Stile Antico - Lambrusco dell'Emilia 2023

Lambrusco, as a wine, probably suffers most from its bad image. So, it's high time the region reinvented itself! At least, that's what Nicola Marchesi thinks. As stately as the name Marchesi di Ravarino sounds, it's actually tongue-in-cheek; Nicola is a 1st generation winemaker; his parents are humble grain farmers, but they supported their son in his dream of making wine. In the village of Ravarino, they bought an old farmhouse and converted it from within into a winery. The goal? To put Lambrusco back on the map as a high-quality wine region.

Lambrusco has long been known for its dark red bubbles, tannic and sweet; the cheapest you could get in the supermarket. Naturally, things are very different at Nicola's. Lambrusco has six native grape varieties. The one Nicola puts his trust in is Lambrusco di Sorbara. This grape is the lightest of them all, with a very thin skin. As a result, the outcome can be light pink, with intense and invigorating acidity. The Baby Magnum is made from 100% Lambrusco di Sorbara. This is the domain's flagship. He also makes Stile Antico, or the old style Lambrusco, but to his own taste. Ravarein, made from the white grapes Grechetto Gentile and Trebbiano di Spagna. Finally, he also makes Vigna Vecchia, or old vines, from a vineyard that was purchased later and planted in 1954, also with a large portion of Lambrusco di Sorbara. All wines are made using the metodo ancestrale. Fermentation takes place very slowly and naturally in stainless steel tanks. When the remaining sugar content will produce the right pressure in the bottle, the wine is transferred to the bottle to finish its fermentation.

The Emilia region is also known as Italy's granary. The vast plain in the Po Valley has rich and fertile soil; extremely suitable for grain, but not entirely what we want for viticulture. On Nicola Marchesi's land, ancient knowledge has been found that is still being used. On the property, hills have been built at four corners; this was once done in the time of the Roman Empire! This ensured that the grapes still had a gradual slope to grow on.