A well-known Calabrian family existing in Cirò from the dawning of the 16th century, when the great mathematician and astrologist Luigi Lilio reformed the Gregorian calendar in 1582.
Many rich noble families of Cirò were born precisely in the 16th century and started setting up solid properties which became part of the history of the territory. These include the old house Iuzzolini, recognized among the leading families of the sixteenth century.
One of his distant descendants Iuzzolini dates back to Luigi, who was born in 1514 while the next century sees many celebrities including the notary Juzzolini Carlo who was born in 1698. In the 18th century for the first time the letter “I” appeared in place of the archaic “J”.
In the last century from the marriage between Don Fortunato Iuzzolini and Donna Vittoria Liotti, was born in 1906 Don Diego Iuzzolini, the father of Fortunato, current owner of the company. This one, together with his wife Giovanna Colicchio and sons, Diego, Pasquale, Antonio and Rosa, started in 2005 the processing of the grapes, and built a modern equipped winery, thus realizing a dream handed down over time
The estate is situated in the territory of Cirò, on the same hills that in the past saw the Greeks turn wine from a simple food into a product of exchange and cult.
The Estate extends over a surface of approximately 500 hectares, 100 of which are planted with vineyard as specialized cultivation, 50 with century-old olive groves; 100 are cultivated as an area to be sown with seed, while the remaining part is made up of pastures and woods for the livestock, bred in the wild state.
The grounds, of calcareous, clayey and sandy origin, are extremely fertile, since they are rich in natural springs. The whole area, benefited by a Mediterranean climate, with warm and dry summers and short and rainy winters, provides the ideal conditions for the cultivation of vine and olive.
Today, not less than 35 workers carry out well-defined tasks inside the farm. During the period of the grape harvest and of the olive picking, the number of labourers triples.
In the farm there are 100 hectares of vineyards destined to specialized cultivation mainly situated in the territory of the D.O.C. Cirò, while the remaining part is included in the I.G.T. Calabria.
The vineyards lie in the locality known as “Timpa Bianca”, in the municipality of Cirò Marina, at just a short distance from the sea; in the hinterland “Motta”; in the village of Carfizzi and in the area of “Maradea”, in the municipality of Umbriatico. Presently, in the estate three varieties of autochthonous vines are cultivated: Greco Bianco, Gaglioppo and Magliocco.
Imported from the ancient Greece, the Greco Bianco (White Greek) presents an amber-coloured grape with slight green reflections and has a preference for dry sunny hills. The Cirò Bianco is produced from this vine.
The Gaglioppo, another vine species typical of Cirò, is the dominating vine since it has been cultivated for thousands of years in the area of Cirò due to its adaptability to dryness and diseases. The scents of fruit as well as the presence of antioxidant substances make the Gaglioppo the nectar of the Gods, from which is obtained the Cirò Rosso, Rosato and Riserva (Red, Rosé and Reserve).
The Magliocco, an ancient Calabrian variety wide-spread in the past and nowadays almost disappeared from our territories, presents a compact grape with a thick and substantial peel with an intense colour. This is the reason why the idea to recover it was born, planting some hectares with these specimens amongst the dry hills of the farm. From this vine the “Paternum” wine is produced.
Built with modern technologies, it is situated in the heart of the vineyards of the Cirò D.O.C. at Frassà, not far from the sea.
The ground where the winery stands measures 13,000 sq. m, including an indoor area of 4,000 sq. m, while the remaining part is destined to a large yard, parking places, flowerbeds and exhibition of ancient objects concerning the wine production and the land tilling.
The winery is equipped with the best technological facilities offered by the wine-making industries such as stainless steel containers and machinery allowing forefront wine-making methods.
Its capacity, considering the barriques and the steel reservoirs, measures 8,000 hectolitres and its productive capability reaches over one million bottles in a year. The inside of the winery is provided with a sophisticated oenological laboratory allowing high-qualified analyses. A daily control is carried out on the grapes and wine throughout the year up to the moment of the bottling.
The outside of the facility was built completely of materials of local origin such as stones, tiles and bricks, while inside the best materials provided for by the relevant provisions were used for the observation of the sanitary regulations.
The barrel store
The barrel store (or aging room) is completely built underground at a depth of 5 m, using scraps, stones and bricks, many of which date back to the 18th century, moulded by a skilled hand one by one so as to let the visitor see a mysterious underworld, all this built according to modern technical criteria and ancient aesthetic style at the same time. The room, measuring approximately 600 sq. m, is completely humidified and air-conditioned.
In its inner silence, the reserve wines are lovingly refined and aged in barriques of French oak and Calabria chestnut. Walking along the cask store we can see atavic stone niches embellished by rare objects belonging to the farm civilization.