Falesco
Two brothers, the most in-demand winemaking name in central Italy, and a single Merlot that put the Lazio–Umbria border on the map. Here's the Cotarella story, the icon bottle Montiano, the fun one behind a legendary name, and how to drink it near Lake Bolsena.
There's a wine in northern Lazio with the most theatrical name in all of Italy — Est! Est!! Est!!! — born of a medieval bishop's servant scrawling "it is!" on the doors of the best inns. For centuries it traded more on the story than the liquid. Then a family whose surname opens cellar doors across the whole country decided to take the region seriously, and central Italy's border found itself with a genuinely great red.
That family is the Cotarellas, and their home project sits in Lazio, right on the seam where it meets Umbria, around Montefiascone and the volcanic bowl of Lake Bolsena. Riccardo Cotarella is one of Italy's most sought-after consulting winemakers — the man estates all over the country call when they want to lift their game. Falesco, founded with his brother Renzo, is where the label finally carries the family's own name instead of a client's. When a winemaker that in-demand puts his own name on a bottle, you pay attention.
The wine that made the name
The proof of concept was Montiano — a pure Merlot, made on the Lazio–Umbria border, that arrived and instantly became one of central Italy's most talked-about reds. Merlot this far south wasn't supposed to be serious. Montiano was: dense, polished, dark-fruited, built to age, and good enough to sit at the same table as the celebrated reds of Tuscany. It did for this stretch of border country what a single great bottle can — it put it on the map.
Riccardo Cotarella makes other people's wines famous for a living. Montiano is the one that made his own corner of Italy famous.
The wines
The range runs from that icon down to honest, characterful everyday bottles — and the fun of Falesco is that both ends are worth your time.
Start with Montiano if you want the statement: the pure Merlot that made the estate's name, opulent and structured, one of the reference reds of central Italy. This is the bottle that argues the Lazio–Umbria border deserves a place in the conversation. Confirm the current composition and vintage before you buy — but this is the icon, and it earns the billing.
Then, at the other, more charming end, reach for the estate's Est! Est!! Est!!! di Montefiascone — the crisp, easy, faintly savoury local white behind Italy's most storied wine name, done properly. For centuries the wine coasted on its legend; in serious hands it's a genuinely enjoyable, food-friendly Lake Bolsena white, and the perfect thing to drink looking out over the water it comes from. Between the icon and this, you've met both faces of the estate.
There's more in the range — reds and whites across the Lazio and Umbria holdings — so confirm the current lineup before you shop, especially as the family's projects have been reorganised over the years.
The setting
This is one of Italy's most underrated landscapes. Northern Lazio — the Alta Tuscia — is volcanic country: crater lakes, Etruscan tombs, hilltop towns like Montefiascone looking down over Lake Bolsena, and barely a wine tourist in sight. Cross the invisible line into Umbria and it's more of the same green, quiet, deeply historic middle-Italy. The vineyards sit in volcanic soils that give the whites their mineral snap and the reds their depth.
Visiting
Here's the insider angle: this corner is an easy, gorgeous detour that almost nobody makes. It sits within striking distance of Rome to the south and Orvieto — with its extraordinary cathedral — just across in Umbria, yet it stays gloriously off the main wine-tourist grid. Base yourself around Lake Bolsena or in Orvieto, and you can taste the region while eating and sightseeing your way through a part of Italy that feels genuinely undiscovered.
Where the estate offers tastings, book ahead and confirm current arrangements before you travel. Time it for late spring or early autumn and pair it with a lakeside lunch.
What to buy
Buy the two ends of the story. For the statement — and to prove Merlot can be great in central Italy — reach for Montiano, the pure Merlot that made the name, and give it a few years. For the everyday pleasure, and for the sheer fun of drinking Italy's most legendary wine name done well, the Est! Est!! Est!!! di Montefiascone is the crisp, characterful, affordable yes. One icon, one legend — and the same family behind both.
Common questions
Riccardo and Renzo Cotarella — a winemaking family from the Lazio–Umbria border, and among the most influential names in Italian wine. Riccardo built a career as one of the country's most sought-after consulting oenologists, advising estates across Italy; Falesco (and its Umbrian arm) is the family's own home project, where the label carries their own name rather than a client's.
A single wine, above all: Montiano, a pure Merlot that became one of central Italy's most celebrated reds and proved the grape could make something serious this far south. The estate is also the standard-bearer for Est! Est!! Est!!! di Montefiascone, the crisp local white with the most storied name in Italian wine.
Both, really — the family works right on the Lazio–Umbria border, around Montefiascone and Lake Bolsena in northern Lazio and across into Umbria. The project has been organised under more than one name over the years, so confirm the current structure and labels before you buy; the wines and the family behind them are the constant.
Glossary
- Est! Est!! Est!!! di Montefiascone
- A crisp white DOC from around Montefiascone, on Lake Bolsena in northern Lazio. Its name comes from a medieval legend of a bishop's servant scrawling 'Est!' (it is! — meaning the wine is good here) on the door of the best inns. Falesco is its leading modern producer.
- Montiano
- Falesco's flagship: a pure Merlot from the Lazio–Umbria border that became one of central Italy's most acclaimed reds and helped prove the grape's potential in the region.
- Consulting oenologist
- A hired winemaker who advises multiple estates rather than working for one. Riccardo Cotarella is among Italy's most in-demand — which is part of what draws attention to the wines that carry the family's own name.