The Vineyard at Rancho Hidalgo will be operated in partnership with highly acclaimed and international award-winning vintner Paolo
D'Andrea. Mr. D’Andrea is a fifth generation vintner born and raised in the Friuli region of northeastern Italy. Coming from
four generations of wine growers, he has been involved in grape growing and wine making since a very young age. Mr. D'Andrea graduated
from the College of Viticulture in Spilimbergo, Italy with a specialization in vine grafting.
In 1986, Mr. D'Andrea
accepted a position in the US teaching Hispanic laborers how to prune grape vines in a small New Mexico vineyard.
He fell in love with the area and was subsequently hired to run New Mexico Vineyards, Inc. New Mexico Vineyards is now the largest
vineyard operation in the state, with 300 acres under cultivation, and now sources grapes to 14 different wineries in New Mexico andTexas, including the renowned Gruet winery in Albuquerque.
In 2001, in addition to running New Mexico Vineyards, Mr.
D'Andrea and his wife Sylvia established a vineyard of their own, Luna Rossa Vineyards (www.lunarossawinery.com), in Deming, New Mexico.
His wines have won countless national and international awards at prestigious wine competitions year after year.
Below please
find just a few of Mr. D'Andrea's prestigious awards for his Luna Rossa vintages.
