Marco Montali
In this interview, Marco Montali, export manager for Siddùra winery, tells a little about his role and passion for wine and Sardinia.
What do you do?
I am the export manager for Siddùra winery. I sell our wines all over the world, everywhere I can, except in Italy, where my great colleagues in the Italian sales department take over.
How did you get into the industry?
I have always had a passion for wine, and I come from an Italian region where wine tradition is very important (Piedmont). I studied to become a sommelier. I taught as a sommelier while I was working in business development in a car company, and then – more than 15 years ago – I had the chance to become an export manager for wineries. I have worked for Siddùra for four and half years.
Share with us a story from behind the scenes.
I’d like to share the importance of the team. We meet, talk, support, help, be happy and sometimes sad together. This is important everywhere, but I think especially in a place where people take care from the green field to the bottle of wine on the table of all the world houses.
What food memory from your childhood or travels stands out?
My grandfather used to eat every evening during summertime a peach cut into pieces in a glass with red wine: that was also my first wine tasting!
My most memorable travel food anecdotes come from my luck of travelling a lot in Asia. I had the possibility to try Asian food from many parts, such as China, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Hong Kong and Singapore and pair them with wonderful wines from all over the world.
What’s the best/ worst part of your job?
The best are two: travelling and meeting people from everywhere in their amazing countries. The worst is waiting hours in the airports!
Marco Montali’s favourite food and beverage pairing?
Vermentino di Gallura DOCG as an aperitif, with seafood, but also with sushi!
What’s one of the most memorable things you’ve seen behind the scenes?
Sometimes I bring some clients to “do harvest” and pick the grapes in the vineyards. More or less, it’s the same situation every time. In the beginning, all are happy to start. However, after half an hour, everyone is very tired! Even with great charm and immense importance, it’s not relaxing work! But, for Siddùra, it’s one of the year’s most important moments.
The perfect day off would be…
A walk in the vineyards, talk to people, taste a glass of wine and see the sunset after a dive in the ocean.
A day in the life of Marco Montali is…
…busy! Travelling, contacting partners and potential clients, meeting people, trying to inform all and promote the wonderful Italian wines that I sell. Also, talking with my colleagues working in the vineyards and cellar to be always informed about the grapes’ maturation and the wine’s evolution.
What do you do for fun?
A lot of sports, meet friends, read everything and staying with my sweet son.
What’s something you’d like guests to know about Siddùra?
The big passion that every day all the team has going to work for Siddùra. The beauty of the place. And something about the most modern technologies without chemicals that we use in the winery to produce our wines.
How has the pandemic changed you, your perspective, or the way you operate?
Quite a lot, to be honest. We lost the possibility to meet often, and many parts of the business are now more complicated. Meantime the situation is getting better, and we found new ways to cooperate. However, the passion never stopped…
What’s something you’d like people to know about being an export manager as a profession?
That is one of the best jobs in the world if you like wine and travel. But that is not easy at all, and you need to be resilient!
What’s your view on the wine business in Sardinia?
In Sardinia, wine quality is growing fast, and Siddùra is one of the most beautiful examples.
What practices do you currently implement or hope to implement in the future to work towards social responsibility and sustainability?
This is a very important issue for me in general, and I think one of the reasons why I started to work for Siddùra. It’s a piece of the island where nature really explodes, where the terroir and weather are a perfect combination, and the winery decided years ago to avoid using chemical agents. Instead, they use the approach of an “integrated agricultural” system. Furthermore, Siddùra uses its own water coming from the soil and energy from the sun.
What’s in store for you in the upcoming months?
I hope the world will recover health and peace. And if so, I think and I hope to start to travel more, meet more people and promote Siddùra wines all over the globe.
Read more interviews such as this one with Marco Montali here, and stay up to date with our latest gourmet travel finds here and here.
Siddùra is in Italy, I guess.