We are thrilled to announce that Volio has been ranked as one of the fastest growing private companies on the Inc. 5000 for 2023. With 170% growth over 3 years, Volio is honored to be #87 in Food and Beverage and #3,045 overall. We are energized that we have sustained this level of growth as we have ranked 3 times on the Inc 5000 over the past 5 years.
As we raise our glasses to this milestone, we remain focused on our mission to share the stories and traditions behind each bottle of wine Volio represents.
We extend a heartfelt “Salute!” to our producers and distributors for being instrumental in making this achievement possible! To the buying community of incredible professionals in restaurants and retail around the US, thank you for building our brands and creating the culture of wine we enjoy today.
About Volio Imports:
Volio is a fine wine importer headquartered in Denver, CO. Volio has been building relationships with multi-generational wineries since 2007 and is honored to bring their wines to markets across the US. Representing 45+ Producers from Italy, France, and Spain, it is Volio’s mission to connect the customer experience to the vineyard experience.
Volio’s producers have been hard at work harvesting grapes that will go into creating their 2022 vintages. With each winery experiencing their own unique challenges and triumphs, read on to learn the origin stories of some of the wines that end up in glasses across the U.S.
Cantine Povero began by harvesting their Arneis. Little rain and much higher than average temperatures from May caused a 30% lower yield compared to the previous year. However, the grapes were healthy and beautiful. They started harvest two weeks earlier compared to 2021 and used dried ice (solid CO2) kept at a temperature of -78.5°C (-109,3°F) to prevent the formation of undesired fermentations. Dried ice also enhances the aromas naturally present in the skins of the Arneis, such as yellow and white flowers, apple, pear, and peach. To Cantine Povero, harvest is the most intense and hectic period of the year. The whole family is involved in it, each with their own role, and every year, new technologies are applied and the results of new research allow them to continually improve upon the quality of wine.
Below you can see Gamay and Merlot grapes from Fattoria Il Palagio that will go into creating wines like their Chianti “Cellini”.
Scacciadiavoli harvested Sagrantino grapes for their Vino Spumante Brut Metodo Classico and Vino Spumante Brut Metodo Classico Rosato, which uses the sparkling traditional method. The Sagrantino grape is known principally as a red wine grape, but it can be used equally well in other contexts: vinified as a white wine is the original base for these fun bottles of bubbles.
Felline harvested their Primivito grapes, which will go into making their Anarkos, Primitivo di Manduria, and Monili wines. They were the first to champion the Primitivo grape in the Puglia region, previously only used to produce cheap bulk wine. Their innovation has shaped the culture of Southern Italian wine and is pushing the limits of varietally correct expressions of their diverse grape varieties.
Le Colture’s full-on harvest mode meant everyone was lending a hand … or a paw. The bottles that leave this vineyard, year after year, are the result of the efforts of a well assorted and close-knit family clan. Each member of the family is directly involved in every production phase—running the management of the vines, selecting the grapes, various stages of the winemaking, all through to marketing and sales.
Fantinel first harvested their Pinot Grigio and Glera grapes! Glera is used for their delicate, floral, and pleasurably soft Prosecco Extra Dry. Pinot Grigio makes both their subtle, aromatic, and fruity Tenuta Sant’Helena Pinot Grigio, as well as their floral and zesty Borgo Tesis Pinot Grigio. Later, their red grapes were harvested. The climatic trend of this vintage allowed their bunches—Merlot, Refosco, and Cabernet Sauvignon—to enjoy an optimal health status, with a high concentration of polyphenols and a remarkable aromatic development. So, what will Fantinel 2022 reds be like? Definitely wines with great structure and intensity! Now it is up to their oenologists to continue the work done by nature.
