Gancia
A brief history
Gancia, historical brand of the Italian wine sector, is an excellence of the “Made in Italy”. Carlo Gancia, the founder of the company in 1850, has transferred his energy and his interest in research and experimentation in Gancia, who in over 175 years of business, has always been one of the most innovative Italian companies.
In 1848, Carlo left Piedmont to go to Reims, the capital of the champagne production, where he studies and learns the technique of the champagne processing method: the champenois method. In 1850, he comes back in Piedmont and with his brother Edoardo founds in Chivasso the ""Fratelli Gancia"", to start to produce a wine like champagne, but using the Moscato grapes. For 15 years, Carlo experiences the production of champagne with Moscato grapes, until he can find the right balance: the ""First Italian Sparkling Wine"" was born in 1865. The Gancia Moscato champagne began to be known on the market and by the end of 1866 the first exports abroad began.
With the Gancia family, the industrialists of Canelli contributed to the formation of an industrial and agricultural model that was completely new in the panorama of Italian economic history.
Casa Gancia must also be recognized for having created the first Moscato-based White Vermouth at the end of XIX° century and for having led the battle for the abandonment of foreign names for our products and for the ""Asti"" denomination for Moscato-based sparkling wine, which became reality in 1931.
In 1870, Gancia receive the ""Regio Stemma"" by the King Vittorio Emanuele. The company begins to participate in national and international competitions and gets the first awards and prizes at exhibitions in Vienna in 1873 and Paris in 1878. Gancia became to be recognized as ""the only Italian industrial Company producer of Champagne"". Later they received the most important title of the time: ""Servitori della Real Casa"" and ""Provveditori di Sua Maestà il Re""
In 1915, Gancia is gaining notoriety. During the twenties, it starts a strong collaboration between Gancia and one of the most important Italian artists, Leonetto Cappiello, who made a series of three posters inspired at the time.
In 1950, the fourth generation with Vittorio and Lorenzo Vallarino Gancia starts to work in the company. For the centenary of the birth of the company, a new logo, and a new product, ""Gancia Rosso"" (today Gancia Americano) are launched and the French artist Lucien Cayol realized the advertising poster ""the Aperitif Centenaire"".
In 1980 was born Pinot di Pinot, the first sparkling wine made from a unique recipe of three pinot grapes (white, black and gray), proposed as an aperitif and protagonist of various commercial spots and sponsorships: in the nineties it becomes the official sponsor of many offshore races in Italy and abroad.
The fifth generation creates ambitious projects such as the renovation in 2003 of the Gancia historical cellars, an underground journey of suggestive tunnels stretching for kilometers, where it started the project that brought the landscapes of Langhe-Roero and Monferrato and the Historical Cellars to become a World Heritage Site in 2014.
In 2011, the fifth generation Gancia transfers the ownership to Roustam Tariko, well known Russian businessman owner of the Russian Standard Vodka. His goal is to return to the origins, to the history and the heritage of Gancia, implementing the attention to the product development and the synergy between modern and traditional know-how technology.
In 2025 Gancia celebrates 175 years of history, a history that speaks of passion, research, territory, respect for traditions and which is combined with the history of Italy since before its unification. From this strong identity comes the style of Gancia, which from the very beginning has been able to establish itself as a symbol of quality and authenticity, aiming to play a leading role in the international sparkling wines and aperitifs market.
In 1848, Carlo left Piedmont to go to Reims, the capital of the champagne production, where he studies and learns the technique of the champagne processing method: the champenois method. In 1850, he comes back in Piedmont and with his brother Edoardo founds in Chivasso the ""Fratelli Gancia"", to start to produce a wine like champagne, but using the Moscato grapes. For 15 years, Carlo experiences the production of champagne with Moscato grapes, until he can find the right balance: the ""First Italian Sparkling Wine"" was born in 1865. The Gancia Moscato champagne began to be known on the market and by the end of 1866 the first exports abroad began.
With the Gancia family, the industrialists of Canelli contributed to the formation of an industrial and agricultural model that was completely new in the panorama of Italian economic history.
Casa Gancia must also be recognized for having created the first Moscato-based White Vermouth at the end of XIX° century and for having led the battle for the abandonment of foreign names for our products and for the ""Asti"" denomination for Moscato-based sparkling wine, which became reality in 1931.
In 1870, Gancia receive the ""Regio Stemma"" by the King Vittorio Emanuele. The company begins to participate in national and international competitions and gets the first awards and prizes at exhibitions in Vienna in 1873 and Paris in 1878. Gancia became to be recognized as ""the only Italian industrial Company producer of Champagne"". Later they received the most important title of the time: ""Servitori della Real Casa"" and ""Provveditori di Sua Maestà il Re""
In 1915, Gancia is gaining notoriety. During the twenties, it starts a strong collaboration between Gancia and one of the most important Italian artists, Leonetto Cappiello, who made a series of three posters inspired at the time.
In 1950, the fourth generation with Vittorio and Lorenzo Vallarino Gancia starts to work in the company. For the centenary of the birth of the company, a new logo, and a new product, ""Gancia Rosso"" (today Gancia Americano) are launched and the French artist Lucien Cayol realized the advertising poster ""the Aperitif Centenaire"".
In 1980 was born Pinot di Pinot, the first sparkling wine made from a unique recipe of three pinot grapes (white, black and gray), proposed as an aperitif and protagonist of various commercial spots and sponsorships: in the nineties it becomes the official sponsor of many offshore races in Italy and abroad.
The fifth generation creates ambitious projects such as the renovation in 2003 of the Gancia historical cellars, an underground journey of suggestive tunnels stretching for kilometers, where it started the project that brought the landscapes of Langhe-Roero and Monferrato and the Historical Cellars to become a World Heritage Site in 2014.
In 2011, the fifth generation Gancia transfers the ownership to Roustam Tariko, well known Russian businessman owner of the Russian Standard Vodka. His goal is to return to the origins, to the history and the heritage of Gancia, implementing the attention to the product development and the synergy between modern and traditional know-how technology.
In 2025 Gancia celebrates 175 years of history, a history that speaks of passion, research, territory, respect for traditions and which is combined with the history of Italy since before its unification. From this strong identity comes the style of Gancia, which from the very beginning has been able to establish itself as a symbol of quality and authenticity, aiming to play a leading role in the international sparkling wines and aperitifs market.
