The winners of the “Angelo Betti Award – For Merit in Wine-Growing”. were announced today (6 April). The award is made every year during the inaugural ceremony for Vinitaly. It identifies institutions or personalities who, through their professional or entrepreneurial activity, have made significant contributions to the qualitative improvement of wine-growing in their respective regions.
"We wish to thank the Regional Departments of Agriculture that once again for the 52nd edition of this Award assisted Veronafiere in identifying the personalities and entities that have contributed the most to the growth of the Italian wine sector," said the President of Veronafiere, Federico Bricolo, joined by CEO Maurizio Danese and General Manager Adolfo Rebughini, during the Prize-Giving Ceremony. "The Angelo Betti Award seeks to promote the typical and specific nature of local areas. It has become one of the most eagerly awaited events at Vinitaly as well as an overview of the excellence that the entire Made in Italy wine sector continues to express."
The 57th Vinitaly consequently saw the following names added to the Roll of Honour of the “Angelo Betti Award for Merit in Wine-Growing”: Jarno Trulli (Abruzzo), Antonio Griesi (Basilicata), Alberta Nesci (Calabria), Carmine Fusco (Campania), Giuseppe Meglioli (Emilia-Romagna), Stefano Trinco (Friuli-Venezia Giulia), Azienda Agricola Marco Carpineti (Latium), Lorenzo Turco (Liguria), Francesca Pagnoncelli Folceri (Lombardy), Cantine di Castignano S.C.A.C. Società Cooperativa Agricola (Marche), Adamantonio Flocco (Molise), Maria Cristina Castelletta (Piedmont), Michael Bralwarter (Autonomous Province of Bolzano), Marco Donati (Autonomous Province of Trento), Azienda Agricola Frisino Francesco (Apulia), Gianpaolo Parpinello (Sardinia), Giovanni Giardina (Sicily), Zeffiro Ciuffoletti (Tuscany), Azienda Agraria Carlo Marco Carini (Umbria), Didier Gerbelle (Valle d’Aosta), Corrado Giacomini (Veneto).
LINK TO THE LIST OF MOTIVATIONS FOR EACH REGION
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VINITALY INTERNATIONAL AWARD: PASQUA VIGNETI & CANTINE TAKE THE “ITALY” AWARD. “INTERNATIONAL” AWARD MADE IN MEMORY OF NEIL EMPSON
The 2025 edition of the Vinitaly International Award - the prize made every year to entities and personalities who have distinguished themselves for their meritorious efforts in the national and international context - pays tribute to two pioneering visions of wine.
With 100 years of history and a vision always focused on the future, the Italy Award went to Pasqua Vigneti & Cantine, an historic Veronese winery that has boldly reinterpreted its wines thanks to an “ontological” link with contemporary art. By turning creativity into the link between art and wine and thanks to far-reaching updating through investments inside and outside the vineyard, the company has achieved impressive results on the market, with excellent feedback also from critics.
The Vinitaly International Award in the “International” section, on the other hand, was made in the memory of Neil Emerson, founder – together with his wife Maria – of Empson & Co., who passed away last 14 September aged 85. Founded in 1972 in Milan, the famous high-end Italian wine export company was – among other things – the first to take Chardonnay onto international markets. Leading the way in the sector, he coined the term “Super Tuscan” and launched iconic brands on the American market. The company is now under the guidance of their daughter, Tara, who worked alongside Neil and Maria for nearly fifteen years.
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“LIFE ACHIEVEMENT” AND “EXCELLENT CATERING” ARE THE NEW AWARDS AT VINITALY 2025. BARNABEI AND BOTTURA ARE THE FIRST WINNERS
The “Lifetime Achievement” and “Excellent Catering” Awards make their debut at Vinitaly 2025. The awards were presented today during the inaugural ceremony respectively to the oenologist Franco Barnabei and three-star chef Massimo Bottura.
The first “Vinitaly Lifetime Achievement Award” acknowledges the commitment of Franco Barnabei in promoting the typical/native rapes of each region. A world-famous professional and winner of the 2000 Oscar del Vino as the finest oenologist, he is known as “Mister Sangiovese” for his impact on wines such as Flaccianello della Pieve di Fontodi, Fontalloro di Felsìna and Blucerchiale di Selvapiana.
Owner-chef of Osteria Francescana, Max Bottura, on the other hand, takes the first “Vinitaly Award for Excellence in Catering”. Ranked twice at the top of the "The World's 50 Best Restaurants" and 30 years after it was opened, Osteria Francescana has scaled the heights of global wine&food thanks to a philosophy based on food as memory and innovation, teams as family, inclusion as social responsibility, women as the driving force of change, and hospitality as a gesture of love. Massimo Bottura and the Francescana Family are celebrating precisely at Vinitaly. the 30th anniversary of the most famous Osteria in the world with the “…Al Massimo” Restaurant, set up with the Emilia-Romagna Region inside Show Hall 1.
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“VINITALY 100 YEARS AWARD”: VINITALY CELEBRATES THE CENTENARY OF "CONSORZIO TUTELA VINI VALPOLICELLA"
Vinitaly continues to celebrate the history of the leading figures in the wine sector and, for the second year, celebrates the longevity of a consortium that safeguards one of the districts that bet symbolises Italian winemaking excellence. The “Vinitaly 100 Years Award” award for 2025 was made to "Consorzio di tutela vini Valpolicella", which achieved its centenary milestone last February on the occasion of Amarone Opera Prima.
“For the second year running, we wish to promote the vital work of consortia in safeguarding and promoting Italian wine starting from the special features of every territory and its typical products," commented the President of Veronafiere, Federico Bricolo. In addition to work ensuring the positioning and success of its protected denominations, the Consorzio di tutela vini Valpolicella has distinguished itself for defending Made in Italy against Italian sounding and counterfeit products."
The President of the Consortium, Christian Marchesini, said: “The centenary is an opportunity to review our achievements but above all to look to the future. In this complex scenario and its accelerated evolution, Valpolicella and its denominations continue their important efforts to defend but also and increasingly, to promotion its wines. A strategy that is helping to make the Consortium itself even stronger, with 51 new members joining in 2024."
Founded on 9 February 1925 as "Consorzio per la Difesa dei Vini Tipici della Valpolicella", the Veronese Consortium now boasts more than 2,400 member companies. In 2013, the Ministry of Agriculture assigned erga omnes functions to the Consortium, authorising its actions in the interest of all producers, including non-members.