Talking about Prosecco means entering a universe that, unfortunately, few people have truly understood to this day. It’s drunk all over the world. Yet almost no one knows its many, profound differences in production and territory. Prosecco DOC, Conegliano Valdobbiadene DOCG, Rive, Cartizze: for many consumers, they’re all the same thing. They are not.
To understand how far Prosecco can go, you have to climb the historic hills of Conegliano Valdobbiadene, a UNESCO World Heritage site. It’s the ideal habitat. Add a historic brand like Bortolomiol to the mix, and finding a great wine in the glass comes as no surprise. That’s the case with the Grande Cuvée del Fondatore Motus Vitae, Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore DOCG Extra Brut, Vintage, Rive di San Pietro di Barbozza.
The name alone says a great deal. Rive means a single municipality, a single hillside, hand-harvested grapes and a vintage year on the label. Extra Brut means no added sugar: the residual sugar here is 0 g/l. This sits at the opposite end of the spectrum from the soft, crowd-pleasing Prosecco that built the denomination’s commercial success and, in some ways, flattened its image.
The wine pays tribute to Giuliano Bortolomiol, who founded the winery in 1949. He was among the first to believe in the Martinotti Method when it was still largely uncharted territory, and the first to produce a Brut from Prosecco. A pioneer and an experimenter. Today the company is led by his four daughters, Maria Elena, Elvira, Luisa and Giuliana, and this label is how the family carries that legacy forward.
The production is essential and precise: 100% Glera from the San Pietro di Barbozza vineyard, low yields, soft pressing, temperature-controlled fermentation, and second fermentation in autoclave. Then ten months on the lees, a long period for a Martinotti-method wine, followed by another two to three months in bottle. Eight thousand bottles a year.
In the glass it’s straw yellow, with a fine, persistent bead. The nose is floral and fruity, elegant and measured: it doesn’t burst forth, it accompanies. On the palate it shifts register, turning dry, vibrant, and well-structured, with a freshness that pulls the sip along and cleans the palate. This is a wine built for the table, well beyond aperitif duty.
A single bottle can’t rewrite the image of an entire denomination on its own. But this one explains, better than countless conferences could, what Prosecco is capable of when someone decides to take it seriously.
We paired it with an excellent turbot. A perfect match. Worth tasting without hesitation.
Company Profile
Located in the heart of Valdobbiadene, Bortolomiol S.p.A. is a benchmark producer of Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore DOCG. Founded in 1949 by industry pioneer Giuliano Bortolomiol, the winery is led today with vision and continuity by an all-female executive team, his daughters Maria Elena, Elvira, Luisa, and Giuliana.
BORTOLOMIOL
Via Garibaldi 142, 31049 Valdobbiadene (TV) Italy
parcodellafilandetta@bortolomiol.com – + 39 0423 804258
https://www.bortolomiol.com
