Franz Haas
Owner and Winemaker
Franz Haas was born November 5th, 1953 in Bolzano, Italy. He is part of the seventh generation of the Haas family to have grown grape to wine production in the Alto-Adige region of northern Italy, nestled in the foothills of the Alps.
Franz graduated from the University of Innsbruck (Austria) in 1981 with a degree in business administration, and then completed four years of oenology study in Geisenheim, Germany. In 1986, he took over the family winery, where he currently oversees all aspects of vineyard and cellar management and winemaking.
With an unwavering focus on quality, diligent attention to detail and a lot of hard work, he has succeeded in making the Franz Haas one of the most highly regarded Italian wineries. The winery produces a celebrated portfolio of wines, including Moscato Rosa, a winner of the coveted Tre Bicchieri award.
In addition to his lifelong love of wine, Franz is also a passionate skier and art enthusiast. He is married to Maria Luisa Manna and has two children, Franzi and Sofia.
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Kris wines are a joint effort of winemaker Franz Haas and Winebow. They were created to be appreciated every day, and to make every meal special. Winebow founder and CEO Leonardo LoCascio first met Franz Haas on a visit to Italy in the late 1990s. Immediately impressed with Haas’ mastery of winemaking analytics and his painstaking attention to detail in all aspects of vineyard management and winemaking, Winebow began importing Haas wines into the U.S.
Recognizing Haas’ winemaking talent and sensing a tremendous market opportunity for well-crafted, reasonably priced “lifestyle wines” in the U.S. market, LoCascio approached Haas about developing top-notch Pinot Grigio and Merlot to be sold in the U.S. under a new label, Kris. Haas agreed, and in his characteristically meticulous fashion, set about laying the groundwork for this new enterprise.
In developing Kris, Haas examined pre-existing vineyards, and carefully explored new sites with soils and locations comparable to his own, in order to plant new vines. The resulting wines, Kris Pinot Grigio, Heart Merlot, and Pinot Noir have exceeded expectation in both quality and value.
