Our story
They chose the South not out of roots or nostalgia, but because they knew how to look beyond—where others saw only a time that would never return.
Some stories begin with a bold, almost visionary decision.
Others grow quietly, crossing places, people, and generations, until they become something solid.
The story of the Cantele family belongs to the latter.
Its roots trace back to Northern Italy, in a time marked by war and uncertainty. Giovanni Battista Cantele, originally from Pramaggiore in Veneto, moved to Imola for work. That’s where he met Teresa Manara, a reserved and grounded woman from Romagna. They married, and together chose to look south—toward a land that, at the time, promised little, but had much to offer for those who knew how to listen.
After the war, Giovanni began working in wine. He started in the trade, buying bulk wine in Puglia and selling it in the North. He traveled often, came to know the Salento countryside, and learned to read the gestures of the local growers.
One day, Teresa decided to join him on one of his trips. When she arrived in Salento, she understood—clearly and instinctively—that this was a place worth staying.
And so they did.
The children grew up in a family that had learned to blend the industrious spirit of the North with the instinctive nature of the South.
Augusto, the eldest, chose the path of winemaking. He studied enology in Conegliano Veneto, trained in Northern wineries, and developed a strong passion for white wines—at a time when Puglia was seen as a land suited only to reds.
His brother Domenico took a different route, pursuing studies in economics. It was a decisive choice—one that would prove essential in giving the family project structure, stability, and an entrepreneurial vision.
In the 1970s, Augusto returned to Puglia. He began working as a technical consultant, sharing the knowledge he had gained through years of study and experience with numerous local wineries.
He worked between Guagnano and Salice Salentino, carrying with him the belief that even in this corner of Italy, it was possible to produce quality wines—through technical precision, deep understanding, and respect for the land.
In 1979, together with their father Giovanni and his brother Domenico, Augusto founded the Cantele winery.
In the beginning, the company did not own any vineyards. It worked with carefully selected grapes from trusted growers, focused on meticulous winemaking, and embraced a style that was clean, linear, and essential. Over the years—and especially in the early 1990s—the first hectares of vineyards were purchased.
The winery’s identity began to take shape: the range of wines expanded, the production philosophy became clearer, and a vision emerged—one that saw technical precision not as an end, but as a tool to express the character of the land.
Throughout this journey, the presence of Teresa Manara remained central. Hers is a story that continues to be told—a quiet but decisive influence, capable of guiding choices with measured gestures and rare words. One of the winery’s signature wines, the Teresa Manara Chardonnay, was named after her—not as a sentimental tribute, but as a meaningful recognition of the role she played in this story.
Today, the winery is led by the third generation, which blends family heritage with a thoughtful, forward-looking vision.
Gianni and Paolo, sons of Augusto, along with Umberto and Luisa, children of Domenico, work together to uphold the original philosophy while interpreting it through a contemporary lens—attentive to the market, to climate change, and to an evolving wine culture.
They do so without losing sight of what matters most: respect for the land, care for the work, and the understanding that wine is, above all, a story of people. Over time, the winery has earned a steady and credible place in the Apulian wine scene, contributing—alongside others—to the region’s qualitative and cultural growth. Not through shortcuts, nor with aggressive marketing tactics, but through continuity, consistency, and a family vision built to last.
It’s a story that lives in faces, vineyards, and wines. And one that continues, every day, to seek the right way to be told.
