Monte Del Fra, Custoza White Italian Wine, 75cl

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was a complex year, we had to face it with all our commitment and will,” says president Roberta Bricolo. “Despite this, it was a positive year in which knowledge of Custoza wine and the perception of its value grew. An easy panoramic path to Custoza starts from the church square of San Pietro in Vinculis. Near the church, there is convenient parking and signs for the paths of Custoza. The path of the Tamburino Sardo is a circular path of about 3 km, pleasant and immersed in the vineyards that take its name from the story of a brave boy, the legendary Tamburino Sardo, whose sacrifice was narrated by Edmondo de Amicis in the book “Heart.” Slightly further south and more to the east, we get montepulciano coming in, which again has some of these lovely red-berry fruit flavours, but slightly lower tannin levels. ORIGIN: also known as Tocai Friulano or Tocai Italico, Trebbianello is a vine that claims at least two centuries of Italian character. Recent studies by the Experimental Institute for Viticulture have identified it as sauvignonasse, an old Bordeaux vine where it has practically disappeared. Monte Veronese is a semi-hard cheese made from cow's milk that is traditionally manufactured in the province of Verona, in the Veneto region of northern Italy. Custoza wines' full-bodied or even fortified wines go nicely with it. Sea combinations

As with the ‘straight’ Custoza, there really isn’t an issue around vintages. We’ve been raving about this particular wine since the 2013 vintage. You could buy a case of the 2021 (which is what I most recently tasted) and drink a bottle a year and I’d put money on the prediction that every time you taste it, the wine will be glorious. In fact, I’d like nothing better than to taste a vertical of this wine. It is worth way more than twice the price it commands. Sip for sip, it’s even more insanely under-priced than their estate Custoza. Pale lemon yellow, with pear, and citrus aromatics, and some fresh apple. Palate has some textural weight, being slightly oily, with some ripe pear, then crisp apple and citrus on the finish, which is a touch salty, dry and gently phenolic. This is a bright, good-value, unoaked, fresh white with some character. Mechanical technologies are used to contain weeds, avoiding the use of herbicides, and more than 35% of the Custoza vineyard area is cultivated under organic certification or SQNPI, with sustainable techniques.According to the guidelines, Custoza DOC is obtained from at least 70% of the three symbolic local grapes: Garganega, first mentioned in 1495 by De Crescenzi, Trebbianello (a local biotype of Friulian Tocai, present in Veneto and Friuli as early as the eighteenth century and corresponding to the French Sauvignonasse) and Bianca Fernanda (a local clone of Cortese). A pale lemon yellow wine with a delicate fresh youthful nose of lemon, apple and touch of pear. The palate also mixes notes of citrus, apple and pear fruit, in this clean, light, fresh, dry, balanced, simple but refreshing and well made white; good value too.

The designation includes nine municipalities: Sommacampagna, Villafranca di Verona, Valeggio sul Mincio, Peschiera del Garda, Castelnuovo Veronese, Sona, Bussolengo, Pastrengo, Lazise. Vinification: Right after the harvest, the grapes are destemmed and pressed. Only Fernanda, due to its semi-aromatic nature, is macerated before being pressed. The musts, after being clarified through static decantation, are fermented at 16-17°C. Malolactic fermentation is inhibited. The yeasts, which are regularly stirred, are not removed until the final cuvée takes form.Marica’s cousin Silvia helps visitors experience picnics in the vineyards; blind and vertical wine tastings; cooking classes showcasing local recipes for handmade Tortellini di Valeggio, Amarone Risotto and Sfogliatine from Villafranca (a donut shaped pastry); and organizes events pairing wine with music, art, or yoga for small groups. The Custoza DOC region has a predominantly Mediterranean and temperate climate. It enjoys moderately cold winters and hot summers that aren't overly hot. The surrounding Lake Garda softens this a little. These circumstances produce a good environment for the production of vines. The elevation of the land and the chilly, nighttime air create the ideal growing conditions for grapes. White fruit, crunchy yellow notes, and citrus notes are particularly enhanced by this climate. Garda moraines were created by soil deposits from the Paleogene's end when there were several ice ages. The mountains that surround the Benaco are made up of debris that came down from the mountains and was carried by the glacier's melting waters. These waters, which are rich in minerals and carbonates, give the wine its distinctive and much-desired saline note. Grapes Varietals of Custoza wine appellation Constantly looking to make improvements, the Consortium has been running agronomic courses to train producers in the most modern and up-to-date techniques of sustainable viticulture since 2021, and is accompanying the wineries on a path to environmental certification. Custoza DOC is a very light and approachable wine (Planas, 2020). Straw yellow with occasionally greenish tints characterizes the color. It has a medium body, a balanced flavor, and lingering almond and faintly grassy aromas on the palate. The minimal overall alcohol concentration is 11 degrees, while 12 degrees Celsius is the suggested serving temperature. The Custoza Superiore DOC

Indeed, this is a wine to return to again and again. Given the heat of 2022, the way the freshness and aromatics have been preserved is outstanding. A pale yellow at this stage, the aromas are of white flowers, with citrus depth and richness and a softly textured palate. A hint of salinity adds pleasure to a good long finish. Drinking brilliantly for one so young, yet this will also improve for maybe another five years. It’s bottled under a screwcap.A white with a deep lemon yellow appearance, and a touch of honey on the nose, suggesting a wine with some maturity. There’s also peach and orange blossom, while the palate has some notes of toast, like aged Semillon, then a touch of bitter almond and citrus, beeswax and orange zest. Texturally, this is light in body and alcohol but with lots of flavour and freshness, and has a persistent finish with a fine coating of dry tannin, giving a stone-like character too. Intense on the nose, with floral notes (rose, jasmine, linden) and spiced with saffron. Complex yet well-paced on the palate. It has flavour, softness and makes for a pleasant and memorable drink.

Amarone Wine | Barbera Wine | Blauburgunder Wine | Cabernet Sauvignon Wine | Cabernet Franc Wine | Granache Wine | Lagrein Wine | Malbec Wine | Merlot Wine | Mourvedre Wine | Negramaro Wine | Petit Verdot Wine | Pinotage Wine | Pinot Noir Wine | Primitivo Wine | Shiraz Wine | Tempranillo Wine | Zinfandel WineFrom 2022 they have started to radically reduce their bottle weights. The challenge, Bonomo tells us (with a dramatic gesture of despair), is that ‘us Italians love fancy things!’ To persuade their markets, especially the Italian one, to accept lighter, smaller bottles is a hard enough task. To persuade the bottle supplier to source lightweight bottles is an even tougher task. As for screwcaps for the Italian market … she rolls her eyes to the sky. I am reminded of something she said earlier when talking about climate change: ‘So, we pray a lot and use our crazy and our love.’ Bruno Migliorini; Carlo Tagliavini; Piero Fiorelli (eds.). "Custoza". Dizionario d'Ortografia e di Pronunzia (in Italian) . Retrieved 11 September 2019.