Custodi di un Territorio
A FAMILY AFFAIR
The history of our company
Our family has lived in the hills of Santo Stefano since fourteen generations: our ancestors lived here already back in 16 th century and “La Riva”, our land in the Cartizze area right next to the wine cellar, is a historical property that we have cultivated since time immemorial. Francesco gave life to the entrepreneurial venture back in 1984.
Ten years later the production of bottled and sparkling wine became more regular. With the support of his spouse Valeria Albanese he created “Follalba”, a line of sparkling wine whose name results from the combination of their respective surnames Follador and Albanese. “Follalba” underlines the importance of Francesco e Valeria in the growth of this family business.
OUR SYMBOL, AN IDEAL
We are donkeys and we are proud
The logo of the winery Francesco Follador represents a donkey since this totem can symbolize the character of our family. The donkey is a patient and hard-working animal that has always supported farmers in the fields. Donkeys are stubborn and obstinate just like us, as we have resisted the abandonment of the hills among the centuries and we keep on growing grapes even in the most difficult areas; we are donkeys when we decide to cultivate lands with overturn risk slopes, when we do not give up the hard-work and do not want to move a few kilometers further on where it could be easy to mechanize the vineyards. We are donkeys when we remain faithful to our ideals and to our terroir and do not want to compromise with markets and trends. We are donkeys when we decide to complicate our lives with the historical vine varieties and give new life to these precious assets of autochthonous vines, that otherwise would be forgotten. We are donkeys when we choose to be honest, simple and authentic. We are donkeys and we are proud.
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INDEPENDENT SPIRITS
Ethical and sustainable wine
The new generations bring new life into the production of our wines: thanks to the involvement of Stefano – the eldest of the four sons of Valeria and Francesco – in 2012 the company became part of FIVI (Italian Federation of Independent Wine makers). FIVI promotes “an economic organization of wine industry that is both rational and sustainable” and aims to “guarantee to the consumer a wine deeply representative of its Terroir”. In between new ideas, new products and a touch of innovation, we take care of our home, our hills, and this is why we can call ourselves happy guardians of our land.
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