Novellino: Let's drink to it!

MANILA, Philippines - Remember the grape-stomping scene in a vineyard in the romantic drama A Walk In The Clouds starring Keanu Reeves? It’s been a favorite scene in one of the memorable Hollywood films that have spotlighted wineries and winemaking. But the winemaking process or production has gone a lot sophisticated than that, and no longer confined in the vineyards of known or oft-featured winemaking regions. 

The Filipino-owned Bel Mondo Italia Corp., makers of the best-selling Novellino Wines, is launching a new winemaking facility in the country today at the Carmelray Industrial Park in Laguna. The facility is expected to increase the company’s wine production capability as well as storage capacity in the light of increased local consumption and recent expansion efforts.

This is just the latest highlight in Novellino’s success streak, which is credited to the vision of founder Vicente “Nonoy” Quimbo. Novellino was introduced in 1999 by Quimbo who wanted to pioneer large-scale wine production in the Philippines backed by his unbridled belief that Filipinos could embrace wine. Quimbo said that there was an absence of wine in the local cultural tradition, attributed to several reasons like product unfamiliarity, premium price (real and perceived) and the bitter “tannic” or dry taste of traditional wines.

“When we started the business, the opportunity that we saw was the gap between the image of wine which is very high (and the consumption). When you say wine, the things that come into mind are romance, culture, travel, but if the image of wine is so high and so good, why is the consumption so low compared to beer, brandy and other drinks? So, there’s a big disconnect. Parang babae, ang ganda-ganda niya, ang ganda ng image, pero walang manliligaw. Di ba may ganun? That’s where it all started. We thought we would have wine that would cater to the Filipino taste,” Quimbo tells The STAR.

Novellino Wines has created a niche with its unique sweet taste

So Bel Mondo adjusted the taste so that Novellino will be enjoyed by Filipinos who prefer sweet over bitter. The wines cost lower with the basic ones priced at roughly P200 a bottle. The company reached out to the market by offering extensive sampling in its starting years. 

Today, Novellino, named after the winemaking town of Novello in Italy’s Piedmont region, also the location of Asti (which should be familiar to wine drinkers for being a source of sweet, sparkling wines) is the market leader in the country. 

And the brand is no longer just catering to Filipinos. Novellino has ventured into foreign markets like “wine country” California in 2006, meeting the very high standards the US has set for imported wines; as well as Vietnam starting 2008, and the United Arab Emirates.

Novellino currently has a total of 14 sweet and dry variants to meet the sweet, soft and sparkling tastes. They are made from 100-percent pure and natural Vinifera grapes harvested from choice vineyards in Asti.

Novellino follows the strict traditions of Italian winemaking with Franco Nosenzo, an Italian oenologist (that’s how you call one who’s educated in the science of making of wines) who belongs to a long line of wine-makers, in charge of the production in the state-of-the-art Carmelray plant.

The 1.3-hectare winery houses Bel Mondo’s production equipment sourced from Italy plus R&D and storage facilities. Quimbo said it’s actually more expensive setting up a plant in the Philippines, but they wanted to have more control over the production. It will open today with Sen. Manny Villar as guest of honor.

Novellino has also been tapped for a special participation in a primetime series, obviously a nod to Pinoys’ growing appreciation for wine. Let’s drink to that!