Elena Walch

Elena Walch is an Italian wine producer situated in the country's most northerly wine region ‒ Alto Adige. The estate's portfolio of wines includes local grape varieties such as Pinot Grigio, Lagrein and Schiava, as well as Germanic varieties including Müller-Thurgau and Riesling alongside Gewürztraminer, Chardonnay and Merlot.

The estate is named for its proprietor, Elena Walch, who was an architect before founding the estate. Today, her two daughters Julia and Karoline Walch run the estate, and have applied a sustainable approach to viticulture and vinification in all of the estate's vineyards and wine cellars in Tramin and Caldaro.

Elena Walch has 55 hectares (136 acres) of cultivated vineyards around Alto Adige, including its two most prestigious vineyards: Vigna Kastelaz and Vigna Castel Ringberg. Vigna Kastelaz occupies south-facing chalky slopes that overlook the village of Tramin. This vineyard is primarily planted to Gewürztraminer and Merlot. The 20-ha (49-acre) Vigna Castel Ringberg vineyard is situated in Caldaro, close to the 17th century Castel Ringberg built by the Hapsburg family. This vineyard is the largest single vineyard of its kind in Alto Adige and sits at an altitude of 1080ft (330m) above sea level. It is here that the estate cultivates its more well-known grape varieties including Pinot Grigio, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling and Cabernet Sauvignon, as well as the more regional-specific varieties, Lagrein and Schiava.

The Vigna Kastelaz and Vigna Castel Ringberg vineyards are the foundation of Elena Walch's extensive wine range. They are also the basis of its single-vineyard red and white wines that are drawn from selected vineyard parcels. A prime example is the estate's Vigna Castel Ringberg Kalterersee, a Schiava-based wine aged in a mix of Slavonian and French oak barrels and steel vats for between one to four years.