Durella
Durella is a white grape of the hills between Vicenza and Verona in the Veneto. Its marked acidity makes sparkling wine a particularly important contemporary expression. The Lessini hills provide its main regional reference point.
Why sparkling wine matters
Vivai Cooperativi Rauscedo describes a vigorous vine with relatively late budburst, thick-skinned berries, and a preference for long pruning. Its wine can retain substantial acidity at modest alcohol. Those characteristics are useful when a producer needs a fresh base wine for a second fermentation.
Durella's role differs from that of nearby Garganega, the principal grape of Soave: the clearest introduction to Durella is often a sparkling bottle, where acidity remains central through fermentation and maturation.
Fongaro's Cuvée provides a concrete example of the traditional-method approach. The producer's technical sheet describes Durella blended with a smaller share of Incrocio Manzoni, followed by at least four years on the yeasts in bottle. That example illustrates how lees aging can add texture and bread-like complexity around the grape's fresh core. The blend and maturation period describe this bottling, rather than a fixed recipe for all Durella wines.
For readers comparing bottles, the useful questions are how the bubbles were made, how long the wine matured on its lees, and how much sweetness remains. Those choices substantially affect how firmly the acidity presents itself.
Sources
- Vivai Cooperativi Rauscedo, “Durella.”
- Fongaro, “Cuvée: Vino Spumante di Qualità – Metodo Tradizionale Classico,” technical sheet.