Massimo Coletti is more than just a fourth-generation winemaker; he’s an artisan, profound thinker, and passionate vigneron. His family winery’s story begins with his great-grandfather, who established the estate in a small area between the Colle Umberto and San Fior areas in the Veneto. However, like many growers at the time, Massimo’s great-grandfather sold off the majority of his fruit to the local cooperative and limited production to just a few hectoliters to be enjoyed by family and friends.
Fast-forward to 2006, when Massimo suggested that he and his father begin bottling a new line of wines, which we now know as Via Larghe today. “Now, they are negligible numbers, but when we produced these first bottles, after the rounds of relatives and friends, we didn’t know where to sell them,” Massimo laughs. Around this same time, Massimo met his now wife, Laure, who moved to Paris. In hopes of being closer to her, Massimo uprooted his life to move to Champagne—the nearest region to Paris where he could continue honing his winemaking skills. By 2009, Massimo had become intrigued by more natural ways of winemaking and farming, and realized that Via Larghe was the perfect wine to continue perfecting these approaches.
A brief stint in Belgium in 2013 led Massimo and Laure to open a natural wine shop, though Massimo regularly returned to the Veneto during important periods at the winery (harvest, pruning, etc.). By 2020, Massimo and Laure officially moved back to Veneto, rendering the year the first official ‘Massimo’ vintage at the winery. (He also purchased Borgo Faliero that same year and rented Osigo in 2021.) His focus remains on producing high-quality sparkling wines that speak to the unique place of Italy from which they come.
It’s important to note that the history of col fondo sparkling wines, that is, sur-lie aged bubbles, has long been a tradition in the Veneto despite its lack in popularity in recent years. Innovative producers like Massimo are shedding light on this historic means of making wine in northern Italy, and the quality of these thoughtfully made wines speak for themselves. Although just a few years in, the future looks bright (and, of course, bubbly).
