The Tommasi family and their Lugana Le Fornaci project

Investments in the district of Lugana, in the town of Desenzano, saw the Tommasi family acquire 45 hectares of land, now all vineyards, as well as create facilities for hospitality and wine tourism.

Wine production in Italy is still for the most part done by families but this can be misleading considering the fact that family is not necessarily synonymous with small. There are families like Antinori or Frescobaldi who have created wine production powerhouses, as have, in Veneto, the Allegrini or Tommasi families.

Here we will focus on the latter family that today is run, under the watchful eye of old Dario, cousins Giancarlo, responsible for production; Pierangelo, foreign sales; Piergiorgio, domestic sales; and Stefano, the deus of Verona. Their operating method is quite “simple” in that, should they fall in love with an area they invest in it and buy land, knowing well that a wine is born from the vineyard.

On Lake Garda they, in a certain sense, are playing on home turf considering the fact that they are natives of Verona which considers the lake its back yard. What they like about Lugana wine is its distinctly saline flavor and its propensity to age, two characteristics that convinced them to focus on this area for a project that not only involves winemaking but also facilities dedicated to hospitality and wine tourism.

The family already had a vineyard in the town of Desenzano, more precisely the area of San Martin della Battaglia, some five hectares in the interior where the soil is morainic. They began a series of investment in 2013, beginning with the acquisition of some 15 hectares of land outside Sirmione, where the soil has more clay, and then another parcel not far from their original vineyard in a hilly area that has more sand and lime. The estate currently has a total of 45 hectares (of which five will begin production next year) and the diverse makeups of the parcels offer them a palette with complimentary characteristics that allows them to create a Lugana with greater complexity. The aromas and a certain finesse derive from the hilly soils while the structure and exuberance are from the clay found in the vineyards on the plains. The vineyards have a high density (5,000 root stocks per hectare) and the vines are all Guyot trained and all exclusively Turbiana.

Turbiana is the local name for the Trebbiano di Lugana varietal and one that is much less misleading. This because this grape is profoundly different from other varieties of Trebbiano and only more in-depth studies will be able to ascertain whether, as is commonly believed, it is more closely related to the Verdicchio grapes found in the Marche region than with Trebbiano.

With the first 15 hectares of vineyards in full production, the first vintage to reach the markets was 2016 which, when tasted today, appears to have reached the end of the line. However, already with the 2017, despite being a very hot year, an important aspect of the Lake Garda microclimate became clear: the possibility of mitigating drought in a positive way. A tasting of it revealed a nice aromatic intensity, a lot of salt in the mouthfeel along with structure and a certain fatness. By 2018, 30 hectares were in production and even though it was a complicated year climate-wise, it was managed well and the results were excellent. The wine had an excellent aroma and a taut and vertical mouthfeel, which as always was saline and had a nice acidity. A further ten hectares entered production in 2019 and a total of 350,000 bottles were produced. The weather that year was particular, with significant temperature variations which allowed for lovely aromatic expressions and a distinct saline trademark.

Lugana Le Fornaci 2019

90/100 - € 10

Made from Turbiana grapes (Trebbiano di Lugana) and matured on the less for several months. A bright, straw-yellow color with green reflections. The intense aroma has citrusy notes of grapefruit, floral scents of linden and those of anise and face powder. These are followed by fruit notes of peach and mango. The mouthfeel is saline and has a nice freshness with fruity and citrusy sensations, nice tension and a caressing finish.

After this brief vertical tasting came a surprise, a truly interesting Riserva 2018 that will come out in a year’s time. It was made from a careful selection from the more important vineyards and matured for 16 months in 900l barrels with only 3,000 bottles produced. This is a true, little gem and while it is still too early to give it a definitive evaluation, its tastiness is beyond question. The bouquet is intense, complex and very aromatic, while the mouthfeel is juicy, full, soft yet nicely upheld by the acidity-salinity. This is a wine people will be talking about when it comes out.

This wine will debut in 2021 as will their Le Fornaci Rosé 2020, which for now is in the hands of Nature and while its blend is top secret, it will certainly have some Turbiana given that it cannot be separated from the territory.

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