Agriculture Reference
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black muscat, though the aroma profi le is very
different, more fl oral and less spicy, less sweet.
Due to its wonderful aromatics, Lacrima di
Morro d'Alba rarely sees a lot of oak in its aging
process, which would mute the bright fruit fl a-
vors, a shame. Also good is Lacrima di Morro
d'Alba Passito, an air-dried, sweet version.
These are very tannic sweet wines that match
marvelously with thick chocolate desserts.
Unfortunately, some Lacrima wines are much
less aromatic than you'd expect and a lot more
tannic: some producers, such as Mancinelli,
imply that since Lacrima di Morro d'Alba has
become a popular sales-worthy wine, there are
an ever-increasing number of atypical wines
made with a good dollop of, for example, Mon-
tepulciano. Needless to say, such wines are best
avoided as they do not refl ect what a wine made
with the Lacrima variety is about.
I think about men and women who had their
priorities so straight.
Lagrein seems to have found its ideal home
in the countryside around Bolzano in Alto
Adige, where it's the region's most important
red variety. It's intimately linked to this part of
Italy, where the grapevine was so highly
thought of that already in 1097 local govern-
ment edicts determined the offi cial annual har-
vest dates; at that time the monks of the abbey
at Gries were the most famous local producers
of the wine—not surprising, considering that
the
terroir
of Gries is the one true
grand cru
for
this variety. In 1370, Emperor Charles IV
passed a law forbidding Lagrein wine among
his troops, allowing soldiers to drink only the
lighter, less alcoholic wines made with the
Schiava
s.
Lagrein's name probably derives from the
Val Lagarina or Vallagarina in Trentino, though
some experts have suggested a Greek origin,
linking the grape to the variety used to make
the wine called
lagaritanos
around the city of
Lagaria on the Ionian seacoast of Basilicata.
However, recent DNA profi ling studies have
shed light on Lagrein's complex origins. In
2006, Vouillamoz and Grando demonstrated
that Marzemino and Lagrein are offspring of
Teroldego and another as yet unidentifi ed par-
ent, a now probably extinct grapevine species.
This extinct variety is a likely progeny of Pinot
Nero, which makes the latter a grandparent of
both Lagrein and Marzemino. This recently
discovered pedigree therefore appears to dis-
prove Lagrein's supposed Greek origin, estab-
lishing it as an ancient native variety of Alto
Adige. However, the conclusions reached by
Vouillamoz and Grando appear to confl ict with
Cipriani, Spadotto, Jurman, Di Gaspero, Cres-
pan, Meneghetti, et al. (2010), who proposed
that Lagrein is a natural crossing between Ter-
oldego and Schiava Gentile from Alto Adige.
But evidence of this parentage is not consistent
at two out of the thirty-nine SSR markers they
analyzed, “a discrepancy level also observed in
non-parent-offspring pairs” (Robinson, Hard-
ing, and Vouillamoz 2012). Also, the Teroldego
wines to try:
Luigi Giusti*** (Luigino Vec-
chie Vigne), Stefano Mancinelli*** (Superiore,
Sensazioni di Frutto and S. Maria del Fiore),
Conti di Buscareto** (Compagnia della Rosa),
Mario Lucchetti** (Superiore Guardengo), and
Marotti Campi** (Superiore Orgiolo and
Rubico). For Lacrima Passito, try: Lucchetti**,
Stefano Mancinelli** (Re Sole), and Vicari*
(Amaranto del Pozzo Buono).
Lagrein
where it's found:
Alto Adige, Trentino.
national registry code number:
112.
color:
red.
It tells you something about wine (and
human beings) that one of the main reasons
why, centuries ago, people got into a war was
because they wanted the right to drink the good
stuff. Hard to believe? During the popular
insurgence of 1526 in what is modern-day Alto
Adige in Italy, hero Michael Gasmayr led local
farmers in revolt against the nobles and their
troops, demanding (among other things) the
right to also drink Lagrein wine, previously
reserved for the nobility, the courts, and the
church. I can't say how moved I am every time
