Riccardo Cotarella is one of Italy’s most renowned winemaking consultants; his brother Renzo is general manager of Antinori. Together, they own Falesco, an estate that straddles Umbria and Latium, and shows an innovative approach to local and international varieties alike. Montiano, for example, is a leading Italian Merlot, with a richness and complexity that would worry many Bordelais. At the other end of the scale, Ferentano is made from the hugely obscure Roscetto grape, which after much experimentation by Riccardo has yielded the secret of how best to vinify it: ‘cryomacerated’ at very low temperature to release more flavour from the skins, then fermented and matured in oak for three months, it offers generous flavours of pineapple and vanilla within a taut, almost burgundian structure.
Website: www.falesco.it
Products