Produttori di Manduria is the oldest active wine cooperative in Puglia: it was first established in 1928 as “Federazione Vini di Manduria” and then converted in to a cooperative in 1932 as “Consorzio Vini e Mosti di Manduria”. Despite being in one of the major wine producing Regions in Italy (Puglia usually ranks 2nd or 3rd in the national ranking in terms of wine produced), Produttori di Manduria is structured and operates like an Alto Adige cooperative, with 400 small growers farming 900 hectares of vineyards: with an average 2.25 hectares per member, each grower is able to carry out most of the vineyard management by hand with an extreme attention to quality. Primitivo represents the major focus of the winery, both in terms of vineyards planted (over 60% of the total) and in terms of tradition: Manduria is considered the birth place of the native Primitivo grape, so much so that in 1974 the Italian Government recognized a specific DOC appellation to the Primitivo made in Manduria. Thanks to this intimate, almost symbiotic, relationship between Manduria and the Primitivo wine production, the Winery has always played a vital role in the local economy, becoming the center of Manduria’s economic, social and cultural life. The Winery’s Management has always been extremely stable, with only 5 Presidents in the last 76 years (Italy has changed a few dozen Governments in the same period!). Furthermore, the Growers are locally known as the “Masters of Primitivo”, and the membership of the Coop has been proudly handed down from Father to Son for generations. This historical connection between the Cooperative and Manduria is reflected today in the new name of the Winery: Produttori di Manduria – Maestri in Primitivo