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2019 Lagrein Riserva “Di Ora in Ora”
Ferruccio CarlottoWe had been searching for a Lagrein like this for years before we came across Carlotto’s gorgeous rendition almost a decade ago. Michela Carlotto had taken the Lagrein (la-GRINE) grape—known for producing rustic, dense, and tannic reds—and eked an incredible beauty from it through earlier harvests and shorter macerations. This cuvée is dark-fruited velvet in a bottle.
—Tom Wolf
Wine Type: | red |
Vintage: | 2019 |
Bottle Size: | 750mL |
Blend: | Lagrein |
Appellation: | Alto Adige |
Country: | Italy |
Region: | Alto Adige |
Producer: | Ferruccio Carlotto |
Winemaker: | Ferruccio Carlotto |
Vineyard: | Planted in 1946, 2003, 2006, 2012, 1.8 ha |
Soil: | Porphyry, Limestone, Clay, Alluvial stones |
Aging: | Aged in large, older oak botte, very small percentage aged in new oak barrique |
Farming: | Sustainable |
Alcohol: | 13.5% |
More from this Producer or Region
2020 Alto Adige Pinot Nero “Mazzon”
Italy | Alto Adige
Always one of the dreamiest versions of the variety we import—ethereal and bright, with notes of orange peel and pink peppercorn.
2019 Alto Adige Merlot-Cabernet Franc
Italy | Alto Adige
Merlot and Cabernet Franc born from such high altitudes display classic cedar, graphite, and black cherry notes, but with smooth, velvety tannins that bely the bottle’s youthful age.
2022 Südtirol Eisacktaler Sylvaner
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This Sylvaner, from high in the Dolomites, is a finely channeled mountain breeze, an exercise in textural delicacy that will leave your palate tingling with the sensation of crispy minerals.
2022 Südtirol Eisacktaler Müller Thurgau “Sass Rigais”
Italy | Alto Adige
An absolute live wire of a white grown at high elevation in the shadow of jagged Dolomite peaks.
2017 Alto Adige Merlot-Cabernet Sauvignon “Iugum”
Italy | Alto Adige
Notes of Cassis, black cherries, and espresso draw you into the glass and keep you coming back to decipher what makes this cuvée and terroir so special.
2016 Alto Adige Merlot-Cabernet Sauvignon “Iugum”
Italy | Alto Adige
Notes of Cassis, black cherries, and espresso draw you into the glass and keep you coming back to decipher what makes this cuvée and terroir so special.
2022 Südtirol Eisacktaler Grüner Veltliner
Italy | Alto Adige
A vibrant, crisp, taut, white grown at over 600 meters in granite soil in the very northern part of Italy.
2021 Südtirol Eisacktaler Grüner Veltliner
Italy | Alto Adige
A vibrant, crisp, taut, white grown at over 600 meters in granite soil in the very northern part of Italy.
2022 Südtirol Eisacktaler Kerner
Italy | Alto Adige
No lack of minerality in this perfumed white from the Italy-Austria border.
2022 Südtirol Eisacktaler Riesling
Italy | Alto Adige
Crisp and lean with mouthwatering minerality, Nössing’s Riesling is one of great finesse and precision.
About The Producer
Ferruccio Carlotto
Feruccio Carlotto and his daughter Michela farm a tiny estate of several hectares in the Alto-Adige town of Ora, south of Bolzano. The special of this village is Lagrein, a red grape that is native to the region. They chose to produce only one Lagrein Riserva that is aged in large oak casks. They also make a small amount of Pinot Nero that is made in a very fine, elegant style, with a feathery touch. We were pleasantly surprised when we were able to talk the Carlottos into selling us a pallet for the United States. Unfortunately there are not much of these finely crafted beauties to go around but if you can get your hands on a few cases, you will be experiencing some of the best of what Alto Adige has to offer the wine world.
