Monday, September 15, 2025

At Elena Walch, the Architect turned Winemaker, the First Front Woman in the Alto Adige Wine Sector - Wine Country Italy (Lake Como, Tuscany, Alto Adige) in 2025





From June 16 to July 3, 2025, Annette and I spent time in wine country Italy, by car.

For an overview of the whole trip, go here: Wine Country Italy - Lake Como, Tuscany, Alto Adige - in the Summer of 2025 

 
Fifth Stop: Trentino-Alto Adige
 
The last stop of our Italy wine tour 2025 was the Trentino-Alto Adige region. We stayed 3 nights in Lana at Hotel Tiefenbrunn and 3 nights in Bolzano at Hotel Laurien.
 
We visited 10 wineries, most of them during the second half of the stop when we were based in Bolzano. 
While in Lana, we had a light dinner at Hotel Im Tiefenbrunn in Lana and went out for dinner to Sissi (1 Star Michelin) in Merano and to Gasthaus Appollonia (Bib Gourmand Michelin), up in the mountains, above Nalles. 
 
While in Bolzano, we had dinner at Toma by Lisa (wine bar), Loewengrube in Bolzano (Michelin listed) and Voegele (Bib Gourmand Michelin) in Bolzano.  
 
Elena Walch
 
The bistro at Elena Walch winery in Tramin is situated in the winery's historic park and serves a menu of cold cuts with Elena Walch wines. We also went to the winery's tasting room.

Elena Walch (GoogleAI based) 

Elena Walch is a family-run winery in the Alto Adige region of northeastern Italy, known for its innovation, sustainability, and high-quality wines. An architect by trade, Elena Walch married into one of the region's oldest wine families and was a pioneer of the "quality revolution" in Alto Adige winemaking. Today, her daughters, Julia and Karoline, manage the estate. 

The core philosophy of Elena Walch is a strong dedication to the "terroir"—the idea that wines should be a pure expression of their unique soil, climate, and cultivation. The winery focuses on creating wines with character, elegance, and personality by prioritizing sustainability and vineyard quality. 

The winery owns two top vineyards, both considered important protagonists of Alto Adige winemaking.
 
Vigna Castel Ringberg: Located in Caldaro above Lake Caldaro, this vineyard benefits from a mild climate, cool night breezes, and a dry southern wind known as "Ora." Its complex soils produce wines with finesse and minerality.
 
Vigna Kastelaz: This steep, southern-facing vineyard is located above the village of Tramin. It is the source of many of the estate's award-winning wines, especially its renowned Gewürztraminer. 
 
Elena Walch (wine searcher) 

Elena Walch is an Italian wine producer situated in the country's most northerly wine region Alto Adige. The estate's portfolio of wines includes local grape varieties such as Pinot Grigio, Lagrein and Schiava, as well as Germanic varieties including Müller-Thurgau and Riesling alongside Gewürztraminer, Chardonnay and Merlot.

Elena Walch has 55 hectares (136 acres) of cultivated vineyards around Alto Adige, including its two most prestigious vineyards: Vigna Kastelaz and Vigna Castel Ringberg. Vigna Kastelaz occupies south-facing chalky slopes that overlook the village of Tramin and is primarily planted to Gewürztraminer and Merlot.

The 20ha (49 acre) Vigna Castel Ringberg vineyard is situated in Caldaro, close to the 17th Century Castel Ringberg built by the Hapsburg family. This vineyard is the largest single vineyard of the state's vineyards and wine cellars in Tramin and Caldaro. It is found in Alto Adige and sits at an altitude of 1080 feet (330 meters) above sea level. It is here that the estate cultivates its more well-known grape varieties including Pinot Grigio, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling and Cabernet Sauvignon, as well as the more regional-specific varieties, Lagrein and Schiava.

The Vigna Kastelaz and Vigna Castel Ringberg vineyards are the foundation of Elena Walch's extensive wine range. They are also the basis of its single-vineyard red and white wines that are drawn from selected vineyard parcels. A prime example is the estate's Vigna Castel Ringberg Kalterersee, a Schiava-based wine aged in a mix of Slavonian and French oak barrels and steel vats for between one to four years.

