The easy answer is, off course it
is, but do you really find any evidence of it? That can be more difficult to
answer. For the last seven years or so I have attended the Anteprime de Toscana
with a yearly visit to Montepulciano, the region that makes the famous Vino
Nobile the Montepulciano. During the 30 hours or so that the tastings and
programme in Montepulciano lasts, I taste some hundred to hundred and thirty
wines or thereabouts, depending on the vintage. So, it gives an insight, even
if maybe not a proper in depth look at the latest vintage.
But I have been missing one thing.
And that goes out to all the regions of Toscany actually. I want to understand
the terroir more, I have almost been longing for a tasting of terroir. I know
Tuscany isn’t Burgundy with everyone making several wines from small parcels
all over the place. And even Chianti Classico’s new Gran Selezione is sometimes
single vineyard wines and other times the blend of the best parts of the estate
but can come from whatever grapes the winemaker found to be best. Meaning that
for us consumers, we don’t really get to grasp with terroir as such. You need
in depth knowledge of each wine you taste to know if it is from a single
vineyard or a blend of different vineyards.
So the last two years I have snuck
out after the tasting is finished in Montepulciano, much to the anger of the
consorzio organising the event. But I want to learn. I have had some great
visits organized by the consorzio as well, seeing vineyards of Boscarelli with
a follow up tasting after of their lovely wines. It was indeed
great, and they are not the only ones. But after lunch, and before these organized
events, I normally have 3 to 4 hours to kill. And instead of sitting around in
the fortress were this event is held, I want to see vineyards. Anteprime de
Toscana should show more wineries. And more vineyards.
I am a quick taster, so I appreciate
that some journalists might need the entire day at the fortress, but why should
that keep me from working? Exploring? Investigate? Learning? Last year I
managed to sneak out to see Salcheto and experienced their new ecofriendly
winery that was a great way to learn a bit more about this region. All the care
that one winery does to manage their part of reducing their carbon footprint.
To help cool the wine cellar as an example, they grow a wall of hillside
perennials on the outside. The plants and thin layer of soil gives enough
shadow apparently, so you do not need the air conditioner running that much. Or
at all. Most of us hear cars are the worst, or airplanes, but air conditioning
is one of the worst carbon dioxide emissions there is. I never heard about just
this one detail at the fortress. And I have never seen it anywhere else either.
So, I would say a few hours well spent.
This year I decided to organize
something as well, this year I contacted Avignonesi. And the consorzio went
mad... Took pictures of me and a fellow wine writer as we left, as if we were
criminals. But we just want to learn more about this part of the world. I am
only there for about 30 hours a year. Why spend 4 of those staring at a stone
wall? And I learned more about terroir in Montepulciano during those few hours
spent at Avignonesi, than during the last seven or eight years tasting in the
fortezza in the town.
Because Avignonesi make wine
proofing terroir ideas. I did not even know they did. They make single vineyard
wines, as they do in Burgundy. Not one special vineyard. Or maybe two. No, I
got to taste five, some years they make six or even seven. Some are further apart;
others are just across a narrow road from each other. Just like Burgundy! And I
wish a tasting like this had been organized by the consorzio, this is what
grips us as wine critics, this is what we learn from. I think this is what
fascinates consumers as well. At least those geeky enough to read about wine.
And for the future, I hope other wineries all over Tuscany can do similar
tastings. Maybe not because they actually make the wine and bottle it, but to
understand what different terroir can give in the final blend.
Here is La Badelle soil and how
Avignonesi describe it.
SOIL TYPE
Soil of marine origin from the
Pliocene (3-5 million years ago) rich in clay and silt, with the presence of
deep, blue sodic clay. Rich in limestone, the soil is alkaline and does not
present much organic matter.
VINEYARD SPECIFICS
This vineyard was planted in 2000.
The vines are cordon-trained at an altitude of 375 meters a.s.l. / 1,230 feet
a.s.l. and grow at a density of 5,882 plants / hectare (2,351 plants / acre)
with a East, South-East row orientation.
