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Viinin Kuvailu
The Story
Winemaking Notes: Making Vin Santo is a painstaking process. Individual bunches of excellent grapes are hand harvested (early, to preserve acidity) and then hung to dry on wooden poles or reed trays ("cannicci") until the sugar level reaches the desired point. The dried grapes are pressed and the thick must is placed in oak and chestnut barrels of varying size ("caratelli"), filled three-quarters full. Fermentation is initiated with a dose of “mother” Vin Santo, then the barrels are sealed with wax and left unopened for 6 years, generally in an attic. Paolo then must carefully blend wines from different barrels to achieve the final wine he desires.
Tasting Notes: Orange marmalade, toffee, apricots, honey, vanilla notes on a luscious palate. It’s golden amber in color with a fresh finish.
About the Chianti Region: Tuscany is the region that formed Italy’s language, literature, and art. Its landscape abounds with rolling hills and valleys, olive groves, cypress and pine trees, and vineyards. The earliest reference to wine merchants in the city of Florence dates from 1079, and a wine guild was formed in 1282. Chianti is likely the region most associated with wine in Tuscany, if not in all of Italy. Situated between Florence and Siena, there are 8 designated DOC zones in Chianti, with Chianti Classico and Chianti Rufina being the most widely known. The traditional grape central to the region is Sangiovese, though stringent appellatory blending rules and high yields historically clouded the quality potential of the grape. Since the 90s, there’s been a return to high-quality Sangiovese-based wines, as well as “Super Tuscans” based on international varietals.
Vuosikerta 2008
The season was characterized by an autumn and a winter which were not particularly cold and with little rain, conditions which favored a slightly early bud break compared to the preceding vintages. Spring, and the first vegetation, saw the appearance of adverse meteorological conditions, with frequent rainfall until the end of May which caused a slowing of plant growth, a slowing which, nonetheless, did not have harmful effects on vine health. June and July, instead, were warm and dry, while in August there was scattered rainfall which helped the vines to sustain regular growth of both the vegetation and the grapes.
The months of September and October were very favorable for harvest operations, thanks as well to temperature swings from daytime heat to nighttime coolness, optimal conditions for grape quality. Sangiovese was picked during the last ten days of September, while Cabernet continued to be harvested until the middle of October. From the very beginning of the harvest the musts showed very interesting colors and aromas, which indicated that the vintage was of very high level indeed.