Cantina Montelliana

Cantina Montelliana - Prosecco from many hands

In the heart of the Marca Trevigiana, at the foot of the Colli Asolani and the Montello, lies Cantina Montelliana, a cooperative of 400 affiliated winegrowers that produces Prosecco and other wines. Cantina Montelliana is equipped with modern and advanced facilities that guarantee quality, hygiene and safety throughout the production chain. At the same time, it works according to traditional winemaking methods, based on the experience and viticultural culture of the area. Two of the most important products of the house are the Asolo Prosecco and the Prosecco from the DOC Treviso.

The Prosecco regions of Montelliana

The Asolo appellation

The Asolo Hills area, located in the Alta Marca Trevigiana region, is known for its wealth of history, tradition, art and excellent wines. Vines have been grown in these areas for centuries and wine production is among the most renowned in the world. The combination of tradition and innovation and the favourable balance between climate and soil type typical of this area give rise to wines with unique and incomparable organoleptic characteristics.

The wines produced in this area have been DOC Montello and Colli Asolani since 1977, followed by DOCG, which was recognized in June 2009 for Asolo Prosecco Superiore and in October 2011 for Montello Rosso. These wines, which are at the top of the most important national and international competitions, find a wide audience in many European and non-European countries, also thanks to the typical identity characteristics and the strong link with their origins that have been preserved over time.

Prosecco DOC

Since 2009, Prosecco has been able to boast the Controlled Denomination of Origin (DOC), which guarantees the quality of the most famous Italian sparkling wine in the world. Prosecco DOC is the main designation, which can be complemented by the special mention of Treviso and Trieste, when the harvesting of grapes, vinification and bottling take place entirely in these two provinces. DOC means that Prosecco is a wine produced according to a procedural guideline in a specific geographical area designated for the production of this wine and characterized by particular environmental conditions.

Prosecco DOC is mainly made from Glera grapes, an autochthonous grape variety from northern Italy known since Roman times. The Glera variety produces large and long grapes with golden-yellow berries and has hazelnut-coloured shoots. Its cultivation involves agricultural practices such as the vertical orientation of the shoots, the elimination of excess shoots, the pruning of the shoots and tying to obtain an ideal microclimate for the accumulation of aromatic substances on the berry. Along with the Glera grapes, other grape varieties can be used up to a maximum of 15% (complementary and only if grown in the DOC area): Verdiso, Bianchetta Trevigiana, Perera, Glera lunga, Chardonnay, Pinot Bianco, Pinot Grigio and Pinot Nero, vinified white.

Sustainability at Cantina Montelliana

In 2018, Cantina Montelliana began planting an experimental vineyard of about 4 hectares with two PIWI varieties, Souvignier Gris and Bronner, chosen for the high quality of the wines obtained and their resistance to disease.

Piwi (fungus resistant) are varieties originating from Northern Europe, crossed over the years and selected to resist the fungi most feared by winemakers: Powdery mildew and Peronospora. The cultivation of these new varieties will significantly reduce the number of phytosanitary treatments (which, if necessary, will be exclusively organic) and consequently minimize the environmental impact of this project. Pending the results of this experiment, Montelliana has proposed to its partners a new approach to limit the number of treatments in the vineyard and reduce the use of chemicals. The unanimous approval was the beginning of a gradual transition towards a more sustainable cultivation of the grapes.

Always with the aim of protecting the environment, Cantina Montelliana is leading the PV-sensing project, which involves the testing of a system that uses innovative electronic sensors to constantly record climate and environmental parameters in the vineyard in order to predict and thus prevent peronospora infestations. The company has also been using the 200 kW of electricity generated by its photovoltaic system for years, with the aim of reducing the environmental impact of the production process.