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LI VELI

PUGLIA



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ABOUT THE WINERY

Puglia has a long agrarian history, thanks to its relatively high proportion of flat or rolling terrain suitable for growing crops. For many centuries, Puglia’s agriculture was dominated by extensive land grants from the ruling nobility. Known as latifundi, these holdings were the equivalent of plantations or haciendas in other countries, often controlled by absentee landowners and worked by local peasants and sharecroppers. Beginning in the 16th century in Puglia, many of these latifundi began to build structures known as masserie. The masseria was sort of a cross between a castle and a farmhouse and was designed to improve the life of the farmworkers. It was typically a large stone building located in or near the fields of the latifundo with room for the managers and many of the farmworkers to sleep and for storage of equipment and harvests. It was also intended to be strong enough to protect the inhabitants from raids by pirates, bandits, and marauding soldiers. 

The latifundi began to be broken up during the period of Napoleonic rule in Italy at the end of the 1700s and early 1800s, and the essentially feudal system that they represented was outlawed in 1950. By that time, most of the masserias had fallen into disrepair. One such ruin was Masseria Li Veli, located near the center of the Salento Peninsula in southern Puglia, on the southern slopes of the Murgia plateau. Many masserias have been reconstructed as residences or agritourism accommodations beginning in the 1970s, but this particular one was rebuilt much earlier for a different purpose. 

The crumbling Masseria Li Veli was acquired in the late 19th century by Marchese Antonio de Viti de Marco (1858–1943), an important economist and professor who was influential in the theory of public finance in the Kingdom of Italy. In 1895, the masseria was restored to serve as a model wine cellar, demonstrating an ambitious concept for economic development for all of southern Italy. It stayed in operation until the 1950s. 

The masseria is once again functioning as an important winemaking facility, having been renovated and modernized into an up-to-date production center for the Li Veli wines. The Falvo family, former owners of the Avignonesi winery in Tuscany but with Puglian roots, purchased the masseria and its 128 acres of land in 1999 and breathed new life into de Viti de Marco’s project. The vision is to establish a new quality benchmark in the region, through both vineyard management and vinification.

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WINERY LOCATION: Cellino San Marco (Brindisi province), Puglia
REGION: Salice Salentino DOC, IGT Puglia, IGT Salento, IGT Valle d’itria
VINEYARD LAND: 82 acres (33 ha)
FARMING PRACTICES: Sustainable
GRAPE VARIETIES: Negroamaro, Primitivo, Susumaniello, Malvasia Neri di Lecce, Aleatico, Cabernet Sauvignon, Verdeca and Minutolo
WINE STYLES: Dry red; dry rosato; dry white; sweet dessert
TOTAL WINE PRODUCTION: 350,000 bottles (260,000 liters)
YEAR FOUNDED: 1999
OWNER(S): The Falvo family
WINEMAKER(S): Riccardo Cotarella

WINES

LI VELI "TORREMOSSA" FIANO SALENTO IGT

Fiano is a grape variety typically associated with Campania on the other side of the Apennines from Puglia, but Puglia’s plantings of Fiano have been increasing, and the variety seems well suited to this region. Li Veli makes this Fiano as one of its two white-wine offerings.

LI VELI “TORREROSE” NEGROAMARO ROSATO SALENTO IGT

The Salento area and its leading grape variety Negroamaro are recognized as producing some of Italy’s best rosato (pink) wines. Li Veli Torrerose is a great example of this hearty style of rosé wine.

LI VELI “ORION” PRIMITIVO SALENTO IGT

While Li Veli focuses much of its attention on Negroamaro, Orion is dedicated to the other important grape variety of the Salento Peninsula: Primitivo. The Italian alter ego of Croatia’s Tribidrag and California’s Zinfandel, Primitivo has been grown in Puglia for centuries and is gaining newfound recognition in Italy. The wine’s name, Orion, is not related to the constellation, but rather to an ancient wall. Orion means “limit” or “boundary” in Greek, and a wall that once served as the boundary of Salento when this was a Greek colony is today a country road that runs alongside Li Veli’s Primitivo vineyard.

LI VELI “PRIMONERO” NEGROAMARO SALENTO IGT

Salento peninsula has always been a great wine producing area of Italy and a land of crossing cultures. Primonero was born from the heart of this land with its most representative grape: Negroamaro, whose name emphasizes the dark colour of its fruit: niger from the Latin “black” and amauros from the Greek “dark”. In memory of Greeks and Romans, the two main cultures dominating and crossing each other in this region.

LI VELI “PASSAMANTE” SALICE SALENTINO DOC

Passamante is Li Veli’s entry Salice Salentino, the Negroamaro-based wine that defines the Salento Peninsula. Though no oak aging is required for non-riserva Salice Salentino wines, Li Veli gives Passamante 6 months in barriques to round out the wine and introduce additional complexity. Passamante is the name of the wooded area next to the vineyard.

LI VELI “ASKOS” VERDECA SALENTO IGT

Li Veli features little-known native grape varieties of Puglia in its Askos line. Verdeca is the white entry in this line. Not much Verdeca is grown in Puglia, and almost none outside the region, so it’s exciting to see a varietal Verdeca wine like this one from Li Veli. Askos is a Greek word for a type of wine container, harkening back to the pre-Roman days when the Ancient Greeks colonized Puglia and produced wine here—perhaps from Verdeca.

