Elena Walch
Elena Walch is an internationally successful, family owned, Alto Adige wine estate. They are one of the top producers in Italian wines.
As a leader in innovative concepts and quality, Elena has been widely praised for her efforts. Originally an architect, she married into one of the best known wine families in the area and added her own ideas into the old traditions. Now the family business is being run by her daughters as the 5th generation of wine producers.
The ideology the estate follows is that of sustainability for the following generations while maintaining their wines as unique to their local climate, specific soil and methods of cultivating among their 60 hectares of vineyards, including the 2 biggest in Alto Adige; Caldaro's VIGNA Castel Ringberg and Tramin's VIGNA Kastelaz.
These professional, elegant wines reflect their excellent surroundings and locale that produces the freshest and fruitiest of wine wines and red wine that is smooth and concentrated.
Elena Walch
Sustainability was introduced a number of years ago as a gradual learning process throughout the company and changes as it adapts to what is best for the next generation, rather than just following a specific set of rules.
Elena Walch, as a company, strives to be environmentally friendly by using good, sustainable ideas, while also maintaining the utmost in quality for their award-winning wines.
To this end they have implemented the following...
- Composts in Castel Ringberg
- Ending the use of herbicides to better maintain the soil
- Ameliorate root space & ensuring better fertile soil by seeding legumes and grass milling.
- Mulching the yards to enhance nutrients in the soil.
- Following ecologically friendly rules to battle infections.
- Significantly lowering the use of substances.
- Specific use of protection, when needed.
- Continuously monitoring water usage & exclusively using drip-irrigation.
- Alternate mowing to be less intrusive to the environment of helpful insects.
- Improved methods for battling grape moths.
- Monitor infection & weather conditions to ensure better vineyards and adopting methods to deal quickly with problems that may arise.
= Pulling leaves from the vine for improved air circulation which reduces the risks for diseases.
- Cultivating of "Bronner“, the disease-resistant PIWI type of white wine.
ElENA WALCH SUSTAINABLE CELLAR USAGE
- Solar power used for almost half of all electic needs.
- Water needs cut in half with the cooling water recycled for irrigation & cleaning.
- Using gravity, rather than pumps, due to the hill above the cellars.
- Natural cooling and, therefore, less energy consumed, due to the cellar location far under the surface.
ElENA WALCH Sustainable Bottling
- Partial use of more natural corks with less added substances.
- Some use of plant based, fully recycled capsules.
- Less heavy glass used for “Selezione” wines for improved carbon-dioxide balancing.
- The creation of gift packages without glue.
- The law now requires bottle lot numbers to be traceable back to the original vineyard.
