From no route to market to a brand built on the old vines.
A modern-classic estate in the Veneto, defined by old vines, native varieties and a progressive approach to vineyard preservation.
Villa Bogdano had everything a serious white wine estate needs:
historic vineyards, a native variety and a genuine commitment to the land.
None of it came through clearly. The story had no centre and the range pointed in two directions, so buyers had nothing simple to hold on to.
Villa Bogdano did not lack a story. It had too many competing for attention: Origins, Old Vines, Organic Farming, biodiversity, Tocai Friulano Giallo, Cassone Padovano, a mother field. The old vine was part of the story, but not the centre of it.
Prosecco and entry-level wines sat alongside the historic whites. To a UK buyer, a Prosecco producer does not read as a serious white wine estate, and that worked against any long-term positioning.
Without a focused story there was nothing for an importer to sell and nothing for a journalist to write about. When we started looking at the UK two years ago, the estate had no distributor, effectively no export sales and no editorial coverage.
These were the problems we set out to solve. Fixing them meant fixing the brand first, then opening the market: leading the conversations with WineTraders.com, now the winery's distributor, and putting the story in front of UK press and buyers.
We shifted the focus to what was already there: historic Tocai Friulano vineyards, rare examples of the Cassone Padovano training system, certified-organic farming, biodiversity and a long-term programme of massal selection and viticultural research.
The challenge was to transform this depth into a clearer brand, a more coherent visual identity that fitted the new brand direction and a market presence capable of supporting the estate's ambitions.
We started with the product line. Prosecco and the lower tiers were taken out of every presentation, and the estate was repositioned around its historic Tocai Friulano Giallo vineyards: living vineyard heritage, studied and worked with rather than preserved as a monument.
We repositioned Villa Bogdano around the idea of living vineyard heritage: vines not preserved as static monuments, but studied, worked with, and used to build a more resilient future.
Once the strategic foundation was established, we aligned the estate's principal touchpoints into one coherent system, in sequence.
Mission, pillars, logo, colour, type and layout: a living system, not decorative rules.
The historic Diana symbol retained, with more prominence given to the estate name.
History, vineyards, wines and sustainability brought into one narrative.
Coherence across the range while each wine keeps its own role and character.
Ceremony, context and recognition for trade and private clients.
A narrative built on rarity, survival and the genetic continuity of the vines.
“Villa Bogdano exists to preserve the living heritage of its historic vineyards while exploring how that heritage can shape the future.”
Protecting the estate's living vineyard heritage and the biodiversity surrounding it.
Taking the slower, more demanding path when it produces something more distinctive and enduring.
Exploring new ideas in viticulture and winemaking through science, observation and intuition.
Colour, type and the logo were rebuilt from the estate itself, so every application reads as one brand.
Drawn from the estate and its physical environment, restrained enough for premium communication, distinctive enough to build recognition.
Headlines and expressive brand moments.
Headlines and expressive brand moments.
The historic Diana symbol, derived from an archaeological discovery on the estate, was retained. We refined the composition to give more space and prominence to the Villa Bogdano name.
For this limited release of 400 bottles, we designed the case around a simple cellar truth: when stored, the most visible part is the front edge.
For Cento we designed a dedicated logo and iconography for the front of the box. The sides use the two colours that now run through the whole estate, kept simple and clear so the box is recognisable at a distance and on a shelf.
In London we hosted a series of events for journalists and a dedicated event for buyers. Each was built around one idea, a selected audience and a narrative sequence from estate to vineyard to glass.
"Is there a market for quality aged Italian white wine?" A panel of buyers, merchants, sommeliers and consultants brought together with The Buyer. The result was informed market feedback rather than applause: price-to-quality, distribution, awareness of Lison DOCG.
One wine, one native variety, one vineyard story. A private dinner for a selected group of professionals, moving from the estate's direction to the historic vines, Tocai Friulano Giallo, the Cassone Padovano system and finally Cento.
A private tasting with journalist Tamlyn Currin of JancisRobinson.com.
Resulting in Cento being among the highest-scoring white wines on Jancis Robinson.
Before the engagement there were effectively no sales in the UK. Two years on the wines have a distributor, regular deliveries and listings in quality London restaurants.
The focus moved away from Prosecco and the lower tiers to the old vine alone. The result is a brand whose USP can be understood in one sentence, and a story trade and press can repeat.
The partnership is ongoing. With the foundations in place, the next phase builds momentum through PR, events and activations, alongside the launch of the new website.
