Est! Est!! Est!!! Foltone: the importance of Roscetto

While I was talking with Marco Carpineti's daughter and tasting their wines, a young man approached me – he must have been about twenty years old; friendly and straightforward, he seemed to know a bit too much to be a simple enthusiast. My eye fell on his hands, bearing those scratches, bumps, and abrasions typical of someone who works hard in the fields. At that point I asked him the obvious question, and with a Lazio accent he told me he was the owner's son of Cantina Stefanoni and invited me to taste their wines.

"It's me, my father, and a farmhand who helps us out from time to time"; their business started in the 1940s and has carried on to this day.

As we talked, I came to understand the particular attention they devote to showcasing Roscetto – also known as Rossetto Trebbiano Bianco – and their desire to stand out without losing their connection to tradition, while trying to create products different from most Lazio wineries. In this regard, for example, their Moscato Colle de' Poggeri differs from others in the area: it is more aromatic on the nose but less fruity on the palate compared to other products in the same category.

A drive to do, to try, to experiment and create – and a few mistakes born of inexperience too. The Metodo Classico, for instance, produces a heavy foam when poured, and then the perlage is barely noticeable, virtually imperceptible to the eye. "During the secondary fermentation in the bottle there was a snowfall that halted it, and the product suffered the consequences."

I then tasted the Foltone, the Est! Est!! Est!!! Doc di Montefiascone produced by Stefanoni.

We already told the story of this wine in the article about the same product from Cantina Bigi, to which we add the inscription on Johann Defugger's tombstone: "For too much Est, my lord Giovanni Defuk lies here" – which gives a sense of just how easy-drinking this white from Lazio can be.

Stefanoni has interpreted the wine by keeping the percentage of Roscetto high – around 50% – blending it with 25% Trebbiano and 25% Malvasia; this makes the wine more aromatic and rounded. On the eye it is a pale straw yellow with golden reflections; the aromas are mineral, but pineapple, banana, and apple also come through; on the palate it is savory, mineral, and well-balanced – be careful, you might overindulge! A simple, ready-to-drink wine, pleasant as a table companion; its well-balanced acidity makes it very refreshing!