(Photos: Fabrice Gallina)
41.8 ml. Why is this number so important? This is not a new special format for Rivetto wines. This is the total rainfall received in the period prior to the Nebbiolo harvest, precisely between August 6th and September 24th. A year characterized by heat and drought — especially in the Serralunga d’Alba area, which turned out to be the least rainy part of the Barolo area thanks to this relatively small amount of fallen water — ended with optimistic expectations for the Nebbiolo from Barolo, limiting quantitative damage. The data was collected by the weather station in Lirano which noted the sequence in this way: 9.2 ml, 0.2 ml, 15.6 ml, 7.4 ml, 0.2 ml, 2.2 ml, 7 ml.
This is a grand total of 41.8 ml of water, which proved to be invaluable for another year of great quality!
At Salicutti, harvest began on the 5th of September. In sunny Montalcino the grapes were quite mature and fortunately, the rains helped to procure what is sure to become great wines for the year.
It happens, during the great vintages, that when Borgo del Tiglio decides their cuvées, their palate is adjusted upwards after weeks and months of tasting excellent samples. Rare are the musicians that can say they have perfect pitch — the ability to recognize a note without context. According to Borgo del Tiglio, “we certainly do not have a ‘perfect palate,’ so when we are used to tasting excellence, good becomes boring.” When they have on their hands an important vintage, they do not end up diluting the truly great lots with a wine that, in a lesser vintage, would have been considered very good. This process ultimately creates only the very best wines.
In their own words: “The 2021 season has been kind to us winemakers in Collio. In April, the first thrill: a frost which, however, did not affect us. Then a very rainy May gave way to three dry summer months with mild temperatures in relation to the seasonal averages, which led to late ripening. It almost seems to go back in time, spared from climate change, in a parenthesis that takes us back to the fabulous 90s of the great Collio vintages. And the wine? If the conditions are good, only time will tell us what it will be like in the bottle.”Want more? Keep a pulse on what our wineries are up to by following us on Instagram.
Being ranked as one of the fastest growing private companies by Inc. Magazine is incredible. The best part is that it gives me a chance to talk about how great the people of Volio are — after all that is how we got to where we are today.Wine is a tough business. Low barriers to entry create a supersaturated landscape and an almost unlimited supply of choice for consumers. In addition, wine hasn’t done a great job adapting to the next generation of drinkers after the baby boomers. With quality wine coming from every continent, the hard part for Volio’s customers isn’t finding wine, it’s finding our wine.Volio is focused on European Imports with a heavy concentration in Italy where the average retail shelf offers 40-50 Italian selections. Italy alone has over 40,000 wineries fighting to export to the US. The only way you get our wine on the shelf, or on a restaurant list, is with a team of incredible people.A few years ago we got together at an all-company meeting to shape our company culture. Our “Values & Cornerstones” looked pretty vanilla and we needed to make it look/feel more like who we were. It was an incredible exercise. Our amazingly talented Director of Marketing sent out a survey with a lot of thought-provoking questions like, “What do you want your customer to say about you after you’ve left a meeting?” The team really engaged (because they are pros) and the responses showed how we were all moving collectively towards a few common themes.The feeling we want our customers to have after we’ve left became our mantra: Be F**king Awesome (or BFAs as we call it). I could have never imagined how much this would change the game for us, but it lit a fire under our company culture and accelerated our growth. We boil everything down to the principles we outlined together under our BFAs and we talk about them weekly, if not daily, through internal and external communication. It’s changed the way we communicate, helps us problem solve, and helps us measure ourselves to our standards.
Be Kind — The world of wine is vast, but the industry is small. Simply put, follow the Golden Rule.
Be Passionate — Passion leads to dedication. It implies an intent to learn and develop, it’s engaging, and if you have it, others can feel it and want to be around it.
Be of Benefit — If not, you are a burden and not a resource to your customer. Attention to detail and a sense of urgency are key drivers here.
Be Bulletproof — In our knowledge of product, market, and customer relationships.
No Bullshit — Listen to what customers say, don’t just wait to talk…and be honest. We aren’t supposed to know it all, but we should be able to find the answers and follow up.
Our growth has come from our team and their collective commitment to see themselves “in” Volio, not “at” Volio. That kind of growth knows no limit!
– Charles Lazzara