Stefano Antonucci - Cantina Santa Barbara

Wine is an aroma, a taste, and an art that has coursed through my veins since childhood. It was a passion that grew day after day and could no longer be relegated to a mere pastime. My job at the bank started to feel increasingly restrictive; it wasn’t enough to satisfy my curiosity, harness my energy, or quench my irrepressible yearning for new experiences.

My Mother

My past is strongly rooted in the town of Barbara, in the heart of the Marche Region. My father had a bakery there where mother also worked, although first and foremost she was an elementary school teacher. My parents have always been my reference point. I owe them my drive to innovate and look towards the future while always referring back to my origins and the land as the point of departure. And so, it was to Barbara that I returned when I left my bank job in 1994 to follow my dream.

My Father

After all, this was where I had learned to love the land, to know and respect its secrets, its rhythms, and its products; and, this was where I had grown up, surrounded by individuals who had transmitted their authentic values to me and whose smiles moved me deeply. So I set forth on my challenging undertaking under my father's watchful, curious, and slightly worried eye. But I had a very clear goal: to make wine that would appeal to wine lovers.

To this day when people ask my secret I tell them, "to make wine that first and foremost appeals to me, a wine-drinker's wine." People who know me can confirm that my wines really do begin this way. Many have called me "a visionary and eclectic wine-maker, continually striving for stylistic perfection." And, I can see myself in those words; they really do sum up my philosophy perfectly, both back then and now. I first entered the winemaking world and made the transition from banker to winemaker with the Pignocco label. Made with both red and white grapes, Pignocco is how I transformed the family winemaking cooperative into today's Santa Barbara winery. To this day, it still constitutes a major portion of our market. From there, I went on to undertake many new winemaking adventures and experiments of which I am very proud.

One of my favourite moments is when I return from a trip, eager to turn an idea into reality. I gather around a table with my trusted winemaker Luigi Lorenzetti and our team, Renzo, Roberto, and Daniele and let my intuitions thoughts start to take shape, informed by Luigi's input and training; and of course I always run them by my family who have accompanied me on this journey and remain a key resource and pillar of strength. Indeed, it is no accident that I dedicated Lina Grappa and Passito to my mother, because that is how I see her: a strong woman, who has lovingly guided me through many important decisions. In the end, though, I always have the last word about the wine! While my travels have always been an inexhaustable source of inspiration, the land is what really tips the scale because, in the end, everything I see and experience out in the world has to find the perfect balance in the place where the wine is produced. This is why every new harvest represents an important test of our knowledge of the land.

My world is full of rituals and periods of expectations, but also of creativity, energy, curiosity, and lots of courage. And yes, our wines are often the product of innovative research and experimentation... but to be successful you have to create something above and beyond everyone else! I am still full of ideas because, for me, work is first and foremost a passion and a pleasure, which is why I consider myself a very lucky person...