Peter Dipoli
Peter Dipoli represents one of the wine world’s pure talents, a pioneer in Alto Adige who is producing wines on a level beyond what anyone thought possible in this mountainous region. He was born in Laives, in the province of Bolzano, on February 25, 1954, to a farming family. He studied viticulture at San Michele all’Adige College, worked for 5 years at the research station of Laimburg, then went back to his father’s property with the aim of creating his own vineyard estate. At the same time Peter founded a company for the distribution of fine wines in Trentino Alto Adige.
He finally got the chance to start making his own wines in 1987 when he bought 1.2 hectares of vineyards in Penon, a hamlet near the village of Cortaccia in Alto Adige. After much research and study, Peter determined that the steep, high-altitude slopes near Bolzano are ideal for the production of complex, age-worthy white and red wines, so he initially decided to replace the local red Schiava vines which he felt didn’t perform well at high altitudes with Sauvignon Blanc. At this altitude, Sauvignon would be able to enjoy a longer growing season, attaining great ripeness while retaining the acidity that would allow it to age in bottle. And so in 1990 the first 1,637 bottles of his Voglar Sauvignon Blanc, (perhaps Italy's most interesting Sauvignon) were produced. His in-depth study of terroir seems to have paid off, as the Voglar bottling—a pure Sauvignon Blanc grown in limestone soils on near-vertical slopes, fermented and aged in acacia casks—is characterized by gorgeous exotic fruit with abundant minerality.
After further research in the years that followed, Peter found a zone with a milder climate in the nearby village of Magré which he felt with its clay and limestone soils would be ideal for cool climate Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. Like for his white, he can achieve longer hang time that confers optimal maturity to the fruit while avoiding unpleasant vegetal flavors. Thus the Iugum vineyard, (and wine of the same name was born). After two years in barriques and another two in bottle, Iugum is released. Peter's goal is to make an age-worthy, complex red from Alto Adige that simultaneously reflects its terroir, and like Voglar, Iugum has been a great success in this regard. Approachable when young this wine also has great potential for ageing, and rivals some of the more famous Super Tuscans for quality and price.
In the beginning the grapes were vinified at a friend’s winery, but now this is done in an ancient, rural house in the village of Egna, that was restored in 1998 and became the estate winery..
So go on, take the plunge, try something different and very unique, and experience the unique artistry of one of northern Italy's great talents, a secret largely guarded within Italy's borders, until now.