At the end of 1800, Francesco Rocca embarked on the enterprise of loose wine. In 1936 his son Angelo expanded production with the construction of the cellar in Nardò, Puglia. In the 1960's the first bottling line was bought and thus started the distribution of products under the Rocca brand.
Ernesto Rocca (the founder's grandson) along with his sons Paolo, Marco, Luca and Matteo, each with shared duties and responsibility, today run the family business which includes a construction company and leading trot horse stud farm.
The farm, made up of the estates "Don Cataldo" and "Vignali Grandi", covers over 80 hectares in the commune of Leverano in the heart of Salento, approximately three kilometres from the splendid Ionian coast.
The land is an average blend of clayey-calcareous soil. The influence of the sea together with the modern installation techniques and passion in management allow for an excellent level of constant production.
The 'autochthonous' vines Negroamaro, Malvasia Nera and Primitivo are destined for production of typical wine of the region, in particular Leverano doc. The new varietals Montepulciano and Sangiovese with the 'international' Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon, installed in recent years are already showing their superb qualitative characteristics.
Trebbiano, Bombino, Malvasia Bianca and Garganega make up the framework of an excellent Chardonnay as far as the white berry vines are concerned. The accurate selection of grapes before crushing, the temperature control in the various stages of vinification and careful care in the refinement guarantee quality and marked typicality of the wine products.
In tune with the multiple needs and propensities of a continuing evolving market, the company is able to bottle in different formats and with differentiated wine brands Doc, Docg ed Igt coming from the more prestigious production areas.
The new head office is modern and functional, equipped with a 5,000 mq underground cellar for the stocking and refinement of products at excellent temperature and humidity.
The sterile cold bottling takes place with the use of the most modern technology of work and supervision. The two lines which we set out have an effective production of 10,000 and 4,000 bottles an hour.
The micro-filtration plant, controlled by plc, allows the completely automated procedure of sterilisation of filters and fillers with the registration of process data.