Dessert Wines

About Castello Bonomi

The Paladin family, who has been making estate-bottled wine for about 60 years, owns several estates across Italy, from the Veneto to Tuscany, but... perhaps their most famous and most distinct is Castello Bonomi, in Lombardy’s Franciacorta region. With vinicultural history that dates back to medieval Benedictine monks, Franciacorta spans about 5,400 acres, but this rare northern Italian region is devoted to one unique style of wine: the best champagne-styled sparklers that you can find outside of France — indeed, it’s the sole DOCG region that permits classic méthode champenoise sparklers. The family-owned-and-operated Castello Bonomi estate is housed in a gorgeous art deco villa built in the late nineteenth century, and the estate’s vineyards sit on 60 steeply pitched acres in a natural amphitheater that rests at the foot of Mount Orfano. These terraced vineyards enjoy a privileged microclimate that includes limestone-rich soils, southern exposures, excellent drainage, and pure sunlight. These elements provide the raw materials that Castello Bonomi’s Chardonnay and Pinot Nero grapes need, while a strict green harvest, low yields, and stringent grape sorting help the estate’s team craft a range of terroir-driven, award-winning Franciacorta wines.