Giovanni Pinna – GM & Oenologist, Sella&Mosca

Giovanni Pinna

In this interview, Giovanni Pinna, oenologist and general manager of Sella & Mosca, in Alghero, Sardinia, shares some information about his role and current thoughts on the industry.

What do you do?
My responsibilities are mainly technical, ranging from agriculture to wine production. However, as general manager, I often find myself involved in organizational issues of other kinds as well.

How did you get into the industry?
I started as soon as I finished my university studies in agricultural sciences, after which, thanks to a master’s degree in oenology at the Catholic University of Piacenza, I was able to enter this extraordinary world. After that, I started to do some consulting for small companies while collaborating with the University of Sassari for about eight years. Finally, in 2000 I began my work relationship with Sella&Mosca Estates, and it was in this amazing company that I developed my main knowledge and experience.

Share with us a story from behind the scenes.
During a visit to the winery of important guests at harvest time, because of my usual mania for perfection, I tightened a clamp of a pressure hose that was leaking some must. Unfortunately, the result I got was not what I hoped for. Instead of reducing the leak, the hose came loose, flooding with must the guests, who were at that point forced to immediately take a shower!

What food memory from your childhood or travels stands out?
I’ve always been interested in traditional Sardinian cuisine while being open to new food cultures. I love fish, especially in its most natural form, without too many seasonings. I also really like fried eggs with white truffle from Alba, a simple but extremely tasty dish.

What’s the best/ worst part of your job?
Those who do my job do it with no ifs and buts, the best part is definitely the study and the making of a new wine, then the creative part. I can say without a doubt that the worst part of my job is the bureaucratic cobweb that today comes with our work.

What’s one of your favourite food and beverage pairings?
My favourite pairings are:

• salt-baked fish with Vermentino di Sardegna
• roast pork with Cannonau di Sardegna

The perfect day off would be…
Walking in the woods looking for mushrooms in the fall and sailing in the open sea in the summer.

A day in the life of Giovanni Pinna is…
Early wake-up call, a visit to the vineyards, and then sharing the day’s program in the winery with colleagues from other departments.

What does Giovanni Pinna do for fun?
Spending my nights with friends is what brings me the most joy.

What’s something you’d like guests to know about Sella&Mosca?
I would like guests to know the Torbato wine in all its forms, from the sparkling wine Oscarì to the still Terre Bianche Cuvèe 161.

How has the pandemic changed your perspective or the way you operate?
I have to say that the pandemic hasn’t changed much my way of operating, but it has surely changed my way of thinking. It has taught me not to take anything for granted and to understand how uncertain our being is and how it can be questioned in a moment.

What’s something you’d like people to know about being an oenologist as a profession?
Of all the questions, this is definitively the one that most stimulates my response. I would like our interlocutors to understand what it really means to produce wine. I would like them to know the importance of the nature of an area for quality and how tiring it is to work the vineyard for 365 days a year, in the cold, in the wind, in the rain, in the heat. I would then like them to know how much attention the production of a good wine requires and how much experience and professionalism it takes to achieve a good result. I say this because lately, in our world, it seems to have more appeal the “let’s make it weird” way than actual professionalism and winemaking knowledge.

What’s your view on the wine scene in the area you operate?
The company I work for operates on a regional, national, and international level. I have to say that on a regional level, the wine scene has changed a lot. Less than thirty years ago in Sardinia, there were only a few wineries, and the area planted with vines was quite large. Today the paradox is that, as a result of the incentive to explant, the area has been greatly reduced, and the wineries have increased exponentially in number. I leave it to you to imagine what might have happened in the regional market.

What practices do you currently implement or hope to implement to work towards social responsibility and sustainability in the future?
The winery I work for has always paid great attention to the social aspect and sustainability. It has always had great respect for female employees. Since the early 1900s, we’ve had an important “pink quota” in the company, which also implemented several policies of support and help in favour of the workers. The environment has always been considered a resource, and the cultivation of the vineyards has been carried out in an organic or integrated way. Some of our gardens have been ranked among the best in Italy, and we also own a large natural oasis.

What’s in store for you in the upcoming months?
I expect that the wine will continue to spark the curiosity and interest it deserves and that our stakeholders will come to our estate to “experience for themselves” the quality of our work and our wines.

Read more interviews such as this one with Giovanni Pinna here, and stay up to date with the latest food and beverage happenings in KL here.