Top Italian Wines Roadshow: Canevel and Serego Alighieri

Masi is undoubtedly one of the best known Italian wine brands worldwide. The credit for this success certainly goes to the Boscaini family, who have brought their labels from their headquarters in Gargagnago (Sant'Ambrogio di Valpolicella) to the forefront of the wine world. They started out in the traditional Valpolicella area, extending over the years their influence to other winegrowing areas; they selected the best suitable lands historically chosen for viticulture, paying particular attention to the enhancement of single vineyards that express the various areas’ excellences. They also created a portfolio to offer the consumer many different types of wines: sparkling, white, rosé, dry red and sweet ones. In addition to the vineyards located in the traditional Verona areas (besides Valpolicella, Soave and Bardolino), Masi has added the Counts Serego Alighieri’s historic estates, descendants of the poet Dante, with whom Masi has been working since the 1970s, and the sparkling wine top producer in Valdobbiadene Canevel.

Possessioni Serego Alighieri

It is one of those places where the atmosphere is steeped in history, and not just in terms of wine. Indeed the estate belongs to the Counts Serego Alighieri, descendants of Dante Alighieri, one of the fathers of the Italian language, whose son Pietro bought this very estate in 1353. For 21 generations, within these walls – equipped with a charming lodging that offers accommodation to visiting wine lovers – the Valpolicella winemaking tradition has been handed down, further enhanced by the Masi group since the 1970s. A walk in the garden and through the estate vineyards, a visit to the historic wine cellar with its fragrant cherry wood barrels and the grape drying room, a tasting of a fine wine selection: the Possessioni Serego Alighieri is an oasis of peace that offers the possibility to organise events, conferences and cookery courses, but above all to taste some of the great Veronese reds produced here. Among these, the Valpolicella Monte Piazzo '18 from one of the estate's three crus (the others are Casal dei Ronchi and Vaio Armaron): intense ripe cherries and medicinal herbs, even clearer on the palate, revealing good concentration and a good acidic zip, well supported by thick, smooth tannins.

Canevel

Moving away from the Valpolicella area, we arrive in Valdobbiadene, one of the two capitals of the Prosecco Superiore DOCG appellation. Founded in 1979 by the Caramel family, the company joined the Masi Group in 2016. The recent success of Prosecco di Conegliano Valdobbiadene has undoubtedly been influenced by the work of a small group of wineries that began sooner than others to foster themes such as quality, territory’s strength and identity. One of these is certainly Canevel, a winery that operates within the historic area and can rely on a fairly extensive, organically managed vineyard, dedicated to the production of wines that combine richness and simplicity. The historic Saccol company has become part of the Boscaini family’s universe, bringing in turn innovation and expertise to the ever-changing world of the Treviso bubbles. Today, the production can count on a large number of its own vineyards, supplemented by those cultivated by a great many of local farmers. With the step-by-step supervision of the Masi technical group, they provide the grapes for a production whose flagship product is Valdobbiadene DOCG, as our tastings prove year after year. For the Vini d'Italia 2022 guide, the Campofalco Brut '20 proved excellent. A Prosecco Superiore from the organically farmed Monfalcon vineyard, at an altitude between 300 and 400 metres, which provides the Glera and the splash of Verdiso that make up this fragrant sparkling wine. The fruit is clear and crisp on the nose, first the apple and then the floral notes that anticipate a solid palate of great composure and harmony. On the other hand, Terre del Faè '20 is an Extra Brut that expresses greater freshness and gritty taste.