Situated on the hills of Conegliano Valdobbiadene, on the beautiful slopes of Carpesica, Bellenda is wine estate, particularly enthusiastic to the revival and rediscovering of Metodo Classico (production of sparkling wines by second fermentation in the bottle)in the area. Cosmo family never stops experimenting with bottle fermentation of Glera and believes, that Conegliano Valdobbiadene is the place, where wines from this grape variety, produced by Metodo Classico, perfectly reflect the multiple facets of the terroir of the area.
VdV: The history of Bellenda winery starts in 1986… Did you family produced wine before or you were in another business?
Umberto Cosmo : Our family, originated from Venise, moved to the region of Conegliano Valdobbiadene in 18ème century. We always had vineyards and lands and worked in agriculture but, mostly in milk and egg production. The grapes we were growing were sold to a local cooperative.
VdV: Why did you decided to make wine yourself and not to sell the grapes anymore?
U.C.: I think, because doing the same thing every day was boring for my farther and me, and we decided to meet the challenge of winemaking. My father studied in the Enological School of Conegliano, but he worked as an enologist only first few years, before switching on the other family business. For me it was different – I studied veterinarian science, and with my brother, who studied enology we produced some wine for the family, but we never sold it. So we naturally decided to produce wine for the market too.
VdV: What varieties were planted in your vineyards in that time?
U.C. : Mostly Glera, a bit of red grapes like Marzemino, Merlot, some white grapes like Verdiso and some Verduzzo that we do not have any more. When we created the winery, we decided to plant more Glera, some Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, and old local grapes – Bianchetta and Marzemina Bianca.
VdV: And why did you plant Chardonnay and Pinot Noir?
U.C.: With my brother Luigi we joked, that we like Champagne, but it is too expensive for us, so we will produce our own Champagne. But it is a joke, obviously. The reason is that we tryed to challenge ourselves with Metodo Classico. And when you think about Metodo Classico, you firstly think about Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. Using Glera in Metodo Classico came about 15 years later, when we considered, that we are able to produce Metodo Classico wines with this variety too.
VdV: When did you issued your very first Metodo Classico wine? What was the name of the cuvee?
U.C.: The very first vintage was 1988, and the first marketed was 1993. It named just “Bellenda Metodo Classico”. Not really a name because in the very beginning we produced only two wines and we did not need marketing names for them. Now we increased our production, and all your wines have a specific name. Wine, produces by Charmat method are named after the area, where the grapes are grown, for example, Miraval and San Fermo vineyard gave respective names for the wines. But wines made by Metodo Classico have more personal names, linked to ourselves. So “S.C. 1931” means the initials of my farther “Sergio Cosmo” and the year of his birth – 1931. “Sei Uno” was born as a joke in 2011, the year of my 50th birthday. I wanted a new wine for the event, and as it did not have a label yet, I just wrote on the label “Sei Uno”, “Six One” for the year of my birthday, 1961. It was not intended to be a real label, but it was appreciated, so we kept it for the name of a new cuvée.
VdV: We have tasted the wine produced not only by Metodo Classico. Could you tell us more about methods of production that you use?
U.C.: Con Alti is the evolution of Metodo Rurale (ancestral method), that we produced until two years ago. Con Alti has some technical differences, and an another name. There is no must added as for Col Fondo and it has 10-11% alcohol every year. For Col Fondo we keep wine until march, then we add grape must, reserved from the same vintage, to start a second fermentation in the bottle during spring. San Fermo is made using Charmat method, by fermentation in pressurized tanks, which highlights its saltiness and acidity. This is what gave us the idea to try Metodo Classico. Charmat method was introduced in 1930s, but sparkling wines in the region exist from 1850s. So, we asked ourselves, if it was a technic, similar to Metodo Classico, that was used in winemaking for about 70-80 years, and we started an experiment with a few hundreds bottles to test this idea. The first experiment was in 2003, and the first on the market was 2005 vintage of “S.C” was our first metodo Classico. We also experimented with aging on lees and dosage. Finally, Sei Uno became extra brut with 18 months of aging, and “S.C.” – with 24 months and it is pas dosé. We were the first to produce Metodo Classico from base wines without added sulfates, in order not to have interference with yeast, and because with added sulfates the wine interacts differently with oxygen. We only add a little bit after disgorging to protect the wine. I think, the less we do to the wine, the better it is. Wine it is a delicate equilibrium, with many different substances, that if you correct one, another can change, without you expect it.
VdV: Cuvée Radicale is atypical. Why did you decide to make such a wine?
U.C.: It was also a matter of challenge, an experiment. Radicale is a reproduction of one of the firsts experiments of making sparkling wine in the area. We tried to replicate the first approach of second fermentation, when the wine started to be disgorged before the release, because people wanted clear wines. The difference is that in this time the wine was sweeter. For Radicale the base wine is similar to Con Alti, but the process of vinification is different. We feel the notes of evolution of autolysis here because the wine is disgorged just before release. It express the aroma of saffron typical for morainic soil, which takes time to develop, you have to be patient to make this wine. The tradition of our area is selling wine within six month, so to keep it in cellar is indeed atypical. It is a change of mind that will happen in generations. The wine ages sur lattes about 4 years, then we put it on the “pointe”, and keep it so (this is why the label is upside-down. In the beginning it was only in magnums, later we started to make it in bottles.