Elena Walch Family History (GoogleAI)

The Elena Walch winery represents the union of a historic winemaking family with a modern, visionary outsider
. An architect by trade, Elena Walch married into the fifth-generation Walch family and transformed their traditional estate into a quality-focused, internationally recognized producer.
 
Historic roots: The Walch family's winemaking tradition dates back to 1869 in the Alto Adige village of Tramin. The family purchased a historic building that once served as a Jesuit monastery, where monks had made wine for centuries. Wilhelm Walch: For generations, the winery was known as Wilhelm Walch and focused on quantity over quality, a standard practice in the region at the time. Much of their wine was a blend of estate grapes and fruit purchased from other local growers. Historical artifacts: The family's history is preserved in the original cellars, which feature hand-carved barrels dating as far back as 1873. Some of these barrels are dedicated to major family anniversaries.
 
Elena Walch was not born into a winemaking family. She was: Born and raised in Milan. Trained as an architect in Venice. Running her own architectural practice in Bolzano. Married Werner Walch, a fourth-generation vintner, after being commissioned to restore his family's historic Castel Ringberg estate. 
 
The "quality revolution" - After marrying into the family, Elena used her "outsider" perspective to challenge the winery's traditional methods. Focus on quality: In 1988, she established her own label, Elena Walch, to focus exclusively on estate-grown fruit from the family's finest single vineyards. This marked a departure from the Wilhelm Walch tradition of blending grapes from various sources. Modernizing the vineyards: She implemented major changes in the vineyards, such as reducing yields to concentrate flavor and switching from the outdated pergola system to the Guyot trellising system. International grapes: Elena expanded the winery's plantings to include high-quality international varieties, such as Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, alongside indigenous grapes like Gewürztraminer and Lagrein. Terroir philosophy: Her architectural vision translated into a winemaking philosophy that prioritized terroir—the idea that wines should express the unique character of their individual vineyard sites.
 
The next generation - Elena's daughters, Julia and Karoline Walch, now manage the estate, representing the family's sixth generation. Both women are committed to continuing their mother's legacy of sustainability and quality. They work closely with Elena and have helped secure the estate's place among Italy's winemaking elite.

THE MOST BEAUTIFUL STORY ON WINE (Elena Walch)

Elena Walch is a leading Alto Adige wine estate, in family hands, and belongs to the elite in Italian wine production, with international success. 

Encouraging quality and innovation, Elena Walch stood at the head of the Alto Adige quality revolution and has gained local and international esteem for her efforts. An architect by trade, Elena Walch married into one of the oldest and most significant wine families of the region and brought new, modern concepts to the traditional establishment. Now, the responsibility for the family business is being put into the hands of the daughters, Julia and Karoline Walch, already the fifth generation.
 
The First Front Woman in the Alto Adige Wine Sector (Suedtirol Wein - Vino Alto Adige)

Elena Walch changed winegrowing in Alto Adige / Südtirol forever – and a lot more besides

Winegrowing in Alto Adige / Südtirol has always been a family business where everyone has a role to play. While forced in the background, the role of women was to knuckle down and work hard. Nowadays, women like Elena Walch are considered groundbreaking and influential. In fact, she has contributed to change the way women are portrayed in Alto Adige’s wine sector.

Her early life did not suggest she would have played a leading role in the progress of the local wine industry. While her parents were from Alto Adige, Elena Walch grew up in Milan – far away from wine, mountains and vineyards. Her education too, went in a completely different direction: she completed her studies and became an architect.

It was only when she shifted her focus to Alto Adige / Südtirol that she was drawn into the world of wine. “It all made me curious and insanely fascinated,” she says today. She therefore took the helm of her husband's winery in Termeno which was hard to swallow for the wine sector of the early 1980s. “At first people looked askance at me and would look around for my husband,” she recalls.

Elena Walch went on the offensive, instead of giving in and retreating behind the scenes, once again “I can certainly do it all like any man. I just have to do a little better”, was her belief. And she thought being better also meant being out of the ordinary: a woman who goes against the grain.

