2024 Lepus Pinot Bianco, Franz Haas

• Style: Pale straw, Alpine mineral, structured bright
• Taste: Orchard fruit, wild flowers, flinty snap, balanced acidity
• Food: Shellfish, white fish, creamy risotto, crab
• Occasion: Aperitivo, summer drinking, weeknight, Sunday lunch
• Serve: Chilled; 400–800m Alto Adige altitude terroir

In the Glass — Tasting Notes

Pale straw-coloured with green-flinty minerality and orchard freshness. The palate shows lithe refinement: ripe apples, wild flowers, and a whisper of fresh bread crust lead into structured brightness balanced by a sweetly round underbelly. Alpine altitude—these south-facing slopes sit between 400 and 800 metres—creates slow ripening and nerve; that mineral tension is unmistakable from the first sip. Clean, unsweetened fruit and serious acidity are the hallmark; five months on the lees (split between stainless steel and barrique fermentation) adds gentle textural roundness without oak vanity.

The Winery — Franz Haas

The Haas family has tended Montagna's vineyards in the Bolzano province for generations, but their journey into quality winemaking began with Franz, who studied at Geisenheim and worked as a broker of Italian wines before returning to run the family business. His legacy rests on uncompromising fruit quality and restraint in the cellar—priorities his family has honoured since his death in 2022. The 2024 vintage tested Alto Adige's growers with a challenging spring, summer heat, and autumn rain, yet this bottling proves the fruit delivered depth. Vegan-friendly.

At Your Table — Food Pairing & Serving

This wine cuts through sautéed seafood, grilled fish, and crab without breaking a sweat. It pairs beautifully with creamy risotto and roasted chicken, equally at home aperitif-style on its own or as the centrepiece of a Sunday lunch. The 2024's brightness and grip make it ideal weeknight drinking or summer refreshment. A wine stripped of fashion, made to age gracefully and drink beautifully now. Discover other Pinot Blanc & Pinot Bianco wines in our range to see how this undervalued variety thrives across Europe's cooler sites.