VdV : Which is the idea behind in experimentation with Metodo Classico with only four month aging?
U.C.: For many years we had an idea to switch more of our production to bottle fermentation. We like bottle fermentation on the lees, as Col Fondo, But I think, that a sparkling wine should be clean, that is why, Metodo Classico for me is the best way to produce sparkling wines. For this experiment, the second fermentation lasts the same time as for our Sam Fermo wine, but in the bottle. And the evolution of the wine is different. In addition, disgorging the wine after the second fermentation in the bottle, you respect it more, than when you filter it after the second fermentation in autoclave, and you have some interaction with oxygen, which helps the wine to develop, but in autoclave everything is closed. We are going to experiment with 4 months in bottle, we will see how it goes. The 4 months of ageing on lees will be a new experiment for us. As for other wines, we have the following periods of maturation: 18 months for “Sei Uno”, 24 months for “S.C. 1931” and 36 months for our Dry Cuvee “Lei”.
VdV: Does Glera suit well for Metodo Classico?
U.C.: Yes, and it can age well. On the morainic soils of the area Glera gives more dry extract, so we can decrease dosage and, though, the level of sugar in our wines, which slows down the evolution of wine. I think, that the only reason why Glera was not used to produce wines with Metodo Classico before, because it gives pleasant wines ready in three months, and nobody wanted to challenge this grape in Metodo Classico. But now winemakers are ready to try bottle fermentation and long aging on lees.
VdV: Would you like to try some unknown local varieties to challenge climate change?
U.C.: We have a lot of local varieties to test. But Glera still standing well to climate change and do not have any big problem, because it accumulates a low level of sugar, normally, it have 10-10.5% of alcohol potential in a normal harvest. Even in hot years, like 2022, we had about 10.8% of alcohol content, which is not high. So I think, that if things do not change dramatically, Glera is a variety which is still convenient for us.
VdV: Which zones of whole Prosecco area after you are the most suitable for making Metodo Classico wines?
U.C.: For sure, not the plain of standard DOC. Conegliano Valdobbiadene area, also Asolo. But we cannot produce Metodo Classico wine with long aging on lees everywhere; we have to choose specific areas for it. For making Metodo Classico the wine should have some structure, otherwise, you lose a part of flavours on the palate. So we are experimenting with a shorter aging in the bottle, to test what method suits better to express the grape and the terroir. But anyway Charmat is a good compromise and it can be used in many areas. Conegliano Valdobbiadene has a good potential for Charmat method and for Metodo Classico. Not all Rive are able to produce Metodo Classico, because they have different soils, which give different extract and different aromatics. If we increase the extract by maceration on skins, we can lose minerality part of aromatics, by increasing the polyphenols from grapes, which we do not want to.
VdV: You also have one red wine. It is also experimentation?
U.C.: Our red wine is a Conegliano Rosso, basically it is a Bordeaux bland: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, a little bit of Cabernet Franc and 10% of local grape Marzemino. It is a wine, quite traditional for the area, because after phylloxera here we lost most of our local grape varieties. The white varieties resisted to phylloxerra better, than reds. We started to plant French varieties, mostly Merlot, because it gives good results in the area. Cabernet Sauvignon with warmer season, than in the past also gives good results.
VdV. So the experimentation in wine is definitely the philosophy of the family. Do you have other ideas or projects for the future?
U.C.: Indeed, the experimentation is our family’s signature. For now we are experimenting with a short fermentation in the bottle. We also make some research on fermentation. We have found, if we make partial and progressive fermentation, not of all wines together in big tanks, but by adding some must in order to maintaining the level of alcohol at about 5-7% during fermentation, we can control and analyses the work of indigenous yeasts and make a kind natural yeast selection rather than use only selected cultivated yeast, and develop different kind of aromas. Bur winemaking takes time, you cannot make a new wine every year. So for now these are our two main projects.
VdV: What do you think about the future of Metodo Classico in the region of Prosecco?
U.C.: Bellenda rediscovered it, but was not the first to do it. I am happy that now the producers are more enthusiastic for this method. In the beginning, they were maybe not very confident about it, but now they are about 20 to produce Metodo Classico, and it is put on the label, and consumers are more curious to discover something different. However, Metodo Classico will not replace Charmat method, it is not possible for the reason of terroir, suitable for it and of volume, that the whole region of Prosecco needs to produce (more than 600 000 000 bottles). But it will be complimentary, showing the difference of wines that come from hills of Conegliano Valdobbiadene from those from valleys. The challenge with Metodo Classico in the area is to maintain the relationship with Glera and its subtle profile. In my opinion, in Metodo Classico wines from Glera is easier to feel the difference between terroirs then in Charmat method, which tends to produce uniform wine, which reflects the grape variety. But if you want the real sense of terroir: the soil, the grape, and the way the wine is made – it is Metodo Classico . It is difficult to say which method is better, they are just different. I think that Charmat will remain the main method for our wine in the area, but I think that we should rediscover that part of history, that was forgotten for too long and use bottle fermentation more.
