A Southern Italian Woman’s Journey into Wine
Continuing with our Women in Wine theme series, after we learned about the journey Tayna Ho-Shue made from Jamaica to the San Francisco Wine School, and met Irene Balim, Ukraine born and raised and now making Pet Nat Lambrusco red sparkling wines in Modena. In this third article, we travel to South to the heel of the Italian boot in Apulia, or Puglia (POO-YEE-LAH) in Italian.
There, in the province of Foggia in Northern Puglia, a half hour’s drive from the Adriatic Sea, is Domus Hortae family estate winery, who has been farming their vineyards and making wine dating back to 1788. In this article, we spoke with the wife of the husband-wife team Rosanna Melchionda. While a native to Puglia, she is not native to the wines of her region, having married into a wine family. Let’s find out in this interview with her what makes Southern Italy people tick, and Rosanna’s own journey into the world of wine.
Rosanna Melchionda of Domus Hortae in the family’s Puglia vineyards.
About Rosanna
Tell us a little about yourself, where were you born, and what was your childhood like?
I am ‘Pugliese DOC’ [an Italian saying meaning ‘native to’, playing off of the quality and geographic control appellation Denominazione D’Origine Controllata, or a DOC].
I was born in a small village in the Gargano province, known at the ‘spur’ on the boot heel of Italy [a 1 hour’s drive directly north of Orto Nova, where she lives today at Domus Hortae]. In the center of the spur are forests, with the southern-most firs in the world. The coast line is made of white spectacular high cliffs that just dive straight into the sea.
My childhood was a pleasant one, surrounded by grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. My family is still today very close knit. I find myself to have a very happy and playful personality, and this led me to do volunteer work for children in need and orphans, where I could help bring them joy and smiles in places and to people who were in dire need.
What did you study and what was your pre-winery career?
I studied economics, and that was also my degree specialty. However, I have always loved history, art, and culture, seeing as I live in the land of the ancient Magna Grecia [ancient greek colonies in Italy] and the Roman empire. This led me to work in the local historical museum, before I came to the winery.
Here is Puglia Italy map showing where Domus Hortae is in Southern Italy.
When did you meet your husband, and how many children do you have?
I met my husband when I was 21 years old, and now we have two children: Mariemy and Antonio.
Where Puglia Italy is Domus Hortae located? What is the history of the area?
Domus Hortae is located in the middle of the plains of Puglia, at the base of the Gargano spur, surrounded by mountains and sea. The town where we are located is called Orta Nova in the province of Foggia.
This area was very active in history. We see the first habitants during the Old Stone Age period, thanks to graffiti they left in a cavern in the Gargano spur. It was also well inhabited during the New Stone Age period, and during the Iron Age, where people known as the Dauni ruled until it was conquered by Ancient Greece. Starting in the 7th century BC, the Greeks colonized the area as part of Magna Grecia, up until finally it was brought into the Roman Empire.
Here are the plains of Puglia where Domus Hortae is, surrounded by sea and mountains. Courtesy of Wikipedia.
What is there for tourists to visit and see in the area?
There are so many things like medieval castles that are available to visit. There are also many hiking trails that take you all the way to the sea. In this area tourists can visit castles, wineries, forests, and even excursions along the coastline and under the sea. Another beautiful place to visit are the Tremiti Islands, or the ancient islands where legend has it Diomedes the Greek hero brought the first cutting of the nero di troia grapevine.
What are some things that you love about your area?
I don’t think I could pick just one thing… or even a few things. I love everything about this area because it is rich in history, culture, vino, and of course wonderful people!
About Domus Hortae and Their Pugliese Wines
What is the history behind the winery, Domus Hortae?
Domus Hortae has been run by my husband’s family (the Fioretti family) since 1788. They have always worked in the vineyards with great care and absolute dedication and passion.
Despite taking amore administrative role in the business, Rosanna still loves to work in the vineyard alongside her husband and son.
So your husband’s family are generational winemakers… but before you met your husband what your relationship with wine? How has your attitude, taste, and thoughts changed about wine over the years?
Before meeting my husband I didn’t even really drink wine! I certainly didn’t know anything about the world surrounding the vineyards. But now, I have spent 30 years learning to love wine and getting to know all about the world behind it. From all of its benefits to body and mind, and how good wine can postpone ‘old age’ and above all, how it can help create happy moments and memories.
When I was pregnant with our son, was when I really started falling in love with wine, and it seemed to rub off… now our son is an enologist!
What are your responsibilities for the business?
I mainly look after the business part of the winery, including marketing, but what I really like taking care of the administrative side. Meanwhile, the vineyard work and winemaking are well cared for by my husband Pino and son Antonio. [For those of you that read our previous article about Aldo Clerico and his wife, is this starting to sound familiar?]
Domus Hortae is located in the Orta Nova area, and where you have vineyards. What is the climate and soil like? Why is it that this area good for wine growing?
The area around Orta Nova where we have our vineyards are known as ‘Grassa delle Fosse;’, near the vineyards are ditches with arches dating back to medieval times. In fact, our logo, with three arches, draws inspiration from this.
The agriculture of this area is characterized by a terroir that varies greatly from place to place, influenced by a microclimate that helps to create the ideal atmosphere for vines.
The climate is pretty much Mediterranean, with the sea influence, even if in the winter we can reach in-land continental temperatures. In the spring and summer we often see signs of drought. What helps the climate be particularly well adapted to growing vines that support hot weather and have a deep root structure.
The soil is calcereous and sub-alkaline with about 20% of rocks. The area has nice drainage thanks to finer soil mixed in with sedimentary rocks that also give a good minerality, structure, and alcohol. In the end, it is the balance of these characteristics that offer our wines elegance and an intriguing personality.
The family’s vineyards are encircled by mountains and sea and for this reason the are able to produce grapes that give our wines structure.
At Domus Hortae, any intervention we do deals directly with the specific vine disease at hand. We mow down any weeds rather than spray them, and we don’t use any unnatural irrigation or fertilizer. The end result of our farming and winemaking efforts show no residual of any chemical use.
What is it like working as a ‘Woman in Wine’ in Italy?
As a woman working in wine today in Italy, I find it filled with great opportunities.
The Future
What are your future plans for the winery? Do you have any personal goals?
My husband and son dream of building and adding on a new winery with a lot more space, and I want to be able to also build into that some rooms to host tourists as well. At the moment we can only invite them in for wine tastings, and it would be nice to allow them to stay for longer trips and visits. Personally, I hope to be able to accomplish all this, as we all dream together. I share their happiness as my own.
Domus Hortae in the US
Despite being vignerons since the 1700’s, this is the first time that Domus Hortae is in the US, after we imported their wines in several months ago. Their wines range from the white wines like Kimere made with bombino bianco and Tì Esti made with minutolo, to a rosé wine, Kia Ros, made with nero di troia and lastly a red nero di troia wine, Kalinero.
Vero sells small production, sustainably made wines and olive oils, like Rosanna’s family’s, to distributors, wine stores, restaurant, as well as to consumers and corporates, across the US. If you are a licensed wine business and are interested in Domus Hortae’s Pugliese wines, contact us today.
If you are a wine loving consumer or a corporate seeking gifts, get Domus Hortae wines in our online wine store.
Taste Puglia in Your Glass
