Wine is made in the vineyard: every wine lover knows it, and that’s why we dedicate the right time to visit the vineyard when we welcome you to our winery.
Sometimes, some guests ask us if the Turbiana variety from which our Lugana Montunal and Orestilla originate corresponds to Trebbiano, also cultivated in nearby Soave, or to Verdicchio, which has made the viticulture of the Italian region Marche famous throughout the world.
The answer is "yes and no", or to be precise it is the same variety, from which we obtain very different wines. We asked an opinion to Valentino Girelli, agronomist and co-owner of Montonale.
“Let's start from faraway: it was the ancient Romans who brought the Turbiana to Lugana, where it settled down very well”, says Girelli.
"The reasons are various. The first one is without doubt the microclimate: the basin of Lake Garda acts as a thermal reservoir, ensuring a mild climate all year round. The winds that blow constantly on our lake, in particular the Ora and the Pelèr, favor the ripening of the grapes and preserve their health. Then the soil, clayey with a vein of silt and highly uneven, makes us produce extremely varied wines, with impressive differences between one cru and another ".
"The human factor is also important: over the centuries, the winegrowers of the Lower Lake Garda have enjoyed the excellent productivity of Turbiana, but in the last thirty years they realized that the true personality of the grape could emerge only by focusing on low yields".
"We do not deny the tradition, which is part of us (this year Montonale celebrates 110 years of history). On the contrary, we safeguard it: we have selected some mother plants and grafted their buds on the last plants, to have young but already expert vines".
The agronomist concludes: "Returning to the initial question, from the ampelographic point of view the variety is identical. From the organoleptic one, however, finesse and longevity bring it closer to Verdicchio. I would add that in a glass of Lugana, pleasantness goes hand in hand with flavor, roundness and the ability to evolve over time: four characteristics that are difficult to find with equal balance in the 'sister' varieties".