About The Region
Alto Adige
In the heart of the Dolomites, Alto Adige is Italy’s northernmost wine region. Having changed hands multiples times in its history between Italy and the Austro-Hungarian Empire (it shares a border with Austria), it boasts strong Germanic influence on its culture, language, cuisine, as well as its wines.
The mountainous geography is the principal determinant of local winemaking styles, with the high-altitude vineyards and cool Alpine climate favoring primarily crisp, racy, aromatic whites from varieties like Kerner, Sauvignon, Müller Thurgau, and Grüner Veltliner. A Mediterranean influence on climate is channeled north up the valley until Bolzano, permitting the cultivation of certain reds as well, among which Schiava, Lagrein, Pinot Nero, and Merlot fare best.
Small growers who once sold fruit to the area’s multiple co-ops are now increasingly bottling their own wines. The arrival of many quality-oriented artisans on the scene caught our eye years ago, and we now count three estates from Südtirol, as it is also known, in our portfolio. These high-acid mountain wines make for a beautifully invigorating aperitivo with thinly sliced speck, a local specialty.
More from Alto Adige or Italy
2019 Alto Adige Sauvignon “Voglar”
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2022 Südtirol Eisacktaler Kerner
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2022 Südtirol Eisacktaler Sylvaner
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2022 Südtirol Eisacktaler Riesling
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2020 Alto Adige Pinot Nero “Mazzon”
Ferruccio Carlotto Italy | Alto Adige
2016 Alto Adige Merlot-Cabernet Sauvignon “Iugum”
Peter Dipoli Italy | Alto Adige
2017 Alto Adige Merlot-Cabernet Sauvignon “Iugum”
Peter Dipoli Italy | Alto Adige
2021 Südtirol Eisacktaler Grüner Veltliner
Manni Nössing Italy | Alto Adige
2022 Südtirol Eisacktaler Grüner Veltliner
Manni Nössing Italy | Alto Adige
2015 Alto Adige Merlot-Cabernet Sauvignon “Iugum”
Peter Dipoli Italy | Alto Adige
2019 Alto Adige Merlot-Cabernet Franc
Peter Dipoli Italy | Alto Adige
2022 Südtirol Eisacktaler Müller Thurgau “Sass Rigais”
Manni Nössing Italy | Alto Adige
2019 Alto Adige Sauvignon “Voglar”
Peter Dipoli Italy | Alto Adige
2022 Südtirol Eisacktaler Kerner
Manni Nössing Italy | Alto Adige
2022 Südtirol Eisacktaler Sylvaner
Manni Nössing Italy | Alto Adige
2022 Südtirol Eisacktaler Riesling
Manni Nössing Italy | Alto Adige
2020 Alto Adige Pinot Nero “Mazzon”
Ferruccio Carlotto Italy | Alto Adige
2016 Alto Adige Merlot-Cabernet Sauvignon “Iugum”
Peter Dipoli Italy | Alto Adige
2017 Alto Adige Merlot-Cabernet Sauvignon “Iugum”
Peter Dipoli Italy | Alto Adige
2021 Südtirol Eisacktaler Grüner Veltliner
Manni Nössing Italy | Alto Adige
2022 Südtirol Eisacktaler Grüner Veltliner
Manni Nössing Italy | Alto Adige
2015 Alto Adige Merlot-Cabernet Sauvignon “Iugum”
Peter Dipoli Italy | Alto Adige
2019 Alto Adige Merlot-Cabernet Franc
Peter Dipoli Italy | Alto Adige
2022 Südtirol Eisacktaler Müller Thurgau “Sass Rigais”
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Kermit once said...
Kermit once said...
I want you to realize once and for all: Even the winemaker does not know what aging is going to do to a new vintage; Robert Parker does not know; I do not know. We all make educated (hopefully) guesses about what the future will bring, but guesses they are. And one of the pleasures of a wine cellar is the opportunity it provides for you to witness the evolution of your various selections. Living wines have ups and downs just as people do, periods of glory and dog days, too. If wine did not remind me of real life, I would not care about it so much.
Inspiring Thirst, page 171