Riccardo Cotarella
Winemaker
Born in Monterubaglio, near the town of Orvieto, Riccardo Cotarella comes from a family that has been in the winemaking business for many generations. As a young man, under the guidance of his father, Riccardo actively participated in the day to day operations of his family’s business until he decided that it was time to further his studies with a degree in winemaking sciences.
In 1968, Riccardo graduated from the prestigious Enology and Viticulture School of Conegliano in the Veneto region. The same year, he started his winemaking career at the Conte Vaselli winery.
In 1979, Riccardo and his brother Renzo started the Falesco Winery. The principal aim at Falesco was, and still is, to rediscover and promote the value of Lazio’s traditional grape varieties. At Falesco, Riccardo developed the blockbuster Vitiano wines with their intense flavors and soft textures, as well as the very special Marciliano and Montiano releases.
In 1981, Riccardo decided to further expand his activities to include “consulting winemaker,” in an effort to acquire more experience on a wider range of grape types, soils and weather conditions. Today, Riccardo is sharing his wealth of knowledge not just among his team of technicians throughout Italy and Bordeaux, but also to an ever growing group of young students attending the University of Tuscia near Viterbo where Riccardo is now a fulltime professor of enology and viticulture.
Mr. Cotarella currently presides over, or is a member of, various regional tasting commissions that oversee the certification of certain DOC wines. These include the wines of the Orvieto, Colli Amerini and Est! Est!! Est!!! di Montefiascone appellations.
Riccardo was the first Italian winemaker to be invited to work in Bordeaux, and today his customers there include Chateau Rolland de By, Chateau La Clare and Chateau Tour Seran. In Italy, Riccardo’s clients include: Coppo (Piemonte), Di Majo Norante (Molise), Galardi (Campania), La Carraia (Umbria), Montevetrano (Campania), Monti (Abruzzo), Morgante (Sicilia), and Sportoletti (Umbria).
Mr. Cotarella owns and operates an agricultural and enological consulting company that employs 10 young graduates of the University of Viterbo.
Falesco was founded in 1979 by brothers Riccardo and Renzo Cotarella, two of Italy’s most acclaimed winemakers. Falesco’s philosophy is to strike a balance between the uniqueness and tradition of native varietals, and the versatility of ‘international’ grapes. The result is a complete portfolio of wines that consumers and critics alike have recognized as both extreme values and “Best of Class” offerings.
Falesco winery is located in Umbria in the municipality of Montecchio, nearby Orvieto in the Southern-Western area at the border with Lazio region. In Lazio, Falesco also maintains a cellar for the vinification of its DOC Est! Est!! Est!!! di Montefiascone. The region is bordered by the Tyrrhenian Sea on the west and Italy’s mountainous center to the east. The dry, perfectly drained, volcanic terroir offers ideal growing conditions for textured reds and crisp, refreshing whites. The winery’s mission is manifold: to rediscover and promote Italy’s native varietals, to identify areas that have the ability to produce high quality wines due to their terroir, to perform ongoing research and experimentation in winemaking and vineyard management, and to continually improve the quality of all Falesco products. Countless worldwide accolades and the winery’s commercial success attest to the results achieved here.
