Lakeside view - musings on Lugana

"Our wines are made in the vineyard".

If I had a penny for every producer I've heard trot out this clichéd phrase, I'd be rich enough to buy a hectare of vines in Burgundy.

This statement is safely out of scope in Lake Garda's Lugana region, an area with a singularly focused approach to both grape and terroir.

Trebbiano di what?

The Lugana DOC area hugs the southern edge of Lake Garda, and is unusual for focusing on a single white variety - Turbiana. There is some contention about Turbiana's supposed uniqueness - it used to be referred to locally as Trebbiano di Lugana, which confusingly is quite different to the more widespread Trebbiano Toscana (aka Ugni Blanc, a grape considered so worthless by the French that most ends up as Cognac).