La Montina: 20 years of passion for Franciacorta.  From father to son.

The La Montina estate was founded in Franciacorta in 1987 by three brothers, Vittorio, Gian Carlo and Alberto Bozza.  My father Gian Carlo and two uncles Vittorio and Alberto come from the countryside and are imbued with its agricultural traditions.  Their passion for the land and for winemaking was born out of these traditions and has been a part of their lives since childhood.  Why?  Because their Father-my grandfather Fioravante Antonio (nicknamed Fiore) - had also worked in the vines and produced red wine.  I remember his rough hands, stained red like every vineyard worker, the colour pigments absorbed from hours of handling the berries.  My grandmother Vittoria Gaia (nicknamed Gina), ran her own 'Osteria' in Monticelli Brusati, a little village in the province of Brescia where we were all born.  This cycle of life in the vines of Monticelli Brusati continues as if the DNA of these men, passed down from countless generations, contains the genetic code for winemaker!

Today La Montina- or should I say The La Montina Estate as it is so called- has produced many vintages and has devoted a great deal of hard work to developing new winemaking concepts and technological advances.  At the core of these developments has always remained La Montina's unbreakable bond with the land, respect for the local 'terroir' and a constant pursuit of quality.

These are strong foundation that are built on with knowledge, with the mastery of planting and nurturing vines, with the ability to locate the best vineyard sites, with the wisdom needed to progress into the 21st century, while remaining faithful to the commitment of generations to get the best from our research, whether it be for our own gratification or for the pleasure of tasting our Franciacorta.

Our 20th anniversary production will reach 450 000 bottles of the finest Franciacorta, fruit of the labours of knowledgeable men who live the on land day in and day out, who share the weather patterns and climatic changes, interacting with them in order to interpret every one of nature's messages.

Since 1620 the name La Montina has been used to describe the country estate of 'Benedetto Montini' descendent of Pope Paul VI.

Monticelli Brusati is a village which lies on a beautiful stretch of land to the north- eastern side of Franciacorta.  Here the little urban streets recede and make way for the woodlands of the Mugnina Valley.  To the north, the region is crowned by Lago d'Iseo, creating a special micro-climate from which the whole area benefits, including the vines.

The first mention of the estate in the archives dates back to 1620 when the owners of the main house were a noble family from Brescia headed by 'Benedetto Montini' - descendant of Pope Paul VI - the namesake of the estate.  Since then this small area which includes the adjacent hillside as well as the vineyards has been called 'La Montina'.  The grounds of the winery are dominated by the 17th century Villa Baiana which is home to the 'Remo Bianco Museum of Contemporary Art', and boasts hundreds of pieces that are exhibited throughout the Villa.  The estate has another Gallery in the old wine cellar used for contemporary exhibitions of art and sculpture.  There is also a lovely boutique wine shop.

In the past the Villa was also a convent, home to the 'Sisters of the order of Dorothy'.  Today the interior of this space is used for other interests of the Montina estate. 

I remember the three brothers strolling around the courtyard of this stately mansion house, touching the thick stone walls and colonnades and from to time indicating points in the empty space where the new project would take shape.  The work started in 1985.  The hillside which leads down from the old Villa was completely removed by diggers which ate up the land and made way for the reconstruction of the new building.

From the classical old press used by my grandparents to the sophisticated 'Marmonier' press, virtually unheard of in Franciacorta!

The first harvest in 1987 yielded a production of only 25 000 bottles while twenty years later in 2007 La Monina produced 450 000.  In just a few years the expansion has been rapid while at the same time we have required space to allow the wine to spend time maturing on its lees.  The space we had was not nearly enough to achieve our aims for production so we had to create more.  Therefore we decided to extend into the old underground quarry adding 7450 sq metres to the new cellar under the hillside without disturbing the beauty of the natural landscape above.

Perhaps grandpa Fiore and grandma Gina would be more than a little taken a back by the ambition and capability of their children who with dedication and hard work have transformed the old homestead of 'Contrada Baiana' into one of the most important estates In Franciacorta, whose wines are sought after throughout the world.

Today at La Montina, whether it be the management of our 72 hectares of vines across 7 communes, the gentle pressing of the grapes and the subsequent transfer of the juice using only gravity or the precise selection of wood for barrels and technological analyses of the wine making process, we do everything with the same care and attention to detail with which we developed our world class cellars.

 Down in the cellar you begin to understand the work and history in every bubble of Franciacorta.

La Montina has always been an open cellar.  Every day we welcome wine lovers who come on guided tours with 'degustazione', wine tasting.  We tell them about the Franciacorta's complex journey from vineyard to bottle, about how much hard work goes into the production of each delicate glassful, about the 70 times that each bottle is carefully handled during its 3 year development in the cellar. 

The Bozza brothers have made wine culture the cornerstone of their work and this commitment has been recognised by being awarded the title of 'The Most Welcoming Franciacorta Estate' by the organisation 'Strada del Franciacorta' in collaboration with the Bocconi University in Milan.  This award cites La Montina as having the highest standards for welcoming and accommodating visitors of all the estates In Franciacorta. 

It is in the winery where visitors can discover the passion, history and hard work that goes into every elegant and persistent bubble of our sapid and wonderfully fresh Franciacorta.

The newly designed bottles have received an elegant makeover for the celebration of our 20th anniversary.

2010 is an important date for the estate, a new phase in a history which started with the 1987 vintage that entered the market in 1990.  To celebrate this milestone we have decided to redesign, with the same elegance that characterizes our wine, not just the estate's image and labels but also the actual design of the bottles in both Magnum and Jeraboam formats.

