Lugana Trebbiano: Historical, Genetic Aspects and Wine Quality Insights
“Il Trebbiano di Lugana: aspetti storici e genetici” is the title of the volume that will be presented on Saturday, April 7th, during the 35th edition of Vinitaly 2001. The event is scheduled for 5:15 PM in the Lombardia pavilion. Among the speakers will be the authors, Prof. Attilio Scienza and Dr. Pier Luigi Villa, as well as the President of the Lugana DOC Protection Consortium, lawyer Francesco Ghiraldi.
In his preface to the volume, President Ghiraldi writes that “condensing the qualities of the wines and the natural wonders of the D.O.C. Lugana area into a few lines is a very difficult task, so as always I recommend, in these cases, that the best synthesis is achieved by tasting a Lugana D.O.C., paired with a good plate of delicious lake fish and visiting a Lugana winery. Discovering the land and the people through traditional wine and cuisine of a region—continues Avv. Ghiraldi—is a sign of culture and the beginning of very pleasant surprises: from the character of a wine, one can understand the viticulturist; similarly, from the analysis of the organoleptic characteristics of the wines, skilled tasters can infer the type of soil or the age of the vineyard of origin.
It is true that Lugana wines, produced from a particular local Trebbiano with excellent enological potential, are indelibly marked by the land that gives them life and that imparts great sapidity, structure, honesty, and harmony of aromas and flavors that captivate for their intensity and character. Confirming what I have briefly outlined are the production data requested by an ever-growing audience, which consequently increases steadily over the years, not due to higher yields, but because of the continuous expansion of the vineyards.
The commercial satisfaction, an indication of the commitment to vineyard cultivation, winemaking experience, and the excellent entrepreneurial skills of producers, also reflect the small but significant merits of the Lugana Consortium, which has been committed for years to promoting a product that must and can only be of excellent quality. The main tasks of a Consortium, as stated by President Ghiraldi, are those of enhancing the wine, providing technical assistance to members, and protecting the Denomination.
Promotion and valorization are carried out through promotional and advertising initiatives, mainly via participation in national and international events, where public approval forms a solid foundation for the ongoing expansion of Lugana. In technical assistance to members, the Lugana Consortium is certainly at the forefront, having activated measures to ensure constant support to members across all production levels — from the vineyard to the winery to commercialization.
The protection and supervision of the denomination represent the new challenge that major Italian Consortia will have to face and overcome in the near future, given that new legal provisions demand maximum efficiency and autonomy from Consortia in this sector; in this regard, our Consortium is actively working to adequately respond to the new requirements, fully aware of the importance of safeguarding the value of quality wines.
Such a study as the one presented here deserves the appreciation of all actors in the wine world, since only through a thorough understanding of all components that determine the final characteristics of the product—with a particular focus on the qualitative contribution of the land in Lugana—can strategies be developed to achieve further qualitative improvements.
Confident that many advantages—concludes Avv. Francesco Ghiraldi—can be brought about through collaborations at all levels among public entities, Producers’ Consortia, and Businesses — always keeping in mind that they are the primary drivers of oenological success that generate significant impacts at all social levels. I renew my congratulations for the work carried out, in the hope that it bodes well for our Lugana DOC.