Tenuta Tenaglia: About Us
Territory
According to the legend of the Marquis Aleramo, described in a romantic way also by the poet and writer Giosuè Carducci, the Monferrato area took on an initial connotation around the middle of the tenth century, comprising a vast portion of territory between the Gavi area to the south, close to the Apennines, and the last hills around Casale Monferrato to the north, which gently slope towards the river Po.
Historically, this little gem of Piedmont has distinguished itself for the excellence of its wines and sparkling wines, for the charm of its villages and castles, for its sophisticated gastronomy and for a surprisingly authentic territory thanks to its reduced anthropization.
In 2003 the first UNESCO recognition arrived: the Sacred Mount of Crea was included in the World Heritage List and it wasn’t remain alone for long. In 2014, the same universal value was recognized for the ancient local wine underground cellars, entirely dug into the sandstone – the “Infernot” – as well as for the Monferrato wine-growing landscape.
Tenuta Tenaglia is right in the middle of this colorful scenery, at the foot of the Sacred Mount, in the municipality of Serralunga di Crea, at an altitude of 450 m above sea level. It is surrounded by an evocative amphitheatre described by vineyards dating back to the 17th century.
A rare unicum that people often say: “the Tenaglia grapes ripen above the clouds”. Indeed, during the winter months, Sacred Mount of Crea remains suspended between the fog and the clouds, in a mystical and surreal scenario.
Tenuta Tenaglia: History
History
Built around the beginning of the 17th century at the foot of the Diocesan Sanctuary of the Madonna di Crea, the estate takes its name from the Governor of Moncalvo, Giorgio Tenaglia. A man of great courage and a captain of fortune, he led great battles against the Spanish invaders. During his moments of rest, Giorgio retired to the estate, where he produced wine, bred his horses and cultivated his cultural and artistic passions by patronizing local artists to create some of the twenty-three chapels in the Sanctuary of Crea above.
Over the centuries, the property of Giorgio Tenaglia, who had no heirs, passed from hand to hand: the vineyards were for a long time administered by the Church and cultivated by the nuns of the Dominican Monastery Mary of Magdala in the Crea complex, after which from the first decades of the twentieth century onwards various private owners took over.
In 2000, Hannelore Ehrmann, wife of the German entrepreneur Alois Ehrmann, fell in love with the estate and together they decided to make an investment and realise their lifetime desire to produce wine in Italy.
Today, Tenuta Tenaglia is managed by the German-Italian Ehrmann family.
Sabine, the owner, together with her son and daughter, and with her team, take care of the production and distribution of their wines in Italy and abroad.
Tenuta Tenaglia: Vision
Vision
Tenuta Tenaglia is an independent, medium-sized wine company focused on the international niche market of Piedmontese wines.
Our production method follows the philosophy “less is more”: we privilege a high quality of raw material over volumes, taking care and respecting the essence of our product.
With great dedication and attention to detail every year our goal is to bring to market wines whose origin and quality are clearly communicated and guaranteed over time.
The grapes are produced on an area of 16 hectares with a yield of 50/70 quintals per hectare, cared for directly by our team of experts, always respecting a policy devoted to full human and environmental sustainability.
Since the beginning of the 70s until today Tenuta Tenaglia has established itself as one of the major producers of autochthon wines of Monferrato, such as Barbera d’Asti, Barbera del Monferrato and Grignolino del Monferrato Casalese, earning national and international awards including the Three glasses of Gambero Rosso, the gold medal of Decanter and many others.