One the smallest and hilliest subregions of Lambrusco production, Castelvetro di Modena is home to some of the most robust and driest sparkling reds of Emilia-Romagna, thanks to the thick-skinned Lambrusco Grasparossa grape. The Gianaroli family’s La Piana Winery is now in its third generation; farming since he was just 14 years old, current steward Mirco Gianaroli has vines from his grandfather that were planted in 1950, and adheres to a strict practice of organic polyculture. His southwest-facing terroir is made up of heavy clay with streaks of limestone and iron, and the property is surrounded by cherry trees — a unique combination that gives a distinctive bitter cherry note to his delicious Lambrusco Secco. The manta ‘Wine is not produced in the cellar, but in the vineyard’ has always been the basis of their thinking with attention to the land and its health, and to the care of the vineyards from pruning to harvest time, all rigorously by hand. The very tangible climate changes that farmers are experiencing season after season have convinced Marco even more of the importance of production method choices, including using 70% self-produced clean, solar energy across the winery.
It's not often that we find a Lambrusco that strikes a perfect chord between plush ripeness and structured dryness, but this is defiantly a new contender! Sourced from the farm’s old vines, Marco’s Lambrusco is harvested by hand before undergoing natural fermentation in stainless steel and carbonation via the Charmat method. Inky in the glass with a bright purple fizz, it leads with a nose of Concord grape soda, cranberry and currant, smoked prosciutto, bitter cocoa and sweet green herbs. In the mouth, sweet-tart note driven forth by a ripping backbone of acidity keeps those big, juicy flavors of black berry and cherry on the straight-and-narrow, with a lovely bitter-herbal edge providing further balance to the sweetness of fruit. Can’t get enough? Neither can we — check out the Magnums!