LI VELI “ASKOS” SUSUMANIELLO ROSATO SALENTO IGT

Li Veli features little-known native grape varieties of Puglia in its Askos line. With just 125 acres (50 ha) in all of Italy, Susumaniello certainly fits in that category. Li Veli’s varietal Susumaniellos are a rare opportunity to taste this ancient grape variety that is just starting to garner attention. This wine is a pink version, essentially a white wine made with red Susumaniello grapes.

LI VELI “ASKOS” SUSUMANIELLO SALENTO IGT

Li Veli features little-known native grape varieties of Puglia in its Askos line. With just 125 acres (50 ha) in all of Italy, Susumaniello certainly fits in that category. Li Veli’s varietal Susumaniellos are a rare opportunity to taste this ancient grape variety that is just starting to garner attention.

LI VELI “ASKOS” PRIMITIVO SALENTO IGT

Li Veli features native grape varieties of Puglia in its Askos line. Primitivo is now well known, but it remains in the shadow of Negroamaro and several other Italian grape varieties, so Li Veli includes it in this project.

LI VELI “PEZZO MORGANA” SALICE SALENTINO RISERVA DOC

Li Veli Pezzo Morgana is a single-vineyard Negroamaro from the Salice Salentino denomination. The vineyard is planted using the ancient Settonce system based on hexagonal distribution rather than rows. This wine is a riserva, which requires at least 2 years of aging, including 6 months or more in wood.

LI VELI “MASSERIA LI VELI” SALENTO IGT

Masseria Li Veli (or “MLV”) is Li Veli’s most prestigious wine. It is based on Primitivo and Negroamaro but takes a modern turn by adding a healthy proportion of Cabernet Sauvignon. The result is a particularly powerful and long-lived wine.

LOCATION


WINERY:
Cellino San Marco (Brindisi province), Puglia

VINEYARD:
Salento peninsula, Puglia

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NEWS AND REVIEWS FROM OUR FRIENDS IN THE INDUSTRY



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90
NOVEMBER 2022
Li Veli “Askos” Susumaniello Salento IGT 2020

WINE SPECTATOR TOP 100 #63 

A lively, medium- to full-bodied red, with rich hints of melted licorice and espresso layered with aromas and flavors of blackberry tart, dried mint and olive tapenade. Well-knit, with a fine frame of chalky tannins. Drink now through 2025. 7,500 cases made, 2,500 cases imported.

87
NOVEMBER 2022
Li Veli “Primonero” Negroamaro Salento IGT 2021

Light-bodied and lively, this easy­ drinking, snappy red offers flavors of wild cherry, sage and spice box. Drink now. 4,000 cases made, 1,000 cases imported.

92
JUNE 2023
Li Veli “Askos” Susumaniello Rosato Salento IGT 2020

Masseria Li Veli is one of the few wineries that works with Susumaniello, a red indigenous variety of southern Puglia. Deep orange hue; aromas of pear jelly, currant and orange roses, with excellent freshness, very good acidity and a lengthy, round finish. Very appealing and well made; enjoy this on its own or with lighter white meats or ham over the next 2-3 years.

90
OCTOBER 2020
Li Veli “Torrerose” Negroamaro Rosato Salento IGT 2019

A bright, boisterous nose of peach, melon and apricot starts off this fruity but balanced rosato. Rounded and juicy in feel, the palate offers creamy melon and stone fruit flavors upfront that progress to more citric elements of grapefruit and orange zest. It ends on a lingering apricot peel note that leaves a crisp, delightfully tactical sensation.

90
APRIL 2022
Li Veli “Askos” Susumaniello Rosato Salento IGT 2021

The 2021 Rosato Susumaniello Askos is understated and dusty in character, yet with an exotic spiciness that keeps me coming back to the glass. It washes across that palate with glycerol-like textures, while delivering ripe green melon and sweet inner herbal tones. While a bit short, the Askos succeeds in leaving the senses completely refreshed and aching for another sip.

91
NOVEMBER 2022
Li Veli “Masseria Li Veli” Salento IGT 2019

This elegant red is medium- to full-bodied, with fine, satiny tannins and texture and a subtle overtone of Earl Grey tea. Featuring baked black plum, kirsch, min­ eral and mocha flavors, this shows good concentration in a harmonious frame,with a lingering, creamy finish. Primi­ tivo and Cabernet Sauvignon. Drink now through 2027. 500 cases made, 150 cases imported.

91
JULY 2021
Li Veli “Pezzo Morgana” Salice Salentino Riserva DOC 2017

Dusty rose, cloves, cinnamon, dried black cherries and hints of camphor emanate from the 2017 Salice Salentino Pezzo Morgana Riserva. It’s silky and pliant in feel, with cool-toned red and hints of blue fruit, further lifted by juicy acids and sour citrus tones, as fine tannins slowly saturate toward the close. The Pezzo Morgana finishes structured and long, tart currants and exotic spices tapering off under an air of violet florals. This is a single-vineyard varietal Negroamaro that’s refined for 12 months in barriques, which it handles quite well, coming across as nicely polished.

91
AUGUST 2022
Li Veli “Orion” Primitivo Salento IGT 2020

A delicious primitivo with light jam, orange peel and plum compote aromas and flavors. Medium-bodied with light tannins and a flavorful finish. Nicely done. Drink now.