Elena Walch was therefore a pioneer in promoting and launching production quality processes in Alto Adige. She developed her personal philosophy, experimented with new methods of wine growing, tried out new varieties which she adapted to climate and soil, and broke into new markets. This is the pioneering spirit that turned a centenarian traditional winery, into one of Alto Adige’s most innovative: the Elena Walch Winery.

She was also one of the first to take the idea of terroir in Alto Adige further and trace it back to each individual vineyard, whose unique characteristics should be reflected in the bottle to produce wines with a very distinctive character. This tradition is now put by the classification of “Weinberg – Vigna [Vineyard]” forth. Elena Walch was also one of the innovators in this development all over the region.

Given her background, it is no wonder that she reiterates the influence of Alto Adige’s landscape on her wines. “The high mountains allow us to give wine freshness and tension,” says Elena Walch. This is one of the reasons why Walch wines are sometimes stored in an old silver mine deep under the mountain: they age for six years in absolute darkness and high humidity: “In this way, wine matures slowly with a unique elegance and charm,” she states excitedly. About herself she fiercely asserts: “I have always pushed myself to the limits with conviction and enthusiasm. But I had no idea I was a pioneer.”
 
Bistrot 
 








Winery
 



 
Tasting Room
 



 
Wine Country Italy - Lake Como, Tuscany, Alto Adige - in the Summer of 2025
 
From June 16 to July 3, 2025, Annette and I spent time in wine country Italy, by car.
 
For an overview, go to:  Wine Country Italy - Lake Como, Tuscany, Alto Adige - in the Summer of 2025
 











 
Postings

Wine Country Italy - Lake Como, Tuscany, Alto Adige - in the Summer of 2025  

Lake Como 

At Villa Almana in Cernobbio at Lake Como - Wine Country Italy (Lake Como, Tuscany, Alto Adige) in 2025 

Bolgheri 

Dinner at La Tana del Pirata in Marina di Castagneto Carducci, Bolgheri, Tuscany - Wine Country Italy (Lake Como, Tuscany, Alto Adige) in 2025

Winery Tour and Tasting at Tenuta Argentiera, Bolgheri, Tuscany - Wine Country Italy (Lake Como, Tuscany, Alto Adige) in 2025

Florentine Steak - Dario Cecchini Selection - for Lunch at Osteria Magona in Bolgheri, Tuscany - Wine Country Italy (Lake Como, Tuscany, Alto Adige) in 2025

Running into Marco Balsimelli, Production Director, Ornellaia and Masseto, at Osteria Magona, Bolgheri, Tuscany - Wine Country Italy (Lake Como, Tuscany, Alto Adige) in 2025

Vineyard Tour, Cellar Tour and Tasting at La Macchiole, Bolgheri, Tuscany - Wine Country Italy (Lake Como, Tuscany, Alto Adige) in 2025

Visiting Vigna Lodovico and Tasting Lodovico Antinori's Cult Wines Lodovico and Il Nicchio with his Assistant at Locanda dell' Aioncino - Wine Country Italy (Lake Como, Tuscany, Alto Adige) in 2025 

Dinner at Locanda dell' Aioncino, Bibbona, Tuscany - Wine Country Italy (Lake Como, Tuscany, Alto Adige) in 2025

Tasting the Wines of Tenuta di Biserno and Staying at Relais di Biserno, Bibbona, Tuscany - Wine Country Italy (Lake Como, Tuscany, Alto Adige) in 2025

Tenuta San Guido (Sassicaia): Barrel Cellar Tour and Tasting - Wine Country Italy (Lake Como, Tuscany, Alto Adige) in 2025

Bistecca alla Fiorentina for Lunch at Osteria Enoteca San Guido (Sassicaia), Bolgheri, Tuscany - Wine Country Italy (Lake Como, Tuscany, Alto Adige) in 2025

Vineyard Tour, Cellar Tour and Tasting at Ornellaia, Bolgheri, Tuscany - Wine Country Italy (Lake Como, Tuscany, Alto Adige) in 2025

