Ca' D'Gal Moscato d'Asti Lumine 2021
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The hail in Moscato country was so terrible in 1980 that Alessandro Boido’s father decided it was time to give up. He stopped producing Moscato under the Ca d’Gal label that his grandfather had founded in 1864, and started selling his grapes to the local cooperative. But that wasn’t to last very long. In 1983, Alessandro, the fourth generation of this historic family, graduated with a degree in agriculture, and started his travels through France and Germany working as an apprentice at various wineries. By the late 1980s, he was back home in Valdivilla, bringing with him the passion and energy to restart the family business. He relaunched the family label in 1989 with 3000 bottles of Moscato. Today the farm has grown to 12 hectares that produce about 8000 cases per year. One of his first decisions in 1989 was to stop the use of any chemical or systemic products in the vineyards. His philosophy was greatly influenced by his peers the late Domenico Clerico and Angelo Rocca: Alessandro lowered the yields through green harvest, and focused his attention on preserving his older vines which naturally limit the production to fewer, but higher quality grapes.
While Muscat comes in a wide range of styles from dry to sweet, still to sparkling and even fortified, it's safe to say it is always alluringly aromatic and delightful. The two most important versions are the noble, Muscat Blanc à Petits Grains, making wines of considerable quality and Muscat of Alexandria, thought to be a progeny of the former. Somm Secret—Pliny the Elder wrote in the 13th century of a sweet, perfumed grape variety so attractive to bees that he referred to it as uva apiana, or “grape of the bees.” Most likely, he was describing Muscat.
Recognized as the source of the best Barbera in all of Italy, Asti is a province (as well as major city) in Piedmont, consisting of a gentle, rolling landscape with vineyards, farmland and forests alternating throughout.
Barbera d’Asti can be made in an array of styles from relatively straightforward, fruity and ready for consumption early, to the more concentrated, oak aged version with an ability to cellar impressively for 10-15 years and beyond. Some of the very best sites for Barbera in Asti are concentrated in the subzone of Nizza Monferrato. Other red varieties grown here include Freisa, Grignolino and Dolcetto, which can be bottled varietally or blended into Barbera.
Historically consumers commonly associated the Asti region with Asti Spumante and Moscato d’Asti, both playful, aromatic, sparkling wines made from the Muscat grape. Asti Spumante is less sweet, fully fizzy and more alcoholic (yet still clocking in at only around 9% alcohol) while Moscato d’Asti is sweeter, gently sparkling (“frizzante”) and closer to 5 or 6% alcohol. Each is produced in stainless steel tanks to preserve the fresh and fruity flavors of the grape, often including peach, apricot, lychee and rose petal. Asti is also the spot for the pink-hued Brachetto d'Acqui, a slightly sparkling wine ready to charm with its raspberry and rose flavors and aromas.