Distillery Thursday: How Villa de Varda Makes Italian Whisky

It’s time for another Distillery Thursday, and this week we’re heading to a stunning corner of Italy. At Villa de Varda they distill a whisky with a special connection to our country.

At the foot of the Dolomites, the mountain landscape gently gives way to a Mediterranean one. That’s where you’ll find Trentino: a region known not only for incredible holiday getaways, but also for centuries of distilling tradition in a small village called Mezzolombardo.

To trace the roots of this distillery’s Italian aqua vitae, we travel back several centuries. In the early 16th century, the Dolzan family began working the many estates planted with vineyards. Day in, day out, they lovingly tended the thousands of grapevines that grew there.

The vines were bountiful. Many different grape varieties flourished, each of high quality. Those vines yielded not only delicious, fresh fruit, but also the foundation for two essential products: wine and grappa. In the family’s cellars, the grapes were fermented and ultimately transformed into either grappa or wine.

Villa de Varda’s spirits became immensely popular, and the family rose to prominence. In 1678, Leopold I, then Emperor of Austria, Bohemia, and Hungary, conferred nobility on Giovanni Battista de Varda.

Fast forward to the 18th century. During this period, Romedio Dolzan began researching and training in the art of distillation. He developed his own method for crafting various spirits. His process unfolds in four steps. Grapes from a single vineyard, carefully selected for quality, are transformed at the winery into a pomace that is pressed with utmost care and then fermented.

Next, the mash goes into copper pot stills, where, in a slow process, the volatile components evaporate. Because this is meticulously controlled, the character of the vines remains intact. After distillation comes the step called “rest.” For six months the spirit matures in casks before being proofed with pristine water from the Dolomites. Finally, it ages further in wooden barrels crafted especially for Villa de Varda.

It’s a time-honored plan that the distillery still follows to this day. The tricks of the trade and the methods used to craft the spirits are passed down from generation to generation, and it’s now the sixth generation’s turn.

Under the leadership of Luigi Dolzan, his wife Clara, and their sons Michele and Mauro, the traditional craft has been enriched with modern technologies. The four steps remain at the core, and quality is guarded with the utmost care. As for the wood, they still use special casks made from premium spruce, oak, acacia, and cherry.

While enchanting Trentino draws throngs of visitors, the family works with daily passion in the distillery. Their deep bond with the land is something you can literally taste throughout the region. And it ultimately led to a remarkable encounter.

Ronald Zwartepoorte, Keeper of the Quaich and owner of Whisky Passion, spends time regularly in Trentino-Alto Adige. In time he discovered Villa de Varda and connected with the Dolzan family.

On visiting the distillery, Zwartepoorte immediately recognized its unique potential. There’s access to mountain springs in the Dolomites for fresh, pure water; high-altitude grains; and more than a century of hands-on distilling expertise.

The result? The distillery ultimately added a new product: whisky. The life-giving spirit from Trentino is called InQuota. Loosely translated from Italian, it means “at altitude,” a nod to the distillery’s mountain setting.

There are currently four different single malt expressions of InQuota whisky. For example, there’s a rye whisky that combines rose aromas with fruity notes, and a Dolomiti Spruce Cask Finish, offering woody tones on the nose alongside dried fruit and fresh bread. On the palate it’s silky, with balsamic notes and a hint of resin.

If you ever find yourself near Trentino, a stop at the Villa de Varda distillery is absolutely worth your while. The Italian distillery offers various tours that take you through the warehouse and immerse you in the rich history of the family, the region, and their products. Depending on the tour you book, you’ll also enjoy a glass of grappa and a bite to eat.

Last but not least, the distillery also houses a museum. There you’ll be guided through key moments in the history of Trentino and the De Varda family. You’ll see the tools once used to work the land and, of course, to make wines and other spirits. How about a 15th-century pot still?

Photos: Villa de Varda Distillery.