1947

THE BEGINNINGS

It all began in 1948 in the historic Osteria Forte located in San Donà di Piave. The very young Luciano Canella was given the task of supplying the wine for the restaurant by his mother, Giovanna, the owner of the restaurant.

At that time, there weren’t many options available so Luciano thought he would take a chance and create a light, easy-drinking wine himself. He got some old spuma (a type of Italian soda) bottles with mechanical tops from a local producer and he filled them with wine, adding bubbles and sweetening it himself.

1948

THE FIRST BOTTLES

The first bottles began to attract new clients at his mom’s restaurant and other local restaurants were interested in these new light, sparkling wines. So Luciano began producing and labeling his very first bottles.

1952

OUR FIRST TEAM

In 1952, Luciano realized that he could no longer produce an adequate number of bottles. So he built his first wine cellar in San Donà di Piave and formed his first team.

1958

THE DISTRIBUTION

The first Canella bottles began popping up in the best restaurants in the area and at the same time, the young Luciano understood the value of endorsements even in the 1960s. In the photo, Italian Actor Vittorio Gassman and Singer Nicola Arigliano drink a toast with Canella wines at Geremia restaurant in Mestre.

1958

THE BRAND

In addition to endorsements, which was seemingly futuristic for the era, Luciano explored the world of what today is called branding and marketing.
He immediately decided that there needed to be a logo beside the Canella name, so he transformed the C of Canella into a waiter serving wine. This logo, which has been streamlined today, is found on all of the Canella bottles.

In the first photo, Lorenzo and Alessandra Canella play on a street sign that was about to be hung on the road to Jesolo. “Alles trinken Canella weine” (meaning: “Everyone drink Canella wines.”) was an ambitious slogan aimed at the German tourists driving along the Venetian coast.

1962

The Siblings

In addition to endorsements, which was seemingly futuristic for the era, Luciano explored the world of what today is called branding and marketing.
He immediately decided that there needed to be a logo beside the Canella name, so he transformed the C of Canella into a waiter serving wine. This logo, which has been streamlined today, is found on all of the Canella bottles.

In the first photo, Lorenzo and Alessandra Canella play on a street sign that was about to be hung on the road to Jesolo. “Alles trinken Canella weine” (meaning: “Everyone drink Canella wines.”) was an ambitious slogan aimed at the German tourists driving along the Venetian coast.

1964

ADVERTISING

Canella believed in the strength of advertising from the very beginning. Here we see the first billboard experiments, which were supposed to remind tourists passing by to come back and stock up on Canella wines.
Here we see the first billboard experiments, which were supposed to remind tourists passing by to come back and stock up on Canella wines.

1988

THE BELLINI

Luciano had a brilliant idea: prepare and bottle Bellini, which was already a famous aperitif.
His idea saw great success right out of the gate, allowing the company to open the door to many international markets. Bellini is a delicate aperitif with low alcohol, representing the best of the Italian Dolce Vita.
Luciano riconosce che, per rappresentare all’estero un aperitivo italiano così iconico, ha bisogno di riproporlo nel modo più fedele e vicino alla ricetta originale.
This is where the idea to plant a peach grove in San Donà di Piave came from. Still today some of the white peaches used in our Bellinis come from here.

1991

VENICE AND THE SIBLINGS

Alessandra, Lorenzo, Nicoletta, and Monica enthusiastically and passionately run the family company.
They have an agreement with the City of Venice to use the Venice brand, chosen by Philippe Starck on the Bellini bottles. Since then, Bellini has become the protagonist of many of the most important events in Venice, from New Year’s Eve in St. Mark’s Square to the Festa del Redentore.

2000

THE CANELLA COCKTAIL LINE GROWS

A distanza di più di 30 anni, Bellini rimane tuttora il più importante aperitivo della nostra linea, ma a partire dagli anni duemila la famiglia si è allargata con altri aperitivi a base frutta, sapientemente creati e bilanciati con il nostro spumante brut.
Mimosa, con l’arancia rossa; Rossini, con le fragole provenienti dal consorzio Candonga in Basilicata e l’ultimissimo arrivato Puccini, con i mandarini del consorzio Ciaculli nel palermitano.

2017

THE THIRD GENERATION

Tommaso, figlio di Lorenzo e primo rappresentante della terza generazione, si unisce al resto della famiglia nella conduzione dell’azienda

2021

Canella recognized as historic Italian brand

As of 2021, the Canella logo became part of the prestigious registry of “Historic National Brands” – and incredibly important recognition from the Italian Ministry of Finance for brands that have always believed in Italian excellence. 

Canella was thus added to the list of names that includes Saila, Sasso oil, Forst beer, Lucano Amaro, Cirio, Sperlari, Ferrari and Antinori.

To celebrate this remarkable milestone, we made a special edition wine: A precious Valdobbiadene DOCG Prosecco Superiore, which represents all of Canella’s family experiences.

Discover more about the Historic Italian Brands Association.