The Tb points given to this wine are the world’s most valid and most up-to-date evaluation of the quality of the wine. Tastingbook points are formed by the Tastingbook algorithm which takes into account the wine ratings of the world's 50 best-known professional wine critics, wine ratings by thousands of tastingbook’s professionals and users, the generally recognised vintage quality and reputation of the vineyard and winery. Wine needs at least five professional ratings to get the Tb score. Tastingbook.com is the world's largest wine information service which is an unbiased, non-commercial and free for everyone.
Wine Information
The latter part of winter and the beginining of spring were very mild for the time of the year and also very dry. This produced early budding - some 10 days earlier than average. In April the temperature suddenly dropped, causing an arrest in the growth of the buds. The summer was very hot and sunny and this weather continued for the whole of September and for the duration of the harvest which meant that at the time of picking, the grapes were exceptionally healthy and with a high sugar concentration. Overall the 1997 harvest has been somewhat less than expected in terms of quantity - but in terms of quality, this is an exceptional vintage, probably even better than the much acclaimed 1990 vintage and one of the greatest of the last fifty years.
VINIFICATION
Merlot was harvested at mid September, approximately a week before the Cabernet Sauvignon. After destemming and light crushing, the Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon were vinified separately; maceration took place in stainless steel tanks over a period of 12 days, during which time alcoholic fermentation was also completed, at a temperature never exceeding 30 °C. The resulting wine is very rich in colour, but soft on the palate without any astringency.The wines were then transferred to new French oak barriques (Troncais and Alliers) where malolactic fermentation was completed by the year's end. The wines were then racked, blended and then returned to the barrels for about 14 months aging, followed by bottling and a further 10 months minimum in bottles before release. Alcohol : 13,5% Vol.
60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 10% Syrah and other red grape varieties.
Vuosikerta 1997
Italian Vintage Report by Tb: In 1997, the entire Italian wine industry was rejuvenated by one of the greatest vintages of all time. The only negative aspect of the year was subzero night temperatures in April and May, which damaged exceptionally early buds and flowers. As a result, crop yield was lower than desired. Otherwise, the summer season was blessed with sunny and warm weather. Temperatures soared in August and September and the grapes ripened two weeks earlier than normal. This took Piedmont by surprise, as Nebbiolo ripened before Barbera, which was unprecedented. The small grapes were so well balanced that there were only four other Italian vintages like 1997 in the 20th century. Otherwise, the acidity of the grapes has fallen below normal levels due to their ripeness. In Tuscany the situation was the same as in Piedmont – there had not been a harvest of such quality since 1947. The wines can still take years of aging and up to decades for Barolos and Barbarescos .
