On Friday the 18th of March we are kicking off a new season of our talkshow Cellar Talks, Season 5. In the first episode we are moving into the world of Italian sparkling wines with our guest Ettore Maggi from the famous Franciacorta producer Bellavista.
About Bellavista Wine
Bellavista belongs to the Terra Moretti group and was founded in 1977 by Vittorio Moretti with the support of oenologist Mattia Vezzola. Although they are well know all over the world, and shaped the image of Franciacorta, it started from scratch buying a collection of small vineyards in Erbusco (Franciacorta DOCG).
When Vittorio started the winery and built a home in the hamlet of Bellavista, he initially bought a collection of small plots of land from 30 different owners. The first year, only a handful of still wines were produced; the second year, a few bottles of Metodo Classico saw the light, but only for dinners with friends; by year three, production was well on its way, although with modest volumes.
The Bellavista started to shine brighter and brighter: there followed the first journeys to Champagne, a definition of a personal taste and the setting up of a wine cellar which was soon to become a model, and one of the leading names in sparkling wines domestically and internationally. Nowadays, the Bellavista brand stands for elegance and refinement. Each bottle tells the story of the winery, of the land where it is situated and of the style that characterises it.
Bellavista is the name of the hill where the winery is located. From here, the viewer’s gaze takes in lake Iseo, the Po valley and the nearby Alps. The penultimate glaciation created an amphitheater ringed by morainic hills, stretching from the Alpine foothills of Lombardy to the shores of lake Iseo and Mount Orfano: a stronghold that shields the area against the fog that creeps up from the Po valley. An oasis of sunlight, water and energy that makes the expression of local viticulture unique, with a mediterranean-subal- pine climate, mild and well-ventilated.
The vineyards were purchased one parcel at a time, and came to close to 200 hectares over time. An incredible mosaic of over 100 plots in 10 municipalities, in order to specifically tailor each wine drawing on the multiple geological and climatic variations they have to offer. Across the estate, there are as many as 64 different types of soil, representng all 6 vineyard terrains of Franci- acorta. A true wealth of biodiversity.
Most recently (2020) Vittorio’s daughter Francesca has taking over presidency of the Terra Moretti group. With experience as winemaker and also CEO for some years now she is still working aside her father.
About Ettore Maggi
Ettore is working with the Moretti family, and Terra Moretti Group, for nearly 20 years. At the start he was working at Petra, the red wine project in Suvereto -Tuscany and for the last 6 years he has been working as the Export manager for the northern European countries. He represents all the wineries in the Moretti’s portfolio.
The Group boasts a turnover of 65 million euros, 8.5 million bottles produced, 548 employees, and 1.154 hectares of vineyards divided into six wineries, built from scratch or acquired: Bellavista, Contadi Castaldi in Franciacorta; Petra Suvereto, Acquagiusta Tenuta La Badiola in Maremma and Teruzzi in San Gimignano, and Sella & Mosca in Sardinia.
About the Tasting
During the show we will taste one of their best selling wines: the Alma Grande Cuvée (recognisable as the “orange label”). An outstanding (non vintage) cuvée with long bottle aging, made from chardonnay, pinot nero and pinot bianco. This Bellavista is available through various retailers, and imported in The Netherlands via our partner Vinites. Click here to find more information (in Dutch).
We are looking forward to talking to Ettore and learning from his background, experiences and the winery. Be sure to tune in on Instagram Live through our Dutch Wine Apprentice account on Friday the 18th of March, 19:30h CET.
Click here for instructions on how to follow a live show on Instagram Live. If you have questions for our guest you are welcome to prepare them and e-mail them to us or send them as a direct message on our Instagram account.
You can find a link to the recording of the show here.
