Stevie Kim meets Fabio Zenato at the Verona-based winery Le Morette

Today's journey takes us to Peschiera del Garda, at the “Le Morette” winery: founded sixty years ago by Gino Zenato, it is now managed by his son Valerio and his grandchildren Fabio and Paola, the third generation at work in this production hub in the province of Verona.

Before starting to taste the wines from your cellar, do we want to tell you about the place where we are?

We are in the Lugana DOC production area, to be precise in the hamlet of San Benedetto di Lugana: the latter takes its name from the presence in the territory of the Benedictine monks of San Zeno, who reclaimed the area and made it suitable for the growth of cuttlefish. In fact, “Le Morette” was born as a nursery for the vines, which were - and still are - selected and grown here: this process creates a bond of trust between the company and the customers, who wait up to three years before seeing the

first grapes.

On the table in front of us we see three different wines, Lugana Mandolara, Benedictus and Lugana Riserva DOC: where do we start the tasting?

The first wine we will taste will be the Lugana Mandolara of the 2021 vintage, which received a score of 92/100 from the Vinitaly International Guide. In fact, we consider it our flag wine, a very solid base for our tastings: the vines from which it derives grow on clay soil and are all over twenty years old, which helps to give sapidity and an interesting taste to the

wine.

As for the moments in which to enjoy a glass of Mandolara, I would say that its nature is well suited both to the aperitif ritual and to the tasting in combination with food.

The second wine that awaits us, on the other hand, is Benedictus. Would you also tell us about this cross?

Benedictus is a wine with a strong minerality, which is obtained from late harvest grapes and is more valued if consumed in combination with food, such as a risotto with mushrooms or a second course based on fish. We produce a much smaller quantity than Mandolara, also because the vines are even older — they are 46 years old. There are four weeks between the harvest of Mandolara and that of Benedictus, the difference between the two wines is also very marked for this factor linked to the maturation of the berries. If you notice, the color of the wine also changes: it becomes more golden.

An important role in flavor is also played by the aging on yeasts at a controlled temperature and the maturation of part of the wine in tonneaux [double French barrels, ed.]. The first vintages of this wine were produced between 1993 and 1994, testifying to a long tradition in the production of Morette. This wine stays in bottle for a minimum of 9 months, before being released on the market, and has a price difference of about 5€/0.75L

.

Finally, the last wine we are going to know is the 2018 Riserva. How would you define it

?

More than a wine in this case it is a project. It is a type limited in quantity and its existence is based on the aging potential of Lugana: the specification says that to obtain the definition of “Reserve” this wine must be placed on the market two years after the last harvest, but all producers of this type of excellence wait a third year before being marketed.

Its characteristics are complexity, richness, elegance and the ability to offer the palate all the potential of the Turbiana grapes from which it derives. It is a slightly more alcoholic wine, with a alcohol content of 13.5%, and it also has a

higher acidity.

To conclude the tasting in style and demonstrate the aging potential of this wine, let's also uncork a bottle of 2013 Riserva: we conclude today's episode with a new welcome to Fabio and Morette, whom we invite you to visit while passing through Peschiera del Garda.

(Hey, psst: did you know that Fabio was a student of the Professor? In this episode of our podcast, Stevie Kim talks with Attilio Scienza and Vittorio Moretti: follow

the link to retrieve it!)