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Cantina Sankt Pauls, a historic winery in the municipality of Eppan with 200 members and 185 hectares of cultivated vineyards, is embarking on a new course as a key player in a medium- to long-term corporate development on several fronts, both commercial and oenological.
Since the beginning of January, the winery’s sales and marketing department has been headed by Tobias Leimgruber, while oenologist Philipp Zublasing began his work at the winery in July 2023. Founded in 1907, Cantina Sankt Pauls is currently undergoing an important transitional phase, embarking on a new direction supported by the board and the cooperative’s entire membership. “We are pleased that Philipp and Tobias are part of our renewed team, and we firmly believe that this change in leadership will be a decisive catalyst for the winery’s growth. We are striving for a development that aligns with our history and values but that above all leads us into the future,” emphasizes President Bernhard Leimegger.
The challenges in the cellar have been taken on by Philipp Zublasing, born in 1985, who comes from Eppan and studied at the renowned viticulture and oenology universities of San Michele all'Adige and Geisenheim in Germany. The new cellar master brings a solid professional background from renowned foreign and South Tyrolean wineries to Sankt Pauls. “I feel honored that this large family of 200 winegrowers has chosen me to interpret the fruits of their vineyards and their dedicated daily work,” he comments. “Having grown up in Missian, a district of the municipality of Eppan and neighboring the village of St. Pauls, I feel deeply connected to the winery—and I am especially familiar with the characteristics and potential of its vineyard sites.”
Zublasing is aware of the great responsibility entrusted to him, and among the many tasks in production, his primary mission is to further develop the premium wine segment. Freshness, elegance, and tension are the cornerstones guiding his oenological work in order to further elevate the quality of Sankt Pauls wines. “In the spirit of continuity and consistency, I want to contribute to enhancing the tradition line and the selection wines by refining the character of each grape variety as much as possible—for example through more detailed vineyard parceling. I have already completed my first harvest, which I tackled just a few weeks after starting at the winery. I hit the ground running,” Zublasing says with a smile. “I can say that I’m satisfied with how it went, and I’m eagerly looking forward to presenting my first wines such as the Pinot Blanc Plötzner, a historic wine of the winery, and the Sauvignon Gfill, both of which I’m particularly pleased with. After all, wine is a matter of terroir, detail, and time.”
Zublasing will also continue the winery’s work in sustainability—Sankt Pauls has been certified under the National Quality System for Integrated Production (SQNPI) since 2023—by maintaining ongoing awareness initiatives with the winegrowers. The winery aims for a fully sustainable production. To this end, the technical team has recently decided to reduce the weight of the glass bottles across the entire wine range, starting with the 2023 vintage, which will be available on the market from April onwards.
Since early January, Tobias Leimgruber has been responsible for leading the sales and marketing department and implementing the winery’s development process step by step. Born in 1979 in Girlan, another district of Eppan, he holds a degree in business administration from Milan and a master’s degree in wine management from Bordeaux. He can look back on a 20-year international career in the wine industry, particularly abroad, where he held various commercial roles—from buyer for one of Germany’s largest and most important wine distributors to project manager for developing an international sales channel for Italian wines. His versatile commercial approach and strategic vision will help drive forward the modernization process at Sankt Pauls. “I embraced the relaunch project with great enthusiasm. There is tremendous potential here, and it is now my task to further develop the success of Cantina Sankt Pauls,” Leimgruber affirms.
The new head of sales will optimize the positioning of the wines, strengthen relationships with trade partners in Italy, and develop a growth strategy for international markets. “In addition to consolidating certain wines already known and appreciated by consumers, the goal is to open new sales channels and thereby increase market share and added value. This includes Praeclarus, our classic-method sparkling wine brand, which has already demonstrated strong success with steadily increasing production and sales volumes. And there will also be new developments in the sparkling wine sector, with the first to be presented this autumn. Many things are changing at Sankt Pauls,” he explains.
