VIASSO 2006 (Translated Into local dialect- Path or Journey)
Grapes : Vermentino , Albarola, Chardonnay e Traminer in equal parts
The vineyard is situated in the Val di Vara inland from the Cinque Terre (Portofino – Lerici area), at 370 meters above sea level situate in a wide valley on a gentle incline with a south east exposure surrounded by chestnut trees.
The topsoil carried down by the river Vara which runs through the valley is light clay and rich in loam,.
The subsoil is fragmented limestone rock typical of the nearby Apuane, Tosco-Ligure-Emiliano Alps.
The vineyard is 8 years old and the vines are cultivated in the classic “Guyot” method.
The valley’s microclimate is hot in the summer and cool in early autumn, which exposes the vines to a significant temperature fluctuation, ideal for its aromatic profile.
The harvest was carried out mid September starting with the aromatic varieties (Chardonnay e Traminer), and remaining grape varieties were harvested at the beginning of October.
The fermentation was carried out in two phases, in the initial phase the grapes were crushed, de-stemmed and the must was left in vats for 4/5 days, then racked off (removal of the skins etc) and the must retuned to the vats until the fermentation was completed.
The process was carried out in stainless steel vats and left on the lees “sur lie” undergoing frequent “batonnage”.
Bottling was carried out 14 months from harvest without filtration.
Technical characteristics at time of bottling : alcohol – 13.5 % , Ph- 3.50, Acidity 5.5
Best served in a flute at about 14°C.
HARMOGE 2006 (Harmony in Old Latin)
Grape : Vermentino (60 %), Bosco (25 %), Albarola (15%)
This wine is the result of a blending of two 70 years old vineyards, in the province of La Spezia area.
The Vermentino variety comes from a vineyard situated at the bottom part of the valley Val di Magra (Villa Pratola at Ponzano Magra) characterized by loam - clay rich topsoil carried down by the nearby river Magra,
The Bosco and l’Albarola varieties come from a vineyard in the Cinque Terre on the hills of Zuncone near Manarola at 350 meters above sea level with a loose topsoil of sand and grit.
The Climate in Val di Magra both in summer and autumn is hot and with only a slight daily temperature fluctuation which is ideal for Vermentino.
Cinque Terre’s microclimate is characterized by a fairly significant temperature fluctuation ideal for the Albarola and Bosco grape varieties, allowing the grapes to mature slowly reaching perfect ripening at the end of September or later.
In Val di Magra the vines are trained in double “Guyot”, while those of the Cinque Terre are grown to low pergolas.
The harvest at Villa Pratola (Val di Magra) started on 20 September while that at Zuncone (Cinque Terre) was harvested on 15 October.
The crushed, de-stemmed grapes were placed in stainless steel vats for 4/5 days, while fermentation was completed in 500 litre. Tonneau, leaving the must on the skins “sur lie” with frequent “batonnage”.
During the summer following the harvest the wine was racked into stainless steel vats before bottling (approx 15 months from harvesting) without filtration.
Technical characteristics at time of bottling : alcohol – 13.5 %, Ph -3.35, Acidity 6.0
Best served in a large goblet at about 15°C
CARLAZ 2006(the nickname given to Carlo Andrea Fabbricotti a Marble merchant)
Grape : Vermentino (100 %)
The vineyard is situated in the wide valley of Val di Magra on the on the Carrara hills.
The vines are between 15 - 50 years old.
The climate in summer is hot with relatively constant day and night temperatures, ideal for maturing the Vermentino, a grape variety which is typical of the north westMediterranean .
The topsoil is loam , sand light clay and marble chips transported down by the Magra river.
Harvest was carried out in from the 20 to the 25 September.
The crushed, de-stemmed grapes are placed in stainless steel vats for 4 days. Final fermentation was carried out in casks of 550 litres on its sediment for 9 months, it was then racked off into stainless steel vats and allowed to settle.
Bottling was carried out in the beginning of September of the year after the initial harvest
The wine needs to mature a further 6 months in the bottle to obtain full flavour.
Best served in a large goblet at about 14°C
TONOS 2006 (Tuna in Latin)
Grapes : Sangiovese , Canaiolo , Ciliegiolo , Cabernet Sauvignon, Dolcetto, Moscato Nero
The vineyard is situated in the Val di Magra at Villa Pratola, Ponzano Magra (La Spezia).
This is a 70 years old vineyard trained in double “Guyot”.
The climate in summer and in the first part of autumn was warm with constant day and night temperature fluctuations, ideal for this red grape variety..
The topsoil is loam and light clay carried down by the Magra river.
The harvest was carried out during the last 10 days of September.
After crushing and de-stemming the must was placed in stainless steel vats for 21 days with pumping over?? three times a day - during the fermentation process. The must was then racked into “Tonneau” andleft to age for approximately 8 months on its sediments using the “batonnage” technique.
One year from harvest the wine was racked into stainless steel vats before bottling without filtering.
Technical characteristics at the time of bottling : alcohol – 14 % , Ph – 3.5 , Acidity – 5.5.
Best served in a large goblet at about 16°C
CERICO’ 2005 (Quercus Cerri- Bitter oak tree)
Grape : Grenache 80 % , Sirah 20 %
The vineyard is situated at 500 meters above sea level with a sea-facing southern exposure, surrounded by a wooded area of oak trees (hence the name Cericò) situated on the hills of Riomaggiore in the Cinque Terre.
The terraced vineyard was planted in 2000/2001
The vines are trained partially in the “Guyot” method and the other half in espalier
The microclimate which is hot in summer, exposes the vines to a significant temperature fluctuation which is ideal for the aromatic profile
The topsoil of sand and grit contains a small part of loam, which is very rare in the Cinque Terre.
The harvest was carried out during the last 10 days of September, the grapes reaching a significant aromatic complexity with a characteristic crisp, acidic freshness.
After crushing and de-stemming, the must was placed in stainless steel vats for 21 days and with pumping over?? three times a day carried out during the fermentation process.
After racking the must was left “sur lie” with frequent “batonnage” carried out in stainless steel vats and left to age on its sediments for another year.
Bottling without filtration was carried out 2 years from the harvest.
Technical characteristics at the time of bottling : alcohol – 15 % , Ph – 3.45, acidity - 5.5 .
Best served in a medium goblet at about 16°C
BOZOLO 2006(the name arises from the location of the vineyard)
Grape :Dolcetto 80 % , Merlot 20 %
The vineyard is situated at about 350 meters above sea level in Val di Vara, in Brugnato, near Bozzolo, in a wide valley on a gentle incline with a south east exposure, on the slopes of the Apuane Ligure-toscano alps surrounded by chestnut trees.
The topsoil is loam and light clay carried down by spring waters that run into the river Vara which flows through the valley below. The subsoil is fragmented limestone rock, typical of the nearby pre-alps range.
The vineyard was planted in the late 1990s. Vines are trained in double “Guyot”.
The valley’s microclimate is hot in the summer and cool in early autumn, exposing the vines to a significant temperature fluctuation, ideal for the slow ripening of red varieties.
Harvest was carried out at the beginning of October. The grapes showed ripeness while maintaining fresh acidity.
The crushed, de-stemmed grapes were placed in stainless steel vats for 7 days, the must was then racked off into used “barriques” and left to age for approx. 8 months. The wine was again racked into stainless steel vats and allowed to settle for 3 months before bottling without filtration.
Technical characteristics at the time of bottling : alcohol – 13.5 % , Ph – 3.5, acidity - 5.0 .
Best served in a medium goblet at about 16°C