LAPO BERTI
La Morra
Piedmont
Lapo first got into wine in his early twenties, taking on a twenty-year journey that would lead him to travel worldwide from one wine region to another. His career began in his native Tuscany before the move to Piedmont where he landed his first full-time job as cellar master at Enzo Boglietti. Moved by curiosity and desire to learn more he initially worked under Roberto Voerzio in the village of La Morra and later in Burgundy too, for the likes of Nicolas Potel. After these mind-opening experiences abroad, Lapo eventually decided to return to Italy and set camp in the village of La Morra in Piedmont to start his very own project.
Today he leases parcels in the prestigious cru Fossati and Le Coste, meticulously farmed by none other than himself. Farming is strictly organic, enhancing the importance to build healthy soils that house various plants, insects, and other microorganisms that contribute to creating an ecologically balanced environment for the vines.
Lapo's vinification methods are equally meticulous. Fermentations are rather long and rely exclusively on indigenous yeasts. These take place partially in stainless steel tanks and in open, neutral wooden tronconic vats. All wines are made without fining agents or filtration and sulfites are used only in minuscule amounts, solely at bottling.
Rosato Frizzante
Vintage 2021
Style Sparkling Rosé
Region La Morra, Piedmont
Varieties Nebbiolo
ABV 13.5%
Soils Clay, limestone
Farming Organic
Winemaking Brief overnight maceration on the skins, then spontaneously fermented over 3 weeks in open top vats until almost fully dry. Racked twice before manual sur tirage in April and then bottled under crown cap using unfermented grape must to kick start the secondary fermentation in bottle. Hand disgorged and only 500 bottles produced.
Tasting Note A versatile rosato that works rather well on its own but also a great companion to some lighter dishes. Fresh and zippy, with floral and fruity notes. It has a pleasant weight on the palate, with roundness and fine tannins lifted up by the vibrant bubbles.
Dogliani
Vintage 2022
Style Red
Region La Morra, Piedmont
Varieties Dolcetto
ABV 13%
Soils
Farming Organic
Winemaking The grapes are fully de-stemmed and spontaneously fermented in open-top fermenters. These are macerated for 20-30 with daily punch downs (no pump overs). The wine is matured in stainless steel tanks.
Tasting Note Crunchy blackcurrants, fresh black cherry meet notes of liquorice, fresh cassis and earthy undertones. The palate is fleshy and the fresh fruit is lifted by chewy gastronomical tannins.
Langhe Nebbiolo
Vintage 2020
Style Red
Region La Morra, Piedmont
Varieties Nebbiolo
ABV 14%
Soils Clay, calcareous marls, sand
Farming Organic
Winemaking The grapes come from different plots in La Morra. Fruit is fully de-stemmed and spontaneously fermented in open-top fermenters. Maceration lasted 3 weeks before transferring into used barrels to finish the sugars and age over 18 months. This is quite unusual and rather long for Langhe Nebbiolo, though Lapo really belives in the benefit of long élevage as he reckons that the most captivating and refined Nebbiolos tend to be the ones that have lost part of their primary fruit and start to show more of that spiced-savoury aromas that come out with ageing. The wine is bottled without stabilisation, fining nor filtration.
Tasting Note 2020 is a stunning vintage, producing excellent quality Nebbiolo with ripeness to match the very good 2015 but firmer tannin and higher acidity. It offers a lifted, perfumed nose with gentle red fruit tones and a particularly flowery bouquet. Nice tension and well integrated tannins on the palate.
Barolo del Commune di La Morra
Vintage 2018
Style Red
Region La Morra, Piedmont
Varieties Nebbiolo
ABV 14.5%
Soils Clay, calcareous marls, sand
Farming Organic
Winemaking The fruit is sourced from a number of plots within La Morra, planted on the soils that are heavier on clay and more fertile compare to Helvetian soils found on the other side of the region. Nebbiolo is picked a little earlier, in October. The grapes are de-stemmed, crushed and spontaneously fermented in open-top wooden fermenters. The wine stays on the skins for 4 weeks before barreling for 20 to 24 months.
Tasting Note This has a delightful complexity - a charming mix
of red fruit, grassy notes and undergrowth. 2018 is broad and deep, yet agile with distinctive tannins
and an excellent length.
Barolo, Le Coste di Monforte
Vintage 2018
Style Red
Region Monforte d’Alba, Piedmont
Varieties Nebbiolo
ABV 14.5%
Soils Clay, hard limestone, sandstone
Farming Organic
Winemaking From a south facing, single vineyard plot planted on the iconic Serravallian soils which generally provide some of the most potent and structured Barolos. Fermentation takes place in open-top, tronconic open vats where maceration lasts for approximately 4 weeks. After pressing the wine feeds into old large barrels where it spends 30 months ageing of fine lees. This is the longest élevage of the entire range, mostly because of the terroir on which the vines are planted, whcih genereally require the most time for the tannins to relax and the wine to come together.
Tasting Note Le Coste has a sturdy structure, with exuberant aromatics of red fruit alongside some leather,
tar and dry violets notes. At once it shows a great balance between the
robust backbone of Monforte and the finesse of the 2018 vintage, combined with a long savoury finish.
Barolo, Fossati
Vintage 2018
Style Red
Region La Morra, Piedmont
Varieties Nebbiolo
ABV 14.5%
Soils Clay, calcareous marls, sand
Farming Organic
Winemaking
From an east facing, single vineyard found exactly on the borer between the
Barolo and La Morra MGAs. The vinification follows the exact same steps as the one seen for Le Coste, though ageing was a tad shorter in the case of Fossati (only 24 months).
Tasting Note Pale ruby with a sensual orange hue. Intense cherry, rose and liquorice on the nose with an impressive
mineraly and crunchy tannins on the finish. It feels rather developed for 2018, showing attractive tertiary aromas yet finishing long and alive.