
The current state of the wine market is not among the best ones, but a “cultural beverage” that has accompanied humanity for millennia still has a long future ahead, and there are those who believe in it and continue to invest. Like Tommasi Family Estates, the wine group of the Tommasi family, one of Italy’s most prominent realities with over 800 hectares of vineyards and a 2024 turnover of 31.9 million euros, 86% of which was generated abroad. The group produces over 3.4 million bottles annually, with its heart in Valpolicella, and owns eight wine estates across seven regions - Tommasi in Veneto, including also the jewel Villa De Buris, Tenuta di Caseo in Lombardy, Casisano in Montalcino, and Poggio al Tufo in Tuscany’s Maremma, Masseria Surani in Puglia, Paternoster in Basilicata, a project in Orvieto, Umbria, the acquisition of Ammura on Mount Etna in Sicily in 2022, and partnerships in Chianti Classico with La Massa and in Friuli Venezia Giulia’s Collio with Marco Felluga Russiz Superiore. Now, the group is expanding further in Puglia with the acquisition of two prestigious estates in Salento: Tenuta Eméra in Lizzano, and Cantina Moros in Guagnano, both in the province of Lecce, created by winemaker Claudio Quarta, who, explains a note, “after a long and prestigious career, announces his retirement”, entrusting the two estates to the Tommasi family.
“For our family, this acquisition is a great opportunity - affirms Giancarlo Tommasi, enologist and technical director of Tommasi Family Estates - Masseria Surani now strengthens with a new winemaking and bottling facility, allowing us to reach a total vineyard estate of over 800 hectares across all of Italy. Alongside this expansion, wine tourism project linked to Masseria Surani is also growing, located in one of the symbolic places of authentic Puglia, completing the mosaic of hospitality at our wineries from Valpolicella Classica to Montalcino and Vulture in Basilicata. We found ourselves aligning two intentions at the right time - Tommasi further explains to WineNews - over years of collaboration, a relationship of mutual respect and friendship developed between us and Quarta. We initially wanted to build a new winery from the beginning in Manduria, but then shifted the investment towards the acquisition of these already well-structured estates. We wanted to strengthen Masseria Surani, and one of the many reasons that led us to consider Claudio’s estates was their strong focus on wine tourism. We believe that reaching consumers directly is one of the best ways to overcome this complex phase in the wine market, and there’s already significant work done on Moros and Eméra that we are committed to enhancing even further”. After all, besides wine production, high-level hospitality is another key asset of the group, expressed through facilities such as Villa Quaranta Wine Resort & Thermal Spa in Valpolicella, Albergo Mazzanti in Verona, and Agriturismo Poggio al Tufo in Pitigliano, in Tuscany’s Maremma.
An operation which, Tommasi Family Estates further explains, is also “an important passing of the torch, combining experience and continuity: Alessandra Quarta will remain alongside Tommasi family to ensure the development of Masseria Surani project. Claudio Quarta’s winemaking journey began in 2005, when he decided to leave his career as a researcher and pharmaceutical entrepreneur in the United States to return to Italy and pursue his great passion for wine: a return to his roots in the Salento of his childhood. His daughter Alessandra, after an international academic path and a professional start far from the wine world, chose in 2012 to embrace her father’s project, making a decisive contribution to its growth”. “Since 2023, I’ve been leading the company - declares Alessandra Quarta - and amid the challenges of global markets, I was seeking a solid foundation to continue growing. I’m confident that together with the Tommasi family, we can continue developing the project started with my father and help it flourish; creating new opportunities for the region with a sustainable and increasingly value-conscious approach”.
An important forward-looking investment, then, in a region of Puglia where the Tommasi family has been present with Masseria Surani in Manduria, in the heart of the Primitivo Doc denomination. The estate originally included 55 hectares of vineyards at Tenuta Espéra, later expanded with an additional 45 hectares in Lizzano, adjacent to Tenuta Eméra. For several years now, thanks to the friendship between the two families, part of Masseria Surani’s wines have been vinified there. The Tommasi Family Estates’ portfolio in Puglia is now expanding and consolidating under the Masseria Surani brand, which includes: Tenuta Espéra, in Manduria, the historic core of the property, where exclusive labels are created for the restaurant industry, designed to best express the identity of the territory; Tenuta Eméra in Lizzano, dedicated to Primitivo Doc, Fiano, and Negroamaro Rosé; and Cantina Moros in Guagnano, guardian of Salice Salentino Doc Riserva.
“With this acquisition - concludes the note - the Tommasi family’s Mediterranean project vision completes strengthening its presence in three iconic southern terroirs: Salento with Masseria Surani, Vulture in Basilicata with Paternoster, and Etna in Sicily with jewel Ammura. The aim is to tell the story of the richness and diversity of the Mediterranean, through wines capable of expressing territorial identity and tradition within an international horizon”.
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