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Villa Buen Retiro
Photo Credit: Me
The Italian Swiss Colony, a once famous winemaking company, is an essential historical piece of my family’s history and culture. The president and origional head winemaker of the company, Pietro C. Rossi is my great, great, great, great, grandfather, and he worked with founder Andrea Sbarboro to found the winemaking company.
Rossi built a summer vacation home for his wife and 14 children in the small town of Asti, California, where the Italian Swiss Colony was established. To this day, my dad’s side of the family continues to visit the house and it is one of my favorite places to go. The home, named Villa Buen Retiro, meaning “The house of Good Rest,” holds so many special memories that I share with all of my relatives.
Pietro’s work in the winemaking industry had a lasting impact on many wine companies today, as the Italian Swiss Colony was such a leader in history. His influence has affected many of the most well-known wineries today, big and small.
Establishment of the Italian Swiss Colony
Establishment of the Italian Swiss Colony
The long process of growing the Italian Swiss Colony began with its establishment in 1881. Andrea Sbarboro was the founder of the wine company, the Italian Swiss Colony, and worked with winemaker Pietro C Rossi. Together, they developed a company which had later evolved to become one of the most well-known wineries, worldwide.
The colony was established in a small town, named Asti, in the year 1881, and was located in the Russian River Valley. Sbarboro and Rossi both grew up in the city of San Francisco, which was only 85 miles south of Asti.
It is stated by the Italian Culture Club of San Francisco that, “They named the place Asti in homage to the town in Piemonte and its surrounding area, famous for Barbera, Grignolino, Moscato and, of course, Asti Spumante.” Piemonte is an Italian town, where many Italian Swiss Colony immigrants moved from, and settled near San Francisco.
Throughout the colony’s existence, a special period and growth of winemaking history was marked.
Rossi and Sbarboro
Rossi and Sbarboro
The two leaders of the Italian Swiss Colony, Pietro C. Rossi and Andrea Sbarboro were influential in the winemaking industry and huge contributors to the business they established.
Andrea Sbarboro, founder of the Italian Swiss Colony, had been compelled to build it in order to assist Italian immigrants who were suffering through troubling business conflicts. Those immigrants moved to San Francisco, where Sbarboro intended to hire skilled employees that were familiar with the wine business.
Pietro C. Rossi began in the company by working on simple wine recipes and later worked his way up to being chief winemaker. His crafted wines soon evolved into very unique and delicious bottles that people from around the world wanted to taste. Rossi watched over the entire winemaking process, which led him to the president position, as Sbarboro continued as the company’s secretary.
When Rossi passed away in an accident in 1911, the land was sold to his son’s who continued the family based business. Andrea Sbarboro later passed away from a sickness in 1923, leaving the business in the hands of Pietro’s sons.
The Italian Swiss Colony Evolves
The Italian Swiss Colony Evolves
The Italian Swiss Colony began as such a small patch of vineyards, and over time, became a worldwide wine exporter.
The Italian Culture Club of San Francisco informs that “During the dark days of Prohibition from 1920 to 1933, it was reconstituted as the Asti Grape Products Company, selling grapes, grape juice and grape concentrate for home winemakers at the 200-gallon-per household legal Unit”
Prohibition was a law passed that prevented alcohol from being manufactured and sold, which heavily impacted the Italian Swiss Colony. However, Prohibition was repealed in 1933, which is when the Italian Swiss Colony began to develop their first tasting room.
TIPO was their most promoted wine, which could be bought red or white and was sold in a false chianti fiaschi. This wine was the most advertised and well known wine that they sold.
The decline of the company was caused by new wineries that learned the way of business and quickly caught up to the Italian Swiss Colony. E & J Gallo Winery pushed the ISC to its limits, until it could no longer keep up. The colony was soon sold under E & J Gallo Winery, where its name was left behind.
The Art of Advertising
The Art of Advertising
One of the main factors that led to the Italian Swiss Colony’s growth was their effort put into advertising worldwide and especially in California.
Postcards were a very unique piece of the ISC that many people loved to collect and gather as they visited. Painted scenes of the vineyards and their wines were placed on the front of each card.
Calendars were another particularly common form of advertisement, as they were appealing, showed off the item, and made people want to display them in their homes. Many people purchased calendars that would look nice in their homes and could be of use to the buyers.
The more known the artist was, the more people would be compelled to purchase their artwork. Lots of postcards and paintings were made for the Italian Swiss Colony, made by well known artists, so that they would want to come back and receive new ones. A variety of covers on the cards is what really grabbed customers’ attention. Millions were sold and mailed to buyers who found interest in the cards.
As promoting the Italian Swiss Colony became a major factor in maintaining customer service, they were the first to publicize largely through television. This form of advertising brought about many tourists to the small town, because it became more and more known.
A most famous wine of the Italian Swiss Colony was their red and white TIPO wine, which was on the front of one of their most widely purchased postcards.
1962 was a major year for the ISC, as 5,000 gallons of wine were tasted by around 400,000 visitors. They had opened a tasting room in the 1930’s, which brought people to visit from all over the world. Following the famous attraction of Disneyland, the Italian Swiss Colony had once been following right behind as the second most visited destination in California, through many complimentary souvenirs and experiences they offered.
Who could have predicted that a very small town once had such a large piece of the winemaking industry’s history? Compared to its hidden history now, the Italian Swiss Colony is not very well known now, but it will still always be one of the most influential wine companies to have ever been established, paving ways for so many of the world’s top wine producers today. Its many aspects of art and tourism make it such an interesting piece of history to learn about!
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