I found it floral, bright and red
fruity, giving an unusually bright expression and unusually elegant Vino
Nobile. It showed a refinement that sometimes is rare in Sangiovese that can be
very structured and firm. It seems to be a variety were balancing finesse and
details is very difficult without losing weight. This balances both.
La Banditella in the words of
Avignonesi.
SOIL TYPE
Soil of marine origin from the
Pliocene (3-5 million years ago). Rather deep, alternating calcosol and
brunisol, brown in colour. The texture goes from clayey to sandy and the
presence of limestone, in the form of calcium-carbonate aggregates, varies
based on the type of soil. Moreover, there is a good presence of pebbles of
fluvial origin.
VINEYARD SPECIFICS
This vineyard was planted in 2002.
The vines are cordon-trained at an altitude of 300- 320 meters a.s.l. /
984-1050 feet a.s.l. and grow at a density of 4,464 plants / hectare (1,785
plants / acre) with a North row orientation.
For me Banditella was tighter,
firmer and more structured, gave less floral and scented notes, but you could
feel them behind, so maybe they will turn up more with age.
Poggetto di Sopra in Avignonesi’s
words:
SOIL TYPE
A sedimentation from the Pliocene
(3-5 million years ago) of marine origin, the Poggetti di sopra vineyard is
permeated by a vein of deep, blue sodic clay. Rich in silt and limestone, but
with little or no stones in the underground, the soil is alkaline and does not
present much organic matter.
VINEYARD SPECIFICS
Selection of the best Sangiovese
grapes planted in our historic Poggetto di Sopra estate at 300 meters a.s.l.
In 2016 the grapes come mainly from the
38-year-old vineyard called Caprile which is guyot-trained with a density of
2,564 vines / hectare. (1,025 plants / acre).
This is almost a blend of the former
two, has more on the nose than Banditella at this stage, with more structure
than La Badelle, but showing more details and nuances already.
I have been longing for a Sangiovese
tasting like this for years, and we even had two more single vineyards, Oceano
and La Stella. Tastings where the same team makes wines from different soils in
Tuscany. This is amongst the most fascinating tastings I have done in Tuscany
and I did not even know these wines exist. With around 4000 bottles only, they
won’t be easy to find, but if you get a chance to taste two or more of these
side by side, it is one of the rare opportunities to really taste terroir, not
only in Montepulciano, but in Tuscany. There are a few more that do this, but I
do not know anyone doing up to seven single vineyards!
In the end, it would be for the best
for Vino Nobile de Montepulciano as a region if the internal issues riding the Consorzio
and some of the producers stop, they are stronger together than apart.
2015 is the first vintage of these
single vineyards from Avignonesi, and trust me, they are worth seeking out. But
they are rare, so probably difficult to find.
2017 Avignonesi Nobile de
Montepulciano
Bright ruby. Scented, red berries,
some floral notes nose. Fresh acidity, ripe tannins, anise, red fruits, juicy,
some spices, liquorice, lighter bodied, good length. 87
2016 Avignonesi Nobile de
Montepulciano
Bright ruby. Cherries, raspberries,
some spices, floral nose. Scented. Fresh acidity, ripe tannins, bright, fresh
and detailed, elegant. 88
2017 Avignonesi Nobile de
Montepulciano Oceano
Ca 4000 bottles made. Bright ruby.
Scented, raspberries, anise, floral notes, nuanced and detailed nose. Almost
peppery. Fresh acidity, ripe tannins, anise, spices, red fruits, almost a
citrus note to it, long. 93
2017
Avignonesi Nobile de Montepulciano La Stella
4000 bottles made. Bright ruby.
Scented, red fruits, tighter, bright and nuanced yet somehow dense nose. Fresh
acidity, ripe tannins, cherries, red fruits and a touch of blackberries, some
spices, firmer and structured, long. 93
2017 Avignonesi Nobