La Basia Valtenesi La Botte Piena 2019
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Aged in concrete tanks and bottled unfiltered, it benefits from a slight chill: with loads of fresh fruit, a peppery crunch, bright acidity, and light, smooth tannins, this under-the-radar rosso is about as gulpable as they come.
La Basia was founded by the late Elena Parona, an agronomist who transformed the humble country estate into a vibrant farm producing olive oil, honey, corn for polenta, flour, and many other artisanal products in addition to wines made from indigenous grapes. Elena’s son Giacomo, who now runs the winemaking operation, is equally passionate about preserving local traditions and continues to bottle hand-crafted wines from the western shores of Lake Garda. This hilly area of Lombardia benefits from both the warming effect of the nearby lake as well as cooling winds from the mountains to the north.
The indigenous Groppello grape takes center stage in “La Botte Piena,” a light-bodied red that falls into the Valtènesi DOC. Another local red variety, Marzemino, makes up the “Le Morene” bottling—a fuller-bodied effort with bountiful berry and spice notes that retains the easy-drinking spirit common to all of La Basia’s wines. These straightforward, pleasure-filled wines are a testament to the potential of this unheralded region as well as to Giacomo’s passion for the family farm.
Disenchanted with Italian winemaking laws in the 1970s, a few rebellious Tuscan winemakers decided to get creative. Instead of following tradition, to bottle Sangiovese by itself, they started blending it with international varieties, namely Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Syrah in differing proportions and with amazing success. However, some Tuscan Blends don’t even include Sangiovese. Somm Secret—The suffix –aia in Italian modifies a word in much the same way –y acts in English. For example, a place with many stones (sassi) becomes Sassicaia. While not all Super Tuscan producer names end in –aia, they all share a certain coy nomenclature.
Containing an exciting mix of wine producing subregions, Lombardy is Italy’s largest in size and population. Good quality Pinot noir, Bonarda and Barbera have elevated the reputation of the plains of Oltrepò Pavese. To its northeast in the Alps, Valtellina is the source of Italy’s best Nebbiolo wines outside of Piedmont. Often missed in the shadow of Prosecco, Franciacorta produces collectively Italy’s best Champagne style wines, and for the fun and less serious bubbly, find Lambrusco Mantovano around the city of Mantua. Lugana, a dry white with a devoted following, is produced to the southwest of Lake Garda.