I don’t quite remember the first time I tasted the Fetească Neagră from Lacerta Winery, but I remember exactly how it made me feel: like I was holding a wine that knew how to speak. Not loudly, not showily, but with a gentle wisdom, like someone who has lived through a lot and has learned to speak only when it matters. Since then, I’ve followed each vintage with curiosity, discovering how this grape changes, matures, and reveals itself—always familiar, yet never fully deciphered.

Studying the Fetească Neagră from Lacerta in depth confirmed something I had long suspected: that this indigenous Romanian grape, when treated with understanding and care, can tell stories of rare beauty. And that the Dealu Mare region—literally “The Big Hill,” Romania’s most prestigious red wine appellation—is where this variety truly comes into its own.

Though Fetească Neagră (pronounced fe-TEASK-ah NEAH-grah) is cultivated in several regions across Romania and Moldova, it’s in Dealu Mare, with its iron-rich reddish soils, southern exposure and long ripening season, that it achieves the deepest expression of its character. The region’s terroir, shaped by hills, warm summers and cool nights, brings balance and structure to a grape that can be temperamental in the vineyard and complex in the cellar.

Lacerta Winery, located in the village of Fințești, has become one of the leading names in modern Romanian winemaking. Here, Fetească Neagră is not rushed or forced into international styles—it is guided, gently, to reveal what the land and the year have given. Fermentation takes place in temperature-controlled stainless steel tanks, with minimal mechanical stress. Part of the wine is then matured in carefully selected Romanian oak barrels usually used. These barrels don’t overpower the wine—they accompany it. They add finesse, depth, and a slow rhythm to the evolution of fruit, tannin, and spice.

Over the course of ten years and ten vintages—2011 to 2022—Lacerta’s Fetească Neagră has shown remarkable stylistic consistency while reflecting the individuality of each harvest. The 2012 vintage, shaped by prolonged drought, gave concentrated wines with black fruit, dried plums and a subtle, iron-like minerality. 2016 was all about balance: bright acidity, supple tannins, complex aromas of dark cherries, sweet spices and bittersweet chocolate. And 2022, a standout vintage, produced a wine that’s both fresh and structured, with excellent potential for aging.

Even in more challenging years like 2014 or 2020, marked by climatic extremes, Lacerta succeeded in crafting wines that are coherent and honest, true to their vintage and varietal identity. That’s no small feat for a grape as demanding as Fetească Neagră.

Organoleptically, the wine is intense in color—deep ruby in its youth, turning garnet with age. The aromatic profile is generous and layered: ripe black fruits (blackberries, plums, black cherries), dried fig, coffee, leather and a touch of dark chocolate. On the palate, it is velvety and expansive, with a fine-tuned balance between acidity and tannin. The finish is long, elegant and slightly earthy, echoing the mineral tension of the Dealu Mare terroir.

Pairing this wine invites creativity. It shines next to duck breast with sour cherry sauce, slow-cooked beef stews, hard aged cheeses or even a rustic dessert with dried fruits and cinnamon. But perhaps the best pairing is a quiet evening among friends who know how to listen—to each other, and to the wine.

What remains after a glass—or a bottle—of Lacerta’s Fetească Neagră is more than just the satisfaction of a well-made wine. It is the feeling of having been part, even for a moment, of a deeper story. A story about place, about patience, and about a native grape that, when given time and attention, can truly rise to excellence.

Lacerta’s wines are the result of a vision that blends scientific rigor with emotional intuition. Behind that vision stands Mihai Baniță, the estate’s chief oenologist, whose steady hand and deep understanding of both the grape and the land have shaped every vintage. He approaches winemaking with precision, restraint, and an instinct for elegance. Under his winemaking skills, Lacerta has become a benchmark not only for Fetească Neagră, but for what modern Romanian winemaking can achieve when tradition meets innovation.

Photo credit: www.lacertawinery.ro & myself