A significant day unfolded in Pompeii with the official presentation of the public-private partnership between the Archaeological Park of Pompeii and the Tenute Capaldo Group, specifically the Feudi di San Gregorio and Basilisco wineries, for the creation of a new winery within the archaeological area.
This ambitious project marks a new chapter for viticulture and the enhancement of the site’s natural and historical heritage.
The initiative involves the establishment of a winery with a complete production cycle, from the vineyard to the transformation of the grapes, located in the heart of the excavations. As the Director General of the Archaeological Park of Pompeii, Gabriel Zuchtriegel, emphasizes: “This partnership marks the beginning of the Pompei agricultural company. It is important to underline that the park will remain a national public body. This initiative, through public-private collaborations, including the wine-making one, aims to promote the development of green areas, education, communication and to enhance Campania’s excellence in the traditions of the Mediterranean diet and viticulture.“
Zuchtriegel also highlighted the importance of this project within a broader strategy: “Today the Park is investing in a wider form of valorization as well as protection of the natural heritage, the landscape and the environment that are integral elements of the archaeological area. The winery is part of a broader project of an archaeological-agricultural company that is also involving other activities, such as the enhancement and cultivation of olive trees, social agriculture projects within the “social and cultural farm”. And the winning way to achieve important results for the whole surrounding territory is, in our opinion, the involvement of private individuals with specific skills, as active partners in the projects.” He then added that, although the park has almost 100 hectares of green areas, until now these have been “mostly a maintenance cost” and that now they will be “made profitable, in short, a development for the park, for visitors who will have the opportunity to see the activities in the field and then to buy the wine.
Antonio Capaldo, President of Feudi di San Gregorio, expressed great enthusiasm for this collaboration: “This project allows us to create a complete winery, from the vineyard to the transformation, in an iconic place, which allows us to communicate how wine is an integral part of our culture.” Capaldo stressed how “we producers must emphasize the cultural value of wine, an integral part of our Mediterranean diet, our civilization and our history. This is the added value of this project.“
The partnership is based on a collaboration in which the Park and the Tenute Capaldo Group pool their respective experiences and skills, going beyond traditional forms of public-private collaboration. The new winery will be entirely organic and will make use of important research on traditional techniques of vine cultivation and grape processing, in collaboration with Professor Attilio Scienza of the University of Milan, in addition to the agronomic expertise of Feudi di San Gregorio.
The project has a dual objective: to produce authentic wines of high quality and to integrate viticulture with the history and visitor experience of the Archaeological Park. Capaldo stated: “The Archaeological Park of Pompeii is one of the most important cultural sites in the world and represents a fundamental pillar of the identity of our region. We therefore joined this project with enthusiasm, putting our skills at the service of the Park to develop together an innovative agricultural and agronomic project. We want to revive Pompeii not only as a place of research and knowledge, but also as a center of production and exchange, returning to its historical roots.“
Regarding the first harvest, Capaldo mentioned: “The first harvest is scheduled for the autumn. The quality of the grapes will be assessed, as the plants have been converted to more traditional farming methods. In any case, the harvest will take place and we expect to obtain a good product.” He acknowledged the complexity of making wine in a context like that of Pompeii, with its constraints, but affirmed that this is the beauty of this challenge.