Grape Variety: 80% Merlot – 20% Cabernet from 15-20 yearold espalier-trained vineyards with 5.000 vines per hectare.
Location: Cornaiano/Settequerce, 250-430 m a.s.l.; south-west facing site morainal and alluvial soils with eroded porphyry.
Winemaking: The fermentation takes place with the crushed grapes and is followed by a skin-maceration for a further 7-10 days. The wine is then transferred into oak barriques where it undergoes malolactic fermentation. In the spring the two grape-varieties are blended in together and the final blend is racked into small oak casks where it refines for 14 months. The wine is then lightly filtered, bottled and aged in bottled for a further year before release.
Tasting notes: Deep red in colour; with a bouquet of ripe berry fruit, cassis and a hint of well integrated oak; black cherries and spices on the palate, underpinned by assertive but supple tannins; full-bodied, fine balanced, rich and long. Cellaring potential: 10-15 years.
Food Combination: Superb with rare roast beef and all the trimmings, rich casseroles, game and mature cheeses. Serve cool: 16° C.
