Grappa reborn: Celebrating Dalla Cia Grappa’s 100-year pedigree

Legacies are born by people who create excellence.
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Legacies are born by people who create excellence. However, sometimes that pedigree is interrupted. Yet, the authenticity of iconic producers can always be revived. No one embodies iconicity more than the father and son team at Dalla Cia. Giorgio and George Dalla Cia have recently raised a toast to the first Dalla Cia Grappa being made in Friuli in 1923 exactly 100 years ago by Giorgio’s father, Vittorio. Grappa is thought to have been brought into Sicily in the 12th century where it was distilled using the skins of grapes. 

From humble beginnings, Vittorio built his business into one of the biggest grappa distilleries in Italy with skins coming from all over the country. However, in the 1970s, collusion amongst competitors and officials blocked skins from being delivered and the distillery was soon forced to close its doors. Having fallen in love with wine and grappa making, Giorgio had no option but to seek out new opportunities. He came to South Africa where he joined the Myburgh family at Meerlust in 1978. “I immediately saw the potential of the terroir,” says Giorgio. Meerlust rapidly rose to become one of South Africa’s pinnacle producers and Giorgio a legend. The only thing missing in his trophy cabinet was a grappa which was illegal to produce in South Africa at the time. When this changed in 1994, a 19-year-old George joined the Myburgh-Dalla Cia partnership with the intention of reviving the family spirit. After spending some time in Italy visiting their family and local distilleries, the duo acquired a new copper alembic still and started making grappa. “That was quite an emotional time for my father because he had this dream, and it was finally becoming a reality,” says George. Meerlust became the first South African wine estate to make grappa.

Giorgio’s grappa soon became legendary amongst Italian wine aficionados as something that was from Africa, made by Italians and unquestionably grappa. While lauded by most, a few zealots went so far as to label the Dalla Cia’s traitors for choosing to make their grappa in South Africa. “The fact that we are Italian and live in South Africa doesn’t make us any less Italian or South African,” says George. Having left Meerlust in 2005, father and son built their own distillery and now have a range of six grappas. Today, you can find at least one Dalla Cia grappa available on just about every Italian restaurant menu in South Africa, honouring both patriotisms. 

The Dalla Cia story is one of many twists and turns, deeply embedded in both Italian and African culture. When asked his thoughts on the spirit, a glass of 10 Year Celebration Grappa in hand, George says: “Dalla Cia grappa is about resilience and family.”