"Lugana ‘Il Gruccione’ from Nunzio Ghiraldi is a rich and elegant wine with citrus and ripe green fruit notes, touches of honey, lemongrass and exotic stone fruit on the palate. The palate further develops with beautiful spice notes of thyme, sage and almonds. It is a complex and fascinating white which always impresses. Il Gruccione is the species of bird which flies from North Africa each year to feed on bees in Nunzio’s vineyards."
Situated in the cru of Lugana di Sirmione and nestled up against the Veneto border, Nunzio Ghiraldi’s vineyards are exceptionally close to Lake Garda in the very best part of this now-sprawling DOC. In the thick clay soils that line in the ‘golden mile’ immediately south of the lake, Turbiana picks up huge concentration even if the soil makes for hard work in the vineyard. With some vines now 60 years old (used for the Sant’Onorata Cru) Nunzio is justifiably proud of his family’s heritage. The winery is just up the road from the medieval farmhouse and bristles with stainless steel (neither wine is oaked). The harvest is entirely manual and it’s always whole-bunch press and then into tank with very little skin contact. Yields are always under 65 hl/ha. This might sound like a lot but, for Lugana, it is a mere trifle.
