Dark-fruited and structured, but still lively enough to want another glass. Alto Adige’s native Lagrein brings wild berries, cherry, cocoa, spice, and a long juicy finish.
Quick Facts
- Region: Alto Adige DOC, Italy
- Variety: 100% Lagrein
- Style: Dry, medium-bodied, structured northern Italian red
- Best For: date night, grilled meats, savory red-wine discovery, Syrah drinkers
- ABV: 13.5%
- Skin Contact: Approximately 10 days
Lagrein is Alto Adige’s principal native red, and its unfamiliar name hides a style that Syrah drinkers can understand quickly. Dark fruit, smoke, spice, and firm tannin give the wine structure, while the juicy finish keeps it energetic rather than weighty. Elena Walch’s large-cask approach rounds the grape’s edges without sanding away its savory regional identity.
Why We Love It
Lagrein gives us a native Italian red with enough dark fruit and structure for committed red-wine drinkers, but a fresher overall feel than its deep color suggests. It is an easy way to move beyond familiar Cabernet and Syrah without asking the evening to become an educational exercise. Open it for date night when red wine is still the instinct, even in warmer weather.
Featured in our Elena Walch: Where Summer Meets the Alps flight, July 2026.
Tasting Profile
Dark berries, cherry, cocoa, smoke, and herbs meet firm tannins and a long juicy finish.
- Aroma: black raspberry, wild berries, dark cherry, cocoa, smoke, dried herbs
- Palate (Flavor): boysenberry, plum skin, cherry, star anise, savory spice
- Structure & Finish (Mouthfeel): medium body, fresh acidity, fine taut tannins, long savory finish
Winemaking
Fermentation takes place in stainless steel with roughly ten days of skin contact, building Lagrein’s deep color, dark fruit, and firm tannin. Malolactic fermentation softens the wine’s sharper edges and rounds the palate. Maturation in large French and Slavonian oak barrels integrates the tannin and adds smoke and spice without covering the fruit.
Serving & Pairing
Serve around 58-62°F. A short 20-minute rest after opening will help the fruit and savory notes settle together.
Pair with grilled lamb or pork, game, roast mushrooms, tuna, salmon, or shellfish served with a bright sauce.
Estate Overview
Elena Walch played a central role in Alto Adige’s move toward more focused, lower-yield, varietal and site-specific wines beginning in the late 1980s. The estate is now led by her daughters Julia and Karoline, continuing the fifth generation of the family winery. The varietal Lagrein matters within that story because it treats the region’s native red as a complete wine in its own right rather than a supporting component in a blend.
Terroir (Place)
The Lagrein comes from warmer southeast- and southwest-facing sites on both sides of the mountain ridge. Calcareous soils mixed with clay and sand support ripe dark fruit, color, and tannic structure. The warm exposures give the grape fullness, while Alto Adige’s mountain-influenced conditions help preserve the acidity and juiciness that keep the wine moving.
