part of our operation", says Marica.

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