He wanted to become a diplomat but ended up being a wine maker. Alessio Secci, the Co-Promoter and Director of Frattelli Wines, is a man who have always followed his heart and now his company, a joint Indo-Italian venture, is taking India by storm. In a candid interview with The Wine Club, Alessio Secci reveals about the brand, the initial days and the future dreams the company wishes to reach.

 

 

The Wine Club: From a graduate in International Politics and Strategic Studies to a student of Oenology and agronomics. Why this shift?

Alessio Secci: I have always had two dreams in my heart: One, to become a diplomat, second, to become a wine producer. Given that my first attempt didn’t become true then I have decided to shift to my second one. In my youth dreams I thought I would have set up a winery in Chianti (I live in Tavarnelle Val di Pesa base of Antinori one of the 10 villages of Chianti). But as the German says “in Youth we learn, in age we understand” (Marie von Ebner-Eschenbach,1830 - 1916) so I understood together with my brother Andrea that the right country to be was India. In Italy we would have been one of the many, but in India we are one of a few in making wine.

 

The Wine Club: What made you fall in love with wine?

Alessio Secci: Wine being a natural product really surprises every time. Every year/harvest the same grape will give you always a different signature. It is amazing to experience how a grape i.e., a Sangiovese will taste different if planted in a different terroir, adapted to the soil/climate conditions of a given country. What I really love about wine that it is nature driven but human being can make a difference with his knowledge and personal skills to make it better. Making wine is always an interaction between nature and man; everything depends on quality of grapes. Such a very first step can only be achieved if the man, in our case, Piero Masi, really understands language of vine plants. Once your grapes become wine then again your nose and palate make the difference to understand what it is needed to enhance the quality of your wine to the optimum level. Nature makes great wine, but man makes it better. Last but not the least, I love the fact that my wine will please noses and palates of people and will contribute to their happiness and this is absolutely awesome when you think about it.

 

The Wine Club: Share with us about your experience with Mr. Piero Masi. How has he influenced the wine making style of Fratelli Wines?

Alessio Secci:  Difficult to express in words. From a professional point of view, everything I know now both about vineyards and wine, it is only because of him. He has shared with me all his tremendous experience, knowledge and culture on vineyards and wine. He has shared with me all his secrets, which is absolutely rare, or barely impossible to get from any master of wine. I have seen how much a visionary and flexible he is! If you see our vineyards now you will say “Wow!” But if you have had the chance to see the same land before, you would have immediately realized how much dedication and hard work were required to transform the piece of land I have a picture of Piero in Garwar (our biggest site comprised of 50 hectares of land) contemplating this huge property and thinking how to level and project the vineyard’s exposure. Simply unbelievable! He always surprises me when we do a checking all our vineyards (240 acres) plot by plot. You might think that he is not concentrating much but as soon as we sit for discussion, he could exactly tell you what is good and what is wrong and how to make it better. In the winery too, it is spectacular to see how his nose and palate have been evolved. During fermentation stage he can tell you how the wine would become, and he can suggest and instruct our team of wine makers what is needed in order to improve quality of our wines. Fratelli has given me a great chance to work closely with Piero who is not only a fantastic wine maker but most importanty a great man also.

 

The Wine Club: How is it to work with Francesco Bruni and Valentina Piccirillo? How do you coordinate with them regarding design part of the Fratelli Wines?

Alessio Secci: Funny and inspiring! Francesco, first of all, is a great friend of mine. He is a fantastic painter and an awesome graphic designer. His art and inspirations are so much fused that when you work with him you see it happen so naturally that you understand that such a quality has been gifted to him by God. With Francesco we have created our logo. We were seven people involved in FW, so Francesco was inspired by a circle divided in seven and placed the negative of FWF, meaning Fratelli Wines Family. Everything that concerns design in Fratelli, is made by him. Fratelli in our mind has always been perceived as a young, stylish and glam product which is distinctively Indian but with an Italian touch. Valentina, Francesco’s fiancé, she is a young but very much skilled phtotgrapher. Francesco and Valentina are a perfect couple of artists working closely together. Fratelli has had the great opportunity to work with them and I am sure that we are only at the beginning of our journey. In Januray Francesco and Valentina will visit our winery and Francesco will create his painting directly in Akluj.

 

The Wine Club: What makes Fratelli Wines different from other wines available in India?

