Marzadro

Most of the best grappa distilleries are clustered in northern Italy, but grappa production is really as regionally diverse as wine—and yet, for all the choices in this most “Italian” of spirits categories, certain names like Marzadro ring out no matter where you are.

Founded in 1949 in the village of Nogaredo, in the southern part of Trentino near Lake Garda, Marzadro was the brainchild of Sabina Marzadro and her brother, Attilio. She had an alembic still fabricated by a local coppersmith and installed it in the family home, welcoming local vintners to bring their pomace to be distilled. Attilio filled his Guzzi motorcycle’s sidecar with bottles and went out to Rovereto, Trento, and beyond to sell them.

Today Marzadro is one of Italy’s leading distilled spirits producers, operating out of a striking facility completed in 2004. Designed by Bolzano-based architects Walter Maurmayr and Günther Plaickner, the distillery’s centerpiece is a battery of eight copper stills, which are arranged in a circle under a skylit dome. These bain-marie style stills are almost always in operation, especially from September through December, when they’re running 24 hours a day. Over in the dramatic, vaulted bottaia (barrel room), rows of barrels hold grappas and other spirits in various stages of evolution. Marzadro produces an innovative and impeccable array of products. This Italian legend is ready for its star turn in the US!