I have tasted many Franciacortas over the years, but very few have made me stop and think about what time can actually do to a sparkling wine. Lucrezia Etichetta Nera 2004 was one of them.
I was at the Rome Planetarium for its presentation, but what stayed with me was not simply the unusual setting or the idea of pairing wine with astronomy. It was the realization that I was tasting a 2004 vintage that had spent an extraordinary amount of its life resting on its lees before finally reaching the glass. That is a very different way of looking at Franciacorta, or any other sparkling wine.
The evening brought together Castello Bonomi’s winemaking team, astrophysicist Gianluca Masi and chef Gianfranco Pascucci, but for me the focus always came back to the bottle.
When a Winemaker Decides to Wait
Lucrezia is Castello Bonomi’s line of Franciacorta Riservas, produced only in exceptional vintages. The name dates back to 1999, when engineer Marino Bonomi, founder and former owner of the estate, created the winery’s first Franciacorta Riserva and named it after his granddaughter.
Lucrezia Etichetta Nera is made entirely from Pinot Noir, from the estate’s oldest vineyards on Monte Orfano. The 2004 vintage was considered exceptional enough to warrant something unusual. After the wine had already spent more than five years on its lees, Luigi Bersini, Castello Bonomi’s chef de cave, decided to hold back a small quantity rather than release it.
That decision is what makes this bottle particularly interesting. In wine, we often talk about patience, but patience is very different when you are actually holding bottles back for years without knowing exactly where they will take you. It requires confidence in the vintage and in the wine’s ability to evolve.
Castello Bonomi chose to wait. And wait some more.
The result presented in 2026 is Lucrezia Etichetta Nera 2004, a Franciacorta Extra Brut Riserva made from 100% Pinot Noir, with only 250 numbered bottles produced.
From Monte Orfano to the Glass
The Pinot Noir comes from Castello Bonomi’s oldest vineyards on the terraces of Monte Orfano in Coccaglio. The estate’s 35 hectares are divided into 39 parcels and six distinct crus, allowing the individual characteristics of each site to be preserved.
For Lucrezia Etichetta Nera, the source is the Terrazze vineyard, planted in 1985. Its predominantly limestone soils and low yields provide the structure and freshness needed for such extended ageing.
The cellar work is deliberately gentle. The grapes are softly pressed, with only the first pressing used for the Riserva. The wine underwent its first fermentation before resting on its lees for eight months, followed by blending and secondary fermentation in bottle in May 2005.
Then time took over.
Lucrezia Etichetta Nera 2004
When I finally tasted the 2004, the first impression was not one of age in the way I might have expected. The wine still had remarkable energy, carried by a fine, persistent perlage and acidity that had become beautifully integrated.
The nose unfolded slowly. Candied citrus and ripe yellow fruit, with a reminiscence of ripe pineapple, were followed by herbal notes of conifer and rosemary, then hazelnut and the more mature toasted nuances of the wine.
On the palate, its savoury character was especially striking. There was an herbal and fruity return, followed by that lovely toasted hazelnut-butter note that lingered on the finish. What struck me most was the freshness. It still vibrates in the mouth much like a younger sparkling wine, carrying the wine through the palate rather than allowing its age to weigh it down. It was mature, certainly, but not tired. For me, it felt like the right time to open it and enjoy it at its full splendour.
That distinction is important. Long ageing can be fascinating when it adds complexity without taking away vitality, and this was exactly what I found in the 2004. It had moved into another phase of its life without losing its identity.
According to Castello Bonomi’s technical information, the wine underwent 242 months of ageing on the lees, followed by disgorgement in July 2025 and a further 15 months of bottle ageing. These numbers are impressive, but tasting the wine makes them more meaningful. You can actually sense the time in the glass.
Three Different Faces of Lucrezia
Tasting the 2004 alongside the Lucrezia Etichetta Nera 2011 and Etichetta Bianca 2011 made the comparison even more interesting.
The 2011 Etichetta Nera, also 100% Pinot Noir, spent 140 months on the lees. Compared with the 2004, I found it noticeably fresher and more youthful, with pastry and brioche alongside yellow stone fruits and red berries, followed by notes of aromatic herbs.
Then came Lucrezia Etichetta Bianca 2011, with its 80% Chardonnay and 20% Pinot Noir. The Chardonnay was fermented and aged in French oak barriques with bâtonnage, while the Pinot Noir was fermented in stainless steel. After secondary fermentation in bottle, it spent 144 months on its lees.
I found this wine broader and more enveloping, with bread crust, white-fleshed fruit and citrus, followed by dried fruit, light honey, dried hay and chamomile. It had a lovely combination of freshness and sapidity, with a palate that remained balanced and inviting.
The comparison between the two 2011s was particularly revealing. Same estate, same philosophy and extended ageing, but two very different interpretations of grape variety and wine.
A Different Side of Castello Bonomi
We also tasted Cuvée 1564 Brut Nature Millesimato 2018, a blend of 45% Chardonnay, 45% Pinot Noir and 10% Erbamat, aged for more than 60 months.
I was particularly interested in the Erbamat component because Castello Bonomi has been working with this historic indigenous variety since 2010, supporting the Franciacorta Consortium’s efforts to rediscover its potential.
The 2018 showed delicate floral notes followed by citrus and mineral aromas. On the palate, the acidity was immediately striking, giving the wine precision and balance while keeping the overall impression elegant and dry.
It was very different from the Lucrezias, but an interesting reminder that Franciacorta is not a static category. There is still plenty of room for exploration.
Under the Planetarium Sky
The presentation itself added an unexpected dimension to the tasting. Beneath the Planetarium’s 14-metre dome, Gianluca Masi, astrophysicist at the Rome Planetarium, reconstructed the celestial landscape of the summer of 2004.
There was something particularly fitting about looking at the sky from that precise period and, only moments later, tasting a wine whose identity was also firmly anchored to that vintage. In a sparkling wine, however, the vintage is only the beginning of the story. What happens afterwards, particularly the length of time spent on the lees and the subsequent bottle ageing after disgorgement, can profoundly shape its aromatic and structural profile.
This was evident in the Lucrezia Etichetta Nera 2004. Its 242 months on the lees have not simply given the wine more age; they have contributed to the development of tertiary complexity while allowing its Pinot Noir fruit, acidity and savoury character to remain intact.
The disgorgement in July 2025 and subsequent bottle ageing have added another stage of evolution. Tasting it at this point, I found that the extended ageing had integrated rather than masked the wine’s original character.
Dinner by Gianfranco Pascucci followed, allowing us to continue exploring the wines at the table, but I kept returning to the 2004.
For me, it was a very tangible reminder that in a wine capable of such longevity, time is not simply a figure on a technical sheet. It is part of the winemaking itself.
Castello Bonomi Tenute in Franciacorta
Address: Via San Pietro, 46, 25030 Coccaglio (BS), Italy
Tel: +39 0307721015
Website: https://www.castellobonomi.it/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CastelloBonomi