Alessio Secci:  It is always difficult to give a definition about yourself because some way some how you limit yourself but I will say our wines distinguish themselves for their freshness, for being distinctively varietal which is very rare in Indian wines, balanced and also very international. All our wines when smelled and tasted really reminds you the grapes which is to me the most important quality to be found in a wine, because at the end of the day wine is made out of grapes.

 

The Wine Club: Various winemakers follow different wine making style. Which particular winemaking style does your company follow?

Alessio Secci: Together with Piero we have discussed a lot which style to give to Fratelli wines and we came to a conclusion that we would offer to our consumers approachable and drinkable wines because our main mission is to spread wine culture in India and let the consumers know how beautiful wine as a product is. In our 9 wines you find a different array of wines but with the same signature. Classic range has been made purposely to be fresh and easy to drink so that it attracts first time wine drinkers or consumers looking for a fresh and pleasant wine. Our white wines are all completely dry, which is another signature of FW. Chenin Blanc has been made dry and therefore is absolutely different from competitors because we believe that Indian spicy food pairs perfectly with a dry white wine which reduces spiciness in your mouth. Our Sauvignon Blanc is made in the same way but it is distinguished for its varietal aromas and flavors. Chardonnay again is a dry nice wine that is completely varietal and you cannot really tell that it is an Indian Chardonnay. Our reds i.e., our Cab family, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Farnc/Shiraz are more complex wines which are medium/full bodied and very intense in aromas and flavors but still very much approachable. Our Merlot it is a typical Merlot made by Piero, full bodied, almost endless in your mouth and needs to breath at least 15 minutes before giving its best. Decanting it is a must. Sangiovese, really surprises me. It is only in its first harvest and immediately very much Sangiovese. I think in the coming years our SG will become our star.

 

The Wine Club: What are the key challenges in making wine for Indian drinkers?

Alessio Secci: 1st not to make wine too much serious. Wine is a very sincere product, and sometimes we make it more complicated than is required. Wine is good only if your palate says so. Our mission as wine producer is to be fair and making your wine as much sincere, natural and pure as possible and then your customer will take the final call. How to serve and store wine is another big challenge to win.

 

The Wine Club:Pure grapes or blends – what is your take?

Alessio Secci: Your wine will tell what is needed, but I will say both. Pure wines depend on the quality of your grapes and wine, and this can be decided only after tasting your wines in winery any given year. Sometime pure doesn’t mean perfection, so sometimes blending is needed to enhance the quality of your wine, i.e., blending Sangiovese with a merlot or a Cabernet. Fratelli follows same standards followed in Chianti. Our Sangiovese can be 100% if possible, or it is a blend of 80% of Sangiovese and maximum 20% of another red grape. Chianti Classico is in fact made of 80% of SG and 20% of other red grapes by law. Our 2011 Sangiovese is pure Sangiovese this year. No blending has been done at all. Blending is not cheating but an art. Piero is a master in doing that. If he thinks that adding 5 % of merlot would make a SG taste better, he will blend it without changing the wine’s varietal characteristics.

 

The Wine Club: How would you describe the current Indian wine industry?

Alessio Secci:  It is a growing industry which needs to grow in experience. Quality needs to be the main mission for every Indian winery. We ought to have the vision that some day Indian wines will be in demand across the world and we cannot make them only for the Indian market. If you want to compete abroad your quality has to meet international standards.

 

The Wine Club:A lot of wineries face problem of excessive wine. How do you plan to tackle this issue?

Alessio Secci: Adapting your production with your selling capability is the key. Fratelli will increase its production in relation to the growth of our domestic and international market. In 2011 we have produced 320.000 bottles, in 2012 we will reach 400.000

 

The Wine Club:A lot of red tapes are involved for selling wine in India. What is your experience?

Alessio Secci:  Yes, it is true that there are lots of bottlenecks. Too much regulation is one big limitation. A lack of uniformity in laws is another reason. Alcohol laws in India vary from one state to another.

 

The Wine Club:Making good wine may not be good enough for increasing sales … what are the key steps being taken by your company to establish Fratelli as a major player in the Indian Wine Industry?

Alessio Secci:  I agree. But the first step is to have quality in your bottle because if your customer picks up one of your bottle, the only way to make him a loyal customer is to offer quality. It is of course our job to properly promote the brand and make it known. Social media is a great source because it allows you to communicate directly with the consumers. Holding press meets, events and wine tastings also help a lot to establish a brand. Besides I do believe in word of mouth. Price it is also another very important factor, Fratelli believes that a good relationship between price and quality will help it become popular in India.