From Livestock to Fruit to Wine

From classic livestock farming to fruitgrowing and winegrowing: the Lenzelehof in Silandro, the main village in the Val Venosta, has gone through a development that is typical for many agricultural operations in Alto Adige. Less typical is the fact that the grapes are not only grown at the Lenzelehof, but also made into wine there.

And even less typical is the location of the Lenzelehof as an estate winery. Because after all, the Val Venosta and Silandro are not exactly generally regarded as a winegrowing zone in Alto Adige. Yet in spite of this, “On the southern slopes of Monte Mezzodì, the conditions are ideal for growing grapes: it is sunny, a constant breeze keeps the grapes dry, and the temperature differentials between day and night provide a strong aroma,” explains Karl Innerhofer, winegrower at the Lenzelehof.

For three generations, his family has been running the Lenzelehof in Silandro, even though originally, this was a classic livestock operation before the switch was made to fruitgrowing and winegrowing. “Fruitgrowing continues to be our most important pillar, with winegrowing turning out to be smaller,” Innerhofer says. What he does not say, though, is that the latter may be smaller, but it is his passion. In the end, the decision to grow grapes was not nearly as big as the one to make the wine himself.

And that is precisely what Innerhofer is doing at the Lenzelehof, thus writing an important chapter in his typical Alto Adige success story by himself: from livestock raising to apple and grape growing. And to his own wine.