Country: Italy
Region: Emilia-Romagna
Color/Style: Sparkling
Grapes: Lambrusco, Malbo Gentile, Sgavetta
SO2: No sulfur added to the wine
Soil Composition: Gravel, Sand
Farming: Organic (certified)
Age of vines: Planted in 2001 and 2008
Exposure: East
Fining/Filtration: Unfined/Unfiltered
Fun facts: The exact blend and grapes of this wine are as follows: Lambrusco grasparossa (30%), Lambrusco di montericco (30%), Malbo Gentile (20%), Sgavetta (20%). The name of the wine translates to "under the woods".
Appellation: Emilia IGT
Winemaking: Fermentation and maceration on the skins in vats for 15 days. Grape must is mixed back in with the base wine before bottling. Fermentation continues in the bottle and takes about three months, resulting in a natural carbonation.
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Cà de Noci was established in 1993 by brothers Giovanni and Alberto Masini on their family’s estate near Reggio Emilia. For more than thirty years, the family has had a walnut forest on the property (hence the name “Walnut Farm”). In the 700’s, the province of Emilia-Romagna was known to have over 100 different grape varieties. The Masinis wanted to plant local, traditional grapes that were slowly disappearing, among them Spergola, Malbo Gentile and Montericco.
The vines are planted in five hectares of rocky limestone soil along the Crostolo river. The dryness, and general poorness of the soils help give these grapes all their powerful flavor and minerality. All the vines were planted in the 90’s and are therefore fairly young. They are cultivated using certified organic methods and only minimal treatments of natural copper/sulfate and biodynamic decoctions from plant or animal sources are used.
The grapes are hand-harvested in small caskets at maximum ripeness, with healthy skins, then destemmed and left in vats in the cool outside air overnight for extraction. The caps are punched down in the morning and the maceration on the skins continues for a long period, for some wines more than a week. The grapes are then pressed on a manual press and racked into wood barrels or neutral vats. The wines are aged without filtration or fining and S02 is never added.
The wines should be served at cellar temperature (56 degrees F) and poured somewhat gently. Enjoy these with a range of dishes, but fatty meats and dry sausages are winners.
- Louis/Dressner