We trusted this task in the capable hands of the artist Paolo Menon of the 'Museo della Permanente' in Milan.  Well known for his passion and understanding of the wine world, he immediately grasped the concept and has created a subtle interpretation of La Montina's contemporary style and image.

The shape of the new bottle expresses at first glance the wine's elegance and restraint: with its serpentine form and long neck embossed beautifully at the base with an image depicting two lions holding a tiara.  The two lions are symbolic.  The first is the Lion of Brescia 'Brixia Fidelis', (the motto emblazoned on the walls of the region's capital city), the second is the proud lion of La Montina, an image rooted in the history of the estate and its founder Benedetto Montini, whose name has also been given to the hillside behind.

The labelling is another important element of the bottle's seductive visual impression which encapsulates the creativity inherent in the wine's production.  The label is in the form of a crown and in a sense this is the coronation of one of the Kings of Franciacorta, a noble wine that will continue its evolution in the new bottle.

A small but important detail is the capital 'M' used on the new bottle.  This is in the format we have always used on the La Montina label and symbolizes the continuity that is an integral part of our success.

Finally, in reference to the many different styles of Franciacorta at La Montina, the label of each type is a different colour: Ivory for the Brut, gold for the Vintage Brut Aurum, silver for the Brut Satèn Argens, green for the Extra Brut, pink pomegranate for the Demi-Sec Rosé (in the black bottle) and Rosé Extra Brut Rosatum (in the clear bottle) and finally with the black and gold label, the prestigious Pas Dosé Riserva, the pride of our family!

From Brut to Riserva, 20 years of Franciacorta

The La Montina estate consists of approximately 72 hectares of vineyard spread across 7 different communes of the Franciacorta region.  The vineyards lie across low hillsides with soils consisting of calcareous clay and silt.  The yield is approximately 100 quintals per hectare with a vine density of 5400-7000 plants per hectare.  The average annual production of Franciacorta is approximately 450 000 bottles.

Franciacorta La Montina is produced in accordance with the strict laws laid down by the 'Consorzio Vini Franciacorta' (the body responsible for regulating the production and maintaining standards) of which it is a part.  The laws governing the wine are the strictest in the world relating to the production of 'Metodo Classico' (The Champagne or traditional Method) sparkling wine.  These rigid guidelines are designed for absolute quality.

The production of Franciacorta demands only the use of noble grape varieties, (Chardonnay and Pinot Bianco for the white and Pinot Noir for the red) and these must be hand harvested in baskets with a capacity of 18-20 kg.  Its key characteristic is derived from the natural second fermentation in the bottle and the subsequent slow maturation and refinement on the lees (dead yeast cells).  This period of maturation must be no less then 18 months for the non-vintage wine, 30 months for the vintage and at least 60 months for the Riserva.

The harvest, completed manually without affecting the grapes maturation, starts at the beginning of August allowing the grapes to maintain high acidity.

Since 1999 Gian Carlo Bozza and the winery staff have been using a unique vertical 'Marmonier' press constructed by local artisans and friends of the La Montina estate.  The aim is to maximise the quality of the juice during the pressing and the use of this special press is extremely rare in Franciacorta, in fact it is one of only two available in the whole region.  This type of mechanical press takes advantage of the full width of the vessel which has a diameter of 3 metres but a height limited to only 120 cm, to reduce the outflow time of the must and yet achieve a very soft pressing without breaking the skins and with a yield of 35%-40% juice.  This soft pressing allows the berries to maintain all of their phenolic qualities which would largely be lost through an excessive, violent pressing.

The entire area devoted to the press is deliberately located above the winery so as to exploit the use of gravity to transfer the must, thus eliminating the need for pumps.

Depending on the grape variety, type of pressing and location of the original vineyard, the different musts are then divided between steel tanks and 'barriques' where they undergo the first fermentation.

At approximately seven months after the vintage, the base wines are carefully selected and bottled for the 'tiraggio', the process of adding yeast and sugar to the bottle which in turn kick-starts the second fermentation.  Once tightly sealed, the bottles are carefully transferred to the cellar where they are manually laid down in large stacks and left to rest.  In the dark silence of the vault, the second fermentation starts and transforms the sugars into alcohol and carbon dioxide which creates the bubbles, the unmistakeable characteristic of Franciacorta.

After a long period of maturation on the lees, not less than 18 months (The non vintage Satèn and Rosé wines spend 24 months maturing, the vintage wines 30 months and the Riserva 60 months), 'Remuage' ensues.  This is the process by which the sediment is gently encouraged to slide down the bottle to the neck where it is eventually expelled by 'dégorgement'. 

This is a mystical process unique to the traditional method of production and at one time was an indication of the skill of the cellar master who with a lightening quick snap of the wrist removed the cap, whilst loosing as little wine as possible.

Today, thanks to the wonders of modern technology, the sediment is frozen solid by immersing the neck in a solution which freezes it to -28 degrees enabling its expulsion without the loss of the precious wine.  Yet even today at La Montina the traditional technique is still practised as a demonstration, to the delight of the many visitors to the cellar.

At this point the 'liqueur d'exposition' is added.  This is a sticky syrup composed of selected wines and sugar in variable concentrations depending on the final style of the wine, whether it be Extra Brut, (very dry), Brut, (dry) or Demi Sec, (medium dry).  When the 'liqueur' is not added the wine is characterised as Pas Dosé.

Finally, the bottle is sealed with the distinctive anchored cork followed by a wire mesh and sleeve.