Bolzano, Italy (December 28, 2020) – Paolo Foradori, an Alto Adige pioneer, passed away on December 22, 2020, at the age of eighty-five.
Foradori helped to write the history not only of the J. Hofstätter Estate Winery in Tramin, but in particular also that of the culture of winegrowing in Alto Adige and Italy. As the “father of Alto Adige Pinot Noir,” he recognized very early on the great potential of the cultivation area of Mazzon. He will be remembered for his commitment to the introduction of the “Vigna” designation on the label of renowned single-vineyard wines. He is also to be thanked for the increase in the esteem of Alto Adige Gewürztraminer, to which he added elegance and which, thanks to his commitment, made its way into the wine lists of the best restaurants in Italy.
Paolo Foradori was born in Bolzano in 1935 as the scion of a family from Trentino. In the 1920s, his father Vittorio Foradori, an attorney with a passion for winegrowing, had purchased three winegrowing estates on the Mazzon plateau, above Egna, in the Bassa Atesina. In contrast to the plans of his father, who wished for him to pursue a legal career, Paolo decided upon the study of oenology. In 1959, he married Sieglinde Oberhofer, the grandniece of the estate winery owner Josef Hofstätter in Tramin. With the support of his wife, he shaped the future of the only family estate winery in Alto Adige at the time, with grape growing areas on both sides of the Adige Valley.
Foradori revolutionized the sale of wine from the J. Hofstätter Estate Winery. He created a distribution network that was unique in Italy, and even today, the majority of the estate winery’s production is successfully sold on the national market.
Paolo Foradori’s life was characterized by interesting, adventuresome, and entertaining anecdotes. With wit and charm, he was successful in making Alto Adige wine famous far beyond the provincial borders. His gift for telling stories, his elegance, his great knowledge, and his ingenious sense of irony set him apart from many others, making him unforgettable.
His life and work in connection with Alto Adige wine have most recently been immortalized in a portrait for Alto Adige
Wines: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LjcWH8wetLc&t=2s
I heard about the passing of Paolo Foradori from a fellow Barbaresco producer, Giovanni Pasuero-Elia (Az Agr Paitin) -One of 95 that I had pioneered in bringing to the USA for the first time-Gaja, Allegrini, Fattoria Monsanto, Paitin, Elio Grasso, Balbiano, FERRARI , Altisino, Fattoria del Cerro and SO ON !)
I met Paolo in 1975 visiting the J.Hofstatter winery. Right away I knew Paolo Foradori knew how to make great wines at TRAMIN (Bolzano) and I was enraptured with his Gewurztraminer -produced in the epicenter/birthplace of the Gewurztraminer grape variety- I loved his wines and I LOVED being with him -visiting his picturesque winery and tasting his fine wines at least once a year for fifteen years.
We had a great friendship since we had a great respect for each other’s passion of great wine-
On page 351 is a photograph I took of Paolo in his office laboratory taken for the Sheldon Wassernan book “Italy’s Noble Red Wines” (1985) -of which I introduced Wasserman to 80% of the Italian fine wine prersonality vintners -and submitted to him a quantity of photos.
Paolo Foradori will be missed by all in the wine trade through out the world especially by me and
his son Martin who has promoted the J.Hofstatter Alto Adige wines with the same passion as his father. Addio Paolo -ti penso sempre – Tommaso