story
Making things difficult to manage look easy is a virtue in Italy. But the conversion of an abandoned winery into a globally active top wine supplier requires a lot of work and entrepreneurial skill. As well as courage.
Brigitte & Bruno Widmer
Barbara Widmer, who studied oenology, has lived on the winery since the late 1990s and runs the business with a team of 35 people. She is supported by the whole family. Andreas, entrepreneur and former marketeer, helps her with questions of communication and digital strategy.
Michael, a lawyer and financial specialist, is at her side primarily in financial and legal questions.
The third generation is already involved in the family business with smaller tasks. Nina, Barbara’s daughter, actively helps with Brancaia’s social media activities, while her son, Nicolas, likes to and often helps out in the Osteria’s kitchen. Mara, Andi’s daughter, supports the vinotheque in Zurich in marketing alongside her studies.
Shortly after taking over Brancaia, Bruno and Brigitte Widmer managed to win an important award: The 1983 Brancaia vintage won at the Chianti Classico tasting of Vinum , a Swiss magazine, took first place. Many more top ratings from domestic and foreign magazines and wine connoisseurs followed in the years to come. From the initial two wines, an exciting portfolio of 9 wines, 2 grappas and a cold-pressed olive oil has emerged over the years.
Today, high-quality organic wines are vinified on Brancaia and sold worldwide. The cellars of the winery and a logistics center meet the highest standards. Professional guided wine tours and tastings await visitors. Then you can let yourself be pampered in the estate’s own osteria with a large terrace.
That was not always so.
Bruno and Brigitte Widmer laid the foundation stone in 1981 with the purchase of the neglected Brancaia estate. And 40 years later, they are still doing it with a lot of heart and soul. The day-to-day business of Brancaia has long been in the hands of the second generation and the third is starting to get involved more and more.
Our family values traditions and feels strongly connected to Tuscany. At the same time, we are not afraid to break new ground. We have been producing top-quality wines typical of the region without compromise since day one. We are happy about what we have achieved, but we also know that we have to keep developing – standing still means going backwards in the wine business too.