Event > GRAPPA & C0.: energy for life from grapes

Further information

The Poli surname. Six hundred years of a Veneto family:

To go back to the places of origin of the Poli family it is necessary to go near Bassano del Grappa, in the heart of the Veneto foothills. It was precisely in the village of Gomarolo that saw the infancy of Polo, son of Pietro son of the late Gasparo, who, in the fifteenth century, owned "quatro campi de tera, quaranta piegore e tre vache" (four fields, forty sheep and three cows). And it was from him that the family took the name "Poli", meaning children, descendants of Polo.
Between the sixteenth and eighteenth the descendants of Polo worked the land and produced milk and cheese, with mixed fortunes and profits.
The period spent in those districts ended with GioBatta (1792-1870), who moved to his wife's house in San Luca where a tavern was opened with horse change and wholesale of wine and straw hats.
In 1885 his grandson GioBatta (1846-1921) moved to Schiavon, where he continued the wholesale and retail sales of wine and straw hats in the new "Al Cappello" tavern. Perhaps only he could imagine that one day there would be a distillery in those premises.

The Company:

Established in 1898, Poli Distillerie is an artisan-type company owned by the Poli family and located in Schiavon, near Bassano del Grappa, in the heart of Veneto, the most renowned region in Italy for Grappa production. 
The building of the Poli Distillerie is considered to be of major historical interest because of its portico structure which is typical of the old Veneto rural dwellings.

The Stills:
Poli Distillerie operates with three distillation plants:
The 12 knights, an old still entirely in copper and one of the very few remaining, comprising 12 discontinuous-cycle flowing steam pot stills, ideal for distilling marc from red grapes.
Athanor, a classic double-boiler system installed in 2001, used to distil grapes,fruits and wine.
Crysopea a double-boiler vacuum system installed in 2009 after years of research, used to distil marc from white grapes; it is considered to be the most innovative plant for making Grappa in operation today.

Products:
Poli distils  Grappas (young, aromatic, aged and flavoured),  Grape Brandies, Wine  Brandies and Fruit Brandies.The distillates are grouped into three lines:

The Jacopo Poli line comprises vintage distillates from selected vines: Amorosa di Settembre, Amorosa di Dicembre and Poli Barrique Grappas, the grape distillate Chiara di Moscato and the wine distillate Arzente.

The Poli line comprises distillates from selected raw materials: the GrappasCleopatra Moscato Oro, Cleopatra Amarone Oro, Cleopatra Prosecco Oro, PO’ Morbida / Smooth, PO’ Aromatica / Aromatic, PO’ Elegante / Elegant, PO’ Secca / Dry, Sarpa, Sarpa Barrique, the grape brandy Uvaviva Italiana and Uvaviva Americana, the wine distillate Brandy Italiano and the Ciliegie (Cherry), Pere (Pear) and Lamponi (Rasperry) fruit brandy.

The Poli Museum line comprises Grappas obtained from mixed marc varieties, Bassano Classica, Bassano 24 Carati;Grappas flavoured with Ruta (Rue), Liquirzia (Liquorice), Miele (Honey) and Mirtillo (Blueberry), and the liqueurs Tajadea, Aperitivo, Amaro, Prugna di Poli.

Partnerships:
Poli has been making Grappa di  Sassicaia since 1994, in collaboration with Marchese Incisa della Rocchetta of Bolgheri, and Grappa Luce, the result of the joint venture started in 1997 between Robert Mondavi, Napa Valley - California, and Marchesi de’ Frescobaldi of Florence. 


The Poli family invites you to visit the two branches of the Poli Grappa Museum:
1. in Bassano del Grappa: in front of the historical Ponte Vecchio, the history of Grappa is presented through a short yet comprehensive educational project in quiet and charming rooms
2. in Schiavon: the knowledge of the most important italian distillate can be deepened in an ancient building by the distillery.
The museum features a collection of 2000 historical Grappa bottles coming from about 400 distilleries.