Italy | Emilia Romagna | La Stoppa
La Stoppa
Wines
Summary
La Stoppa is an estate based in the northwestern area of Emilia Romagna and sits at 250 meters slopes of the Apennins in the South West part of Piacenza.
There is total of 58 hectares which includes 30 hectares of vines and 28 ha of forest. The estate was first founded by Giancarlo Ageno back in the 1960’s. He considered the site a perfect place to grow his beloved Bordeaux varietals, and many of these early bottling can still be found in the La Stoppa cellars. All of the fermentations are spontaneous with indigenous yeasts, no sulfites and at ambience temperature.
Most cuvees experience long macerations to extract the maximum from the grapes and to capture the distinctive characteristics of each vintage. Most fermentation vessels are stainless s cement tanks, and used oak barrels are used for the wines that need to breathe and mature slowly. Bottle-ageing is also a very important process to improve and balance every component of the wine, so most vintages releases are anywhere between 2-10 years behind. Today, the grapes planted are primarily local grapes which include Barbera and Bonarda for the reds, and Malvasia di Candia aromatica, Ortrugo and Trebbiano, Moscato are the white vareietals. La Stoppa’s vineyards are certified organic and the winemaking is all done in the most natural ways possible. Elena believes the wines have to be true to the soil and place, and this is certainly achieved in the La Stoppa wines!
