“I was always passionate. Passionate for the land, passionate about the wine it produces. And the passion for wine has been in my family since the 15th century. That was when Francesco dell’Antoglietta produced the very first wine.
My first harvest was in 2005 and I released the wine in 2007. It was a Negroamaro and I called it LUTROC; after my stepfather. But I wanted to get more from the land and started growing new grapes. 2011 was the first harvest of the white Fiano grapes which I released in 2011. The Biegosta is named after the brother of Lutroc. All our wines have names that are taken from the family history; for example MEMO, a Primitivo, is the nick name of my second son: Domenico”.
Now, 13 years later, Sanchirico has seven wines and still the same passion, drive and love for the land and what it produces.
“I believe it is important how you treat the land: with respect. We still go through the vineyards with a tractor, and a lot of work is done manually. And we also allow it to rest. The land is alive and needs to rest just, like you and I. And it never stops being a work of love, nurture, and also worry: a year like 2018 saw only 50% of a normal harvest: It rained when it was not supposed to and it did not rain when we needed it; it was unusually hot in May and rained in August – everything was the opposite of what the delicate grapes need.
I love my work. I am so lucky to live in one of the most amazing places of the world and to be able to work directly in contact with nature, my land and tradition. And while respecting tradition, I am always curious to improve. To find even better ways to produce high quality wine with the grape varieties that we have in the Salento”.
Meet Gianluca, get inspired by his passion and enjoy his excellent wines during one of the next VINO E VITA Trips to the Salento: from 13-17 June or 10-13 October 2019.
