A Day with the Giovanetts & Weingut Castelfeder

We arrived in the Cortina village square at dusk after driving over the Brenner Pass in Austria and then down through the Alps, over Bozen (Bolzano). There was an old castle ruin on top of a mountain peak every turn of the way. We were in the northern Italian region of Alto Adige, but the look and feel of the landscape and the architecture was Germanic.

The next morning we met Ines Giovanett, daughter of Günther & Sandra Giovanett, the proprietors of the estate and sister of Ivan Giovanett, winemaker. She took us on a tour of their vineyards on the eastern side of the valley:

The tour included such Castelfeder label landmarks as the stone on the "Rieder" Lagrein label and the bridge on the "Glener" Pinot Nero label:

After our morning tour, we met Ines' (very fit 90+ year old) grandparents who live in a house on the property, and then we settled down to lunch on the terrace.

After melon & parma ham, garden tomatoes with mozzarrela & basil, vitello tonnato (thinly sliced veal with a tuna & anchovy sauce, spaghetti with tomato sauce, pasta with homemade garden pesto, and ice cream for dessert (and tasting through the wines in their lineup!!), we headed out through the apple orchards on the valley floor to their winery, just off the main village square in Cortina.

Ines gave us a great tour, finishing in the Castelfeder cellar:

After saying good-bye & many thanks to Ines, we returned to our hotel for dinner...

...and took some silly photos to remember the day:

And then we ended our wonderful tour, full-circle, admiring the beautiful village square at dusk:

And then don’t forget the next morning… with the local oompa band performing in the town square:

We direct import (close to) the full Castelfeder line as well as their premium Burgum Novum line. All of the following wines are available at Portalis. As well, lovely Ines Giovanett will be in Seattle next week, so join us for a tasting next Thursday, October 24 to hear the details of this extraordinary land & the wonderful wines it produces!

Castelfeder Pinot Bianco "Vom Stein"
Castelfeder Pinot Grigio "15"
Castelfeder Kerner "Lahn"
Castelfeder Grauvernatsch/Schiava "Kegl"
Castelfeder Lagrein "Rieder"

Mont Mès Pinot Nero (Vigneti delle Dolomiti)

Burgum Novum Pinot Nero Riserva
Burgum Novum Cabernet Riserva
Burgum Novum Lagrein Riserva

Cheers!
Julie, Co-Owner
Portalis Wines & J. Strecker Selections