THE PROCURATORIA OF ST MARK’S BASILICA AND THE “GREAT WINE CAPITALS” NETWORK REWARDED AS ABSOLUTE SYMBOLS OF THE CIVILISATION OF VENETO AND WINE IN A SPECIAL EDITION OF THE PRIZE TO MARK THE 250TH HARVEST AT THE VAIO DEI MASI
FRIDAY, 14TH OCTOBER, THE EVENT WILL BE STREAMED LIVE FROM 6.15 PM
41st Masi Prize winners announced. It goes to the Procuratoria of St Mark’s Basilica in Venice “for its great contribution towards preserving the values of the ‘Veneto civilisation’” and the “Great Wine Capitals Global Network” – “for its current, essential contribution to the ‘Civilisation of wine’”. The Masi 2022 edition is very much extraordinary: indeed, only two awards will be given with the International Grosso D’Oro Veneziano Prize, the top honour assigned by the Masi Foundation. The Prize consists of the Venetian golden coin, symbol of a virtuous spirit of exchange between populations and is delivered to the two institutions for having helped spread a message of culture worldwide, generating solidarity, civil progress and peace.
The Foundation’s Chair, Isabella Bossi Fedrigotti, explains: “In the year of the 250th Harvest in the Vaio dei Masi, the Foundation’s Board has decided, to mark the exceptional nature of the event, to combine the Civiltà Veneta Prize and the International Civiltà del Vino Prize into the Grosso d’Oro Veneziano, meaning that today it is time to honour the emblems of both Veneto Civilisation and the Culture of Wine with our top award”.
“After 40 years of our Prize, this year we have celebrations that are no less important, with two events combining in the hallmark of Veneto Civilisation: the 250th harvest, an occurrence that reminds us of and consolidates our bond with the territory and the Veneto civilisation that underlies the business history of Masi Agricola – and the Masi Prize, which since the very beginning has appreciated and raised awareness worldwide of the excellences offered by Triveneto” comments Sandro Boscaini, Chairman of Masi Agricola and Deputy Chairman of the Masi Foundation.
The International Masi Prize Grosso D’Oro Veneziano 2022 goes to theProcuratoria of St Mark’s, an emblem of Veneto civilisation, an ancient lagoon institution whose birth dates back to the Middle Ages and that today combines the great representativity of the monument that symbolises Venice worldwide with the commitment to conserving and enhancing St Mark’s Basilica, UNESCO heritage of humanity, with high quality cultural and museum initiatives. For the first Procurator, Carlo Alberto Tesserin, the Masi Prize is a significant acknowledgement of the spiritual and historic importance of St Mark’s for the Veneto civilisation and is also an opportunity to highlight the monument’s fragility in the face of today’s climate change. The Procuratoria is all too aware of the serious consequences suffered to date by adverse climate events and seeks to remedy these on a daily basis, thanks to the commitment and skill of its technicians and masters. The Masi Prize”, he continues, “also takes on the value of a symbolic homage to Venice’s welcome, for centuries now the meeting place of the civilisations of the east and west, in the hope that dialogue can pursue between populations, even amidst these times of conflict”.
If the Masi Prize to the Procuratoria aims to recall the ideal bond of continuity with the cultural heritage of the civilisation of Triveneto, the Grosso d’Oro Veneziano, attributed in 2022 to the Great Wine Capitals Global Network, as emblem of the civilisation of wine, presents as a projection towards the future, because it identifies this institution as “the most current expression of the symbolic nature of the values of wine”.
The association, which was established in Bordeaux back in 1999 to “link cities connected to great wine regions to sustain the health and prosperity of their wine-related industries, communities and tourism” brings together eleven great cities worldwide: Adelaide (Australia), Bilbao (Spain), Bordeaux (France), Cape City (South Africa), Lausanne (Switzerland), Mainz (Germany), Mendoza (Argentina), Porto (Portugal), San Francisco (USA), Valparaíso (Chile) and Verona (Italy). They share an essential economic and cultural aspect: they are wine-growing regions of recognised international excellence. As the Prize Jury stresses, the international context that the prestigious capital city associates represent “brings together the historic nature of European wine with the fresher oenology of the New World, effectively bringing together all the countries most involved in wine-making through the symbols of each territory, represented by the culture of the product, the production, research and promotional structures and tourist attractions”. The institution is committed worldwide to creating synergy between the great wine capitals, aiming to support – as the Prize reasoning reads – “the cultural importance and polyhedral aspects of wine and its world: history, territories, vines, know-how, through to the more recent meanings of representativity of the culture of a territory, including the environmental, emotional and tourist aspect”.
The association is today chaired by Mariana Juri, Argentinian senator; she is flanked by the Spanish Juan María de Buruaga, as Deputy Chairman, representing the region of Bilbao/La Rioja and the Association’s General Manager, French Catherine Leparmantier Dayot, who in Bordeaux, in the late 1990s, was amongst those who inspired and promoted the network and who is today directing the Great Capitals of the Wine along the route of sustainability, committing to adhesion to the Protocol of Porto.
The prize-giving ceremony of the 41st Masi Prize, together with the 250th anniversary celebrations, will be held on 14th October at the new venues in the Masi Agricola “Monteleone 21” site, currently under construction in Gargagnago di Valpolicella and made available for the occasion.
