Monti Lessini

Corte Moschina's metodo classico Durella - the traditional-method counterpart to their ancestral PuroCaso. 100% Durella from the Roncà hills, basalt-rich volcanic soils. Hand-harvested in early September 2018, base wine fermented in temperature-controlled stainless, then bottle-fermented and aged for over 72 months on the lees - well beyond the 36 months a standard Lessini Durello Metodo Classico requires. Disgorged in 2025, extra brut on dosage (the producer doesn't publish the exact g/l).

The cuvée tier isn't entirely transparent from public sources. Corte Moschina's current site lists a base 36-mesi "Lessini Durello Metodo Classico" and a 60-mesi "Riserva" (which is dosaggio zero). This 2018 sits outside both - longer on lees than the Riserva spec, with extra brut dosage rather than dosaggio zero. Trade press from the mid-2010s used the name "Valgrande" for what looked like a similar long-aged extra brut tier (Wine Enthusiast on the 2016); whether that's the same tier this 2018 sits in, or whether the producer simply held back bottles from a regular tirage for an unusually late disgorgement, isn't clear from public sources.

A note on the "Monti Lessini DOC" on the label. In 2018 both "Monti Lessini" and "Lessini Durello" were legal DOC designations for Durella sparkling - producers could use either after a 2011 administrative split. The 2025 reform made the split exclusive: "Monti Lessini" became metodo-classico-only, "Lessini Durello" became Charmat-only. A 2018 bottle reading "Monti Lessini" was using a perfectly legal alternative at the time, not a post-reform relabel.

2018 in the volcanic-foothills Veneto was a cooler, more balanced year than the hot 2017 - whites tend to read tighter, more mineral, more streamlined. Seven years on lees before disgorgement should add considerable autolytic depth on top of Durella's electric acidity.