2019: ELEGANT POWER
Referring to 2019 as one of the best vintages in recent decades, counting this vintage among the greatest in the Montalcino territory, we believe that this wouldn’t be a stretch, or even a misjudgment.
The 2019 vintage, from our point of view, respects those canons of “Elegant Power” which only vintages with great balance are able to give, raising the bar of balance and bringing with it a lot of everything: from perfect phenolic maturation which brings out the “Power” to the extraordinary technological maturation, which, thanks to the continuity of the optimal acid profile, accentuates the “Elegance”. Perpetually poised between showing its muscles and its grace, aspects which differ so much but also magically complement one other in a great wine that is meant to age for a long time, the 2019 surprises for its harmony and balance, which only great vintages are able to achieve.
As for every vintage, the result is the fruit of an agronomic journey, which, in 2019, was regular with regards to the water supply, generally warm but never scorching hot and with diurnal temperature ranges that favored maturation and concentration, safeguarding the freshness and fragrance. These conditions favored great expression in the bouquet where the pureness of the fruit is exalted by the classic balsamic notes of the north zone of Montalcino without ever overpowering the elegant florality, a distinctive trait in “Canalicchio di Sopra” wines. The ideal weather conditions gave rise to a two-dimensional harvest, succeeding in uniting opulence with the verticality in the wines, silkiness with minerality, sweetness with sapidity.
A distinctive feature of this vintage is the ability to reveal the territory, the nuances of individual vineyards and of the subzones where we cultivate our Sangiovese, in such a distinct and deep way that it brings out its differences and uniqueness.
The harvest started on September 26 in the youngest vineyards for the production of Rosso di Montalcino DOC and continued without interruption until October 6, on sunny days with great diurnal temperature ranges which allowed us to bring fresh and fragrant grapes into the cellar, simplifying regular fermentation with a long extraction period. The quality of the skins, rich in polyphenols and perfectly ripe, resulted in a vinification which saw the usual delicate operations of the initial pumping over and délestage, followed by a long period of maceration on the skins which, in many cases, lasted up to 35 days.