History
Land and red-wine tradition
The Cavalleri family has owned land and vineyards in Erbusco since 1452. For many centuries its production was confined to red wine, a legacy the family continues to regard as an essential part of its identity even after classic-method sparkling wine became dominant locally.
Rampaneto: 1842
The Rampaneto vineyard entered Cavalleri family ownership on 28 May 1842. It has long been devoted to white wine. Its Chardonnay was eventually isolated as a single-vineyard bottling, motivated by the distinct character associated with the parcel.
The first sparkling wines: 1979
The estate’s classic-method sparkling production reaches back to 1979, cited as the first production year for Blanc de Blancs, Pas Dosé and Rosé. These wines established Chardonnay—and, for rosé, Pinot noir—as the basis of the sparkling range.
Single vineyards and reserves: 1983–1984
In 1983 the family began vinifying the Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon of the Tajardino vineyard as a distinct wine. The same year is given as the first production year of the Chardonnay reserve dedicated to Giovanni Cavalleri, the family grandfather whose austere and generous character inspired the wine.
Rampaneto was first bottled separately in 1984. It was presented as the first cru of Franciacorta, with the aim of preserving and expressing the individual character of its Chardonnay vineyard.
Expansion of the range: 1990–2001
Satèn entered production in 1990. Its conception focused on the riper-fruited musts of the most sun-exposed vineyards and what Cavalleri regarded as the more Mediterranean expression of its hills.
Au Contraire followed in 2001. An archival release of the 2008 vintage remained on its lees for thirteen years, reflecting the estate’s interest in long maturation and in the interaction between Chardonnay and Pinot noir.
Cellar experiments: 2013 and 2016
Experimental vinifications conducted in 2013 and 2016 became part of the estate’s established cellar practice. The trials explored spontaneous fermentation, work with older and well-exposed Chardonnay vineyards, maturation in wood, complete spontaneous malolactic fermentation, cork closure for tirage, manual disgorgement, and bottling without clarification or filtration. They formed the basis of the SE… line, conceived as a forward-looking part of the range.
Current family management
By February 2026, Diletta and her cousin Francesco had been caring for the family winery together for more than fifteen years. Their management continues a family culture shaped by their grandfather Giovanni: accepting the character delivered by each growing season rather than forcing every vintage toward uniformity.
The 2026 hailstorm
On 11 May 2026, a violent hailstorm struck the vineyards. It damaged shoots and the still-small, particularly vulnerable grape clusters.
Terroir
Cavalleri’s vineyards occupy the hills of Erbusco. The 40 ha holding is divided into 25 plots, including old hillside vineyards, particularly well-exposed parcels and warmer, sunnier sites capable of producing ripe-fruited musts.
Seasonal variation is treated as a defining part of the place. Rain may arrive at an inconvenient stage, heat may begin unusually early, and some years demand additional patience. The estate seeks to preserve those vintage differences rather than suppress them. Its descriptions of mature hillside Chardonnay emphasize freshness, savoury character and minerality, while the sunniest sites are associated with a riper, more Mediterranean expression.
Winemaking
The vineyards are cultivated according to biodynamic agricultural methods. Cavalleri divides its 40 ha into 25 individual plots and aims to understand each one independently. The parcels are harvested separately and their grapes remain separate during vinification.
This parcel-based approach extends to the selection of old, well-exposed hillside vineyards for particular cellar trials. Attention is maintained throughout the growing and production cycle, with the stated aim of respecting the character of each site rather than maximizing output. The estate produces no more than approximately 180,000 bottles despite indicating that the land could support a larger volume.
The May 2026 hailstorm illustrates the exposure of this approach to seasonal conditions: hail damaged shoots and small clusters while they were still at a particularly delicate stage of development.
Fruit from the estate’s 25 plots is harvested and vinified separately so that each parcel can be assessed before blending or retained as a single-vineyard wine.
The cellar works with spontaneous fermentations and indigenous yeasts in stainless-steel tanks and wooden vessels, especially large oak casks. Depending on the material and intended expression, malolactic fermentation may be partial, complete and spontaneous, or prevented. Reserve wines may be incorporated into non-vintage blends.
White-wine production can combine stainless steel with oak vessels, including 10 hl and 35 hl casks. Red-wine methods include extended skin contact, maturation for as long as three years in large oak and bottling without filtration. For rosé sparkling production, Pinot noir may undergo an eight-hour press maceration for the rosé component, while another component remains on its skins in steel for four days as native-yeast fermentation begins; the components are then assembled with Chardonnay.
Experimental work conducted in 2013 and 2016 introduced practices that became part of the regular cellar repertoire. These include spontaneous Chardonnay fermentation, the maceration of a small quantity of whole bunches in large oak, maturation in well-used barrels, cork closure at tirage, and manual disgorgement. The documented 2016 experiment received neither clarification nor filtration.
Classic-method production includes tirage, extended maturation on the lees, four weeks of manual riddling and disgorgement. Documented lees-aging periods range from at least 30 months for the principal Blanc de Blancs to four years for SE…, nine years for the Giovanni Cavalleri reserve and thirteen years for an archival Au Contraire release.
Philosophy
Character over uniformity
Cavalleri chooses character over reassuring perfection. Each growing season is allowed to retain its own voice, including the effects of mistimed rain, early heat or delayed ripening. The goal is not merely technically correct wine, but wine capable of communicating the vintage and place.
A community of work
The Cavalleri surname is presented as less important than the community behind it. Vineyard and cellar workers—both longstanding and newly arrived—share responsibility for the result. Trust, many hands and a common idea of wine are central to this family model.
Learning without imitation
Travel, observation of other vineyards and conversations with fellow growers are treated as opportunities to learn. New ideas are tested only when they suit Erbusco’s soils, climate and vegetation. Tradition therefore means coherent movement rather than remaining static.
Small scale and attention to place
Production is deliberately capped at about 180,000 bottles even though greater volume would be possible. The purpose is to listen to and understand every plot, harvesting and vinifying each separately. The estate defines its craft as bringing an authentic part of its territory to the drinker.
Biodynamics as a means
The biodynamic approach is treated as a tool for expressing the deepest identity of the terroir. In both vineyard and cellar, gradual experimentation, native yeasts and restrained processing are directed toward clarity of origin rather than novelty for its own sake.
Family memory
Red wine remains an important link to the centuries before sparkling production became locally dominant. Continuing to bottle red wine is understood as a way of passing family memory and identity to the next generation.