Cà du Ferrà, authentic wines with an ancient soul

Cà du Ferrà It must be such a wonderful dream. What makes it even more special is that it has become a reality. A reality so solid and strong that it led a super-entitled lawyer and engineer to leave Milan (and so far…) and undertake An adventure in viticulture that is anything but mundane. Difficult to stumble over the trivial when talking about the Ligurian Riviera and when at stake are fragile yet fundamental balances with nature, a heritage of mostly forgotten native grape varieties to be safeguarded and relearned, a willingness to see the beauty in all things by digging the surface.

Question of balance

Five hectares of vineyards, 30,000 bottles a year, a project born 25 years ago and officially adopted by the couple in 2017 when they decided to leave town and give life to the project made of beauty, the beauty that will save the world. Because that is what it is all about, about preservation and to bring back to light fragile soils of the Riviera Ligure di Levante, in the village of Bonassola.

The balance is defended simply by modernizing it. In what looks like a Constant listening to the needs of the area as a function of change. The latter spares no one but if it is indulged it can be transformed into an opportunity. With the same tenacity therefore as a blacksmith (ferrà) who with the right tools can shape even iron, so in Bonassola are born authentic wines with an ancient soul.

Heritage of native grape varieties

Cà du Ferrà is a champion of native grape varieties Whites. Vermentino, Albarola, Bosco. But also naturalized Ligurian red grape varieties, such as Sangiovese, Ciliegiolo, Merlot, Grenache, Vermentino Nero and Syrah. All vines that look to the sea or feel its proximity, guaranteeing an authentic result.

Starring in the latest effort by Davide Zoppi and Giuseppe Luciano Aieta is the rediscovery of the Ruzzese as an indigenous grape variety with versatile potential. Rediscovered and identified as a grape variety that is genetically independent of others it is entered in the register of cultivable grape varieties in 2009, but its history is older.

From deep roots it is told already by Andrea Bacci in 1596, described meticulously in Natural History of Wines both as a grape variety and for its winemaking potential. White-skinned, thick-skinned, late-ripening and naturally hardy. Thus an ancient grape variety with an inherent modernity that once made it perfect for over-ripening and drying. Naturally, it was transformed into a sweet raisin wine that, in amphora, found a home in Mediterranean waters where it spent cool periods of ripening cradled by the sea.

Today, thanks to Cà du Ferrà and the stubbornness of the Zoppi family in safeguarding the cultivation of this grape variety, it is expertly reinterpreted. The result? A wine that makes people talk about itself, and does not conceive, indeed does not tolerate, indifference.

Zero Tolleranza per il Silenzio Cà du Ferrà

The rediscovery of Ruzzese’s potential inevitably gave rise to a new wine. A white wine, still and dry. Still produced in a few bottles, due to lack of raw material, but it may only be a matter of time. The signature is that of the consulting winemaker. A professional who needs no introduction, because he is Graziana Grassini who with her experience and intuition was able to give the right interpretation not only to the grape variety but also to the intentions of Cà du Ferrà.

Harvested when fully ripe, the grapes are brought to the winery and processed using cold. Then obtained the must, after an initial clarification of the coarser parts, is fermented in tonneau. Having become wine, there it will rest for a short time before bottling. Only 635 bottles for the 2023 vintage, but a truly unique result. Also unique was the presentation, at the La Vigna International Library in Vicenza, where Bacci’s 1500 text bearing written traces of Ruzzese is preserved and where Davide was first convinced to make it his own.

Zero Tolleranza per il Silenzio is not just a manifesto of intentions, but is the name of the new wine born with the desire to stop being silent and to want, with elegance, to always make one’s voice heard.

TO READ THE WINE DESCRIPTIONS, WITH SCORE AND AVERAGE SHELF PRICE, CLICK ON THE TABS BELOW.