L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2020 www.italoamericano.org 18 L'Italo-Americano T he Aquilini fa- mily knows how to grow a suc- cessful business, whether it be a professional ice hockey team or a Washington State wine. Through its conglomerate A q u i l i n i I n v e s t m e n t Group, headquartered in V a n c o u v e r , B . C . , f a m i l y members own the National Hockey League's Vancouver Canucks, along with restau- rants, digital media compa- nies, a film set, a hardwood t r e e n u r s e r y , r e s i d e n t i a l housing developments and a few golf courses. The Aquilini family also has a presence in agricultur- a l p r o d u c t s . T h e y o w n a d a i r y f a r m i n S u n n y s i d e , apiaries, and several blue- berry and cranberry farms. In fact, Aquilini is one of the w o r l d ' s l a r g e s t b l u e b e r r y producers, with acreage in both the Pacific Northwest and Australia. With these deep family roots in agriculture, it was no surprise that the Aquilini f a m i l y w a s d r a w n t o Washington's wine industry. Their plans accelerated in 2013 when the Kennewick Irrigation District in Benton County, Wash., put up 31 parcels of land for sale -- a t o t a l o f 6 7 0 a c r e s - - a t a public auction. The property was part of t h e R e d M o u n t a i n American Viticultural Area, established in 2001. With just over 4,000 acres, t h e R e d M o u n t a i n A V A , located on the eastern edge of the Yakima Valley, is one of the smallest but most pro- ductive wine grape-growing areas in Washington. Geologically speaking, the region was formed around 2 0 , 0 0 0 y e a r s a g o w h e n r e c e d i n g g l a c i a l f l o o d s deposited a combination of nutrient-rich soil and layers of sand and silt, perfect for growing grapes. More than 15 wineries are located in the Red Mountain AVA with m a n y a d d i t i o n a l Washington wineries sourc- i n g t h e i r g r a p e s f r o m i t s g r o w e r s . T h e r e g i o n ' s u n i q u e c l i m a t e , s o i l a n d t o p o g r a p h y n o w p r o d u c e some of the best wines in the world. Red grape varietals d o m i n a t e : C a b e r n e t Sauvignon, Malbec, Merlot and Syrah. The Kennewick land came w i t h w a t e r r i g h t s , a n d a t least 40 different wineries were interested. When the parcel went up on the auc- tion block, the Aquilini fami- ly acted quickly. The family saw the auction flyer on a Friday and by Monday, they were landowners -- or so the story goes. Aquilini Brands, the bev- erage division of Aquilini Investment Group, had ten- dered a successful offer of $8.3 million for the land. The wine grower community was stunned. The Aquilini's did their research before purchasing the Red Mountain property. T h e y v i s i t e d s o m e o f t h e g r e a t w i n e r e g i o n s o f t h e world – Tuscany's ancient vineyards, California's Napa V a l l e y a n d O r e g o n ' s W i l l a m e t t e V a l l e y . T h e y t a l k e d , t h e y t a s t e d , t h e y learned. Since the initial purchase, the business has added more acreage in the Horse Heaven Hills area, planting more than 600 acres of grapes, the majority being Cabernet Sauvignon. They now own m o r e t h a n 1 , 1 0 0 a c r e s o f v i n e s t h r o u g h o u t t h e Columbia Valley and are one of the state's largest private landowners. Their neighbor- ing wineries include such l a b e l s a s H e d g e s F a m i l y Estate, Kiona Vineyards and Col Solare, a joint venture b e t w e e n t h e A n t i n o r i family from Italy and C h a t e a u S t e . M i c h e l l e , Washington's oldest winery h e a d q u a r t e r e d i n W o o d i n v i l l e , W a s h . , j u s t outside Seattle. At first, long-time wine- growers in the region were worried that the Aquilini's huge parcel – nearly 25 per- c e n t o f t h e A V A ' s t o t a l p l a n t e d a c r e a g e – w o u l d create a glut on the market b u t t h a t d i d n o t h a p p e n . L a s t y e a r , R e d M o u n t a i n AVA Alliance Director Alicia B r o w n t o l d WineBusiness.com that the community appreciated the A q u i l i n i b u s i n e s s f o r i t s hard work, dedication and business acumen. "There were some ques- tions of who they were and how they were going to do things," Brown said, "but ever since then the people w h o h a v e b e e n o n R e d M o u n t a i n f o r y e a r s a n d y e a r s a n d y e a r s h a v e stepped up and welcomed t h e m . T h e y k n o w w h a t they're doing and they're going to do it right." L u i g i A q u i l i n i immi- grated to British Columbia from Brescia, Italy, in 1953. Originally from a farming family, he eventually started his own construction com- pany in Vancouver where he had settled. By the 1980s, he was buying and selling older b u i l d i n g s i n s e v e r a l Canadian cities, including V a n c o u v e r a n d O t t a w a . Later, he started building c o n d o m i n i u m t o w e r s around Canada. H i s t h r e e s o n s - - F r a n c e s c o , R o b e r t o a n d Paolo -- began working for their father in the 1980s and today share managing direc- tor duties. Several grand- c h i l d r e n h a v e j o i n e d t h e firm, as well. Their family of companies focuses on home- building, workspaces, food and entertainment. Though Aquilini is based in Canada, Aquilini Brands U S A i s h e a d q u a r t e r e d i n Seattle to be closer to its wine operation in the Red Mountain AVA. The compa- n y C E O , R o b e r t T . C h i n , spent more than 25 years at E & J Gallo in California. T h e p r e s t i g i o u s R e d Mountain is the highlight of the Aquilini wine portfolio. T h e c o m p a n y ' s s i g n a t u r e w i n e b e a r s t h e A q u i l i n i name and is recognized for e m b o d y i n g t h e v i r t u e s o f R e d M o u n t a i n : r i c h a n d intense, tannic and full-bod- ied. Other wines produced by A q u i l i n i B r a n d s i n c l u d e Chasing Rain, Be Human, 10,000 Hours and Roaming Dog. These wines rely on a strong marketing compo- nent to make them accessi- ble to a more diverse and y o u n g e r a u d i e n c e . E a c h wine employs an eye-catch- ing label and a memorable name and sells at an afford- a b l e p r i c e . F o u r o f t h e A q u i l i n i w i n e s w o n g o l d m e d a l s a t t h e 2 0 2 0 W a s h i n g t o n S t a t e W i n e Competition. In October, the Seattle Times listed two of its wines among the top 20 Northwest wines under $20 a bottle. Winemaker Even Johansen is one of the experts hired by Aquilini Brands to turn its grape vineyards into world-class wines (Aquilini Brands USA) SEATTLE ITALIAN COMMUNITY Aquilini family puts Washington's Red Mountain wines on the world map RITA CIPALLA

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