Ezio Poggio ‘Lunatico’ Frizzante Bianco 2022

Location: Italy, Piedmont

Winemaker: Ezio Poggio

Grapes: Timorasso

Soil: Calcareous, Clay

Winemaking: After spending the winter fermenting and maturing, the wine is bottled for secondary fermentation in the spring during the new moon, and named for the lunar phase whence it came.

From the Importer PortoVino: The Colli Tortonesi in Piedmont is home to the glorious white grape called Timorasso. From Monte Giarolo at 1473 meters, five valleys and their rivers have formed over the centuries to encompass today’s Colli Tortonesi. Each valley has its own distinct micro-climate, yet the subzone of Libarna [lee-BARN-a] in Val Borbera remains the most extreme. Here lie Ezio Poggio’s winery and vineyards.

Cupped by the Apennines’ northern-most reach, amid abandoned Roman ruins and overgrown forests, Libarna imbues an ancient silence. It’s the most southern growing area of the Colli Tortonesi, yet it has the highest elevation by far, topping out at 650 metres. Winds howl on the limestone, marl, and clay soils; temperatures drop to 10/15 °C during summer nights. Many forest paths remain untrodden, with the exception of hikers and truffle hunters. Ezio Poggio is the only producer currently bottling here.

The extreme elements and conditions make for a later harvest than the other Timorasso growing areas; there’s little need for early picking. If the Timorasso valleys in the north exude wines with texture and complexity, Libarna’s terroir offers vertical wines – with marked acidity (verticalità ed acidità spiccata, Ezio says). They highlight Timorasso’s green herbal side (thyme, green tea, tomato leaf), along with under-ripe stone fruits and low alcohol (~ 12.5%).

The Poggio family does everything themselves, from the vineyard to the cellar. They have been farming organically – da sempre! – exclaims Mary Poggio, and will complete the certification process in 2024. They take a minimalist approach in the cellar without being dogmatic. Ezio’s sister Mary handles the back of the house, her husband Big Marco (Marcone) works with Enzo in the vineyards. They always seems to have someone who just dropped by to help, an extended family member or friend. Mary and Ezio’s parents, Maria and Angelo Poggio, though no longer with us, would not only be proud, but also pleasantly surprised by what they would find in their glasses: wines that speak piercingly of Libarna.

Four vineyard plots are used to produce the bottling called Caespes [‘CHESS-piss’]. Besides making a great chess tournament title, it is also Latin for turf, sod, grass. The wine spends 8-12 months on the lees in steel tanks with occasional battonage.

Their single cru vineyard wine is called Archetipo; it comes from a special vineyard planted at 450+ meters on a type of raised plateau called Costa Merlassino overlooking the valley. Minimum 12 months on the fine lees with some battonage.

They make a bottle fermented sparkling wine called Lunatico, whose name means moody and a bit crazy. PortoVino’s own Mark Middlebrook, neither moody nor crazy, called it “Invitingly hazy… Great nose. Orchard fruits, herbal…almondy. Clean and delicious.” It’s grown at 650+ meters!

We love the contrast this producer brings to the all around great work being done with Timorasso in the Colli Tortonesi (and beyond in Langhe). It also shows our willingness to double down on the potential of Timorasso as a variety in different soils and growing areas.