As Capannelle looks down on Gaiole in Chianti, its true soul lies 2.5 metres underground, where a 1.000 square metre cellar acts as the hub of a refined wine making activity. Wine is a product resulting from a technical process and requires the highest technology production standards, in ideal conditions of order and hygiene. This is why it was decided to use stainless steel, the only material that does not alter the perfume of the wine. Fermentation vats are in stainless steel. All the containers are linked by stainless steel pipelines, with lever valves; flexible piping, for occasional connecting, is also in stainless steel.
Wooden containers too are employed; barrels under 30 hectolitres and 225 litre Barriques (little barrels from the Massif Central in France) are changed every two years for red wines and every year for white ones. Fermentation and ageing in Barriques are ideal procedures for Solare (80% Sangiovese and 20% Malvasia Nera) and Chardonnay.
After lengthy maturation in wood (approx. 3 years for the reds, 10/14 months for the Chardonnay), the wines require extensive bottle age to fine-tune and integrate structure, aromas and complexity. The Sangiovese, in particular, needs 8 to 10 years to reach its peak. The Capannelle range is released after at least a two-year bottle age. This means a 4 to 5 year total aging before these wines can be enjoyed by the consumer. The bottles are laid down in the Capannelle cellars, accurately divided into stacks according to item and vintage, and separated by double-glazed glass panes. The cellars themselves are temperature and humidity-controlled so as to guarantee the end result's finest possible quality.