Written by: Gino Venditti.
As my wife, Sarah, and I stood in the conference room of the B Rizzini Factory located in Marcheno, Italy, we waited for our factory tour to begin. We looked through the product catalogs laying on the conference room table, a catalog from this year and from years past containing the different makes and models of shotguns waiting to be introduced to the world. In a sense, a history of the most recent decade of product innovations and introductions lay there before us. Stacks of wood blanks lined the edge of hallway leading to the conference room as well as the room itself. The wood blanks cut to the rough shape of a shotgun stock ranged in grade from the unremarkable with very little visible wood grain or figure to those with so many curls or stripes that one would only imagine seeing it on a shotgun being sold at a collector’s high-end auction. Each hand-picked piece of Turkish walnut had a grade marking on it to help to convey the message of what the dull unfinished rough block of wood aspired to someday become. Lining the walls above the wood blanks were cabinets with rows of finished shotguns. Fine over and under and side by sides, most current and some retired models, each begging for a story to be told of days hunting in the field or that perfect round of skeet or sporting clays. Lastly, also in the middle of the conference room table sat a curious sculpture. A bronze hand holding a woodcock that had been harvested. The sculpture reminded me of the many times that I had held a grouse or a woodcock in the same manner. Admiring the bird for the difficulty of the hunt, for their every advantage in the woods, and the dog work that accompanies the point, the shot and retrieve of these remarkable birds.
After some introductions and casual talk to get acquainted, Moira Rizzini began the formal tour with a history of Battista’s company, which his children are now running while Battista has moved to a semi-retired role. Moira showed us various models of standard production guns from the cabinets lining the walls and shared some stories of the custom gun work that they have done for the fortunate customers who can afford such luxuries. We discussed the different models of B Rizzini shotguns that we have in the gun safe at home and as we mentioned each model Moira had a story for us. Before leaving the conference room for the factory, I had to ask “Moira, what’s the deal with the woodcock? You have them in so many game scenes engraved on shotguns, they are in the product catalogs, and then there’s the sculpture?” Moira paused for a moment to reflect on the question and compose her answer, “You see, the European Woodcock is regarded as the Queen of the Forrest” she explained. “It has a bit of what you might say is a cult following in Europe and Italy in particular. So much so that we and build a model of shotgun specifically for hunting them. We call it the ‘Beccaccia’ (pronounced Be-ka-chia) which translates to the word ‘woodcock’ in the English language.” “Makes sense” I said to myself – considering the ruffed grouse is regarded as the King of Game Birds – so it would only be fitting for a king to have his queen, and that it be the woodcock. I also thought of the American Woodcock having kind of a cult-like following just like the European Woodcock, after all, we have a society dedicated to the delectable little timberdoodles at home in The States.
Satisfied with this, we moved to the gun finishing room to see master craftsman fitting up barrel sets to mono block machined receivers and applying the finishing touches as the wooden stocks were mated to the metal counterparts. Some craftsmen were hand finishing wood stocks while others were ensuring smooth fit up of each gun. It all functioned like it were a well-oiled machine. We asked questions and told stories with Moira as we watched and admired the craftsman ply their trade before moving to the heart of the operation, the factory floor. As our time ended on the factory floor, having seen the process of producing a shotgun from the raw steel and wood, the CNC machines, more stacks of wood, being cut and crafted and those drying to become stocks and fore ends, Moira motioned for us to step to the side for a moment. She waved her hand and arm to an elderly man, who moved slowly but intently among the rows of machines. Was he looking for something or just inspecting the things he saw? We weren’t sure but as he saw us and Moira waving, his pace quickened and he moved in our direction. Moira introduced us to her father, Battista, the founder. He was humble and curious while we made introductions and he wanted to know what we thought of his factory and products that his company build.
Several minutes in to the discussion, Moira prompted me by saying “Tell my dad the story you shared with me of woodcock hunting at home.” Using one hand to point and the other as a makeshift map of the US, I responded “We live in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan where woodcock are abundant during the normal hunting season, but when they begin to migrate it becomes very exciting. It isn’t uncommon to find a good stand of habitat and have thirty-plus flushes in an hour of hunting.” Battista asked if I could repeat myself because he was not sure he heard me correctly. I repeated my story and he responded with “That’s what I thought I heard you say, that’s amazing. We might see thirty woodcock all year when we hunt in Italy.”
With that, our tour soon ended and Moira offered us a ride back to our hotel and some recommendations for places to have dinner that evening. Our time meeting the Rizzini family and seeing their factory is something that we will always remember. Our shared regard for the timberdoodle is also something the only further helps to connect this customer with the products we use in pursuit of a joint passion.