Dinner at La Pineta, with Chef/ Co-owner Daniele Zazzeri, a Michelin Starred Seafood Restaurant, at Marina die Bibbona, Tuscany - Wine Country Italy (Lake Como, Tuscany, Alto Adige) in 2025 

Cellar Tour and Tasting at Grattamacco, a Benchmark Producer in Bolgheri, Tuscany - Wine Country Italy (Lake Como, Tuscany, Alto Adige) in 2025

Lunch at La Tana del Pirata in Marina di Castagneto Carducci/ Bolgheri/ Tuscany - Wine Country Italy (Lake Como, Tuscany, Alto Adige) in 2025
 
Bolgheri Turning into an Open Air Restaurant - "Cena in Strada" Dinner 2025: Al Fresco Dinner in the Streets of Bolgheri, Tuscany, with Hundreds of other Wine Lovers - Wine Country Italy (Lake Como, Tuscany, Alto Adige) in 2025
 
Chianti Classico 
 
3 Days at Fattoria e Villa di Rignana in the Chianti Classico Region (Tuscany) - Wine Country Italy (Lake Como, Tuscany, Alto Adige) in 2025
 
 
 
Returning to Badia a Coltibuono in Chianti Classico: 2025 and 2012 - Wine Country Italy (Lake Como, Tuscany, Alto Adige) in 2025
 
 
 
At Isole et Olena Winery, a Major Force behind the Chianti Renaissance in the 1970s - Wine Country Italy (Lake Como, Tuscany, Alto Adige) in 2025
 
At Fattoria Nittardi in Chianti Classico, Tuscany: Art and Wine - Wine Country Italy (Lake Como, Tuscany, Alto Adige) in 2025
 
 
Sunset Dinner at Locanda Poggio al Sole (Hill in the Sun Inn) in Chianti Classico - Wine Country Italy (Lake Como, Tuscany, Alto Adige) in 2025
 
(Brunello di) Montalcino and (Vino Nobile di) Montepulciano
 
 
 
At Argiano, one of the Oldest and most Prestigious Wineries in Montalcino - Wine Country Italy (Lake Como, Tuscany, Alto Adige) in 2025
 
At Castello Banfi, a Renowned Winery and a Luxury Boutique Hotel, in Montalcino, Tuscany - Wine Country Italy (Lake Como, Tuscany, Alto Adige) in 2025
 
A Brunello di Montalcino for Dinner in Montalcino at La Sosta Bistro Wine Bar - Wine Country Italy (Lake Como, Tuscany, Alto Adige) in 2025
 
Dinner at Taverna del Grappolo Blu - Traditional Tavern, Michelin Bib Gourmand, Extensive Brunello di Montalcino Wine List - in Montalcino, Tuscany - Wine Country Italy (Lake Como, Tuscany, Alto Adige) in 2025
 
At Cantina Contucci, a Winery Located in the Heart of Montepulciano, just off the Main Square - Wine Country Italy (Lake Como, Tuscany, Alto Adige) in 2025
 
Wine Cellar and Vineyard Tour at Poderi Boscarelli, a Renowned Family-run Winery of Vino Nobile di Montepulciano, Tuscany, with Owner Luca de Ferrari - Wine Country Italy (Lake Como, Tuscany, Alto Adige) in 2025
 
At Poliziano, a Leading Producer of Vino Nobile di Montepulciano, in Montepulciano, Tuscany - Wine Country Italy (Lake Como, Tuscany, Alto Adige) in 2025 
 
Trentino - Alto Adige
 
3 Nights at Hotel Im Tiefenbrunn in Lana, near Merano, in Alto Adige - Wine Country Italy (Lake Como, Tuscany, Alto Adige) in 2025
 
 
An Afternoon in the Mountains of Merano, Alto Adige: Pavicolo and Monte San Vigilio - Wine Country Italy (Lake Como, Tuscany, Alto Adige) in 2025
 
 
 
 
 
Toma by Lisa: Our To-go-to Wine Bar in Bolzano, Alto Adige - Wine Country Italy (Lake Como, Tuscany, Alto Adige) in 2025
 
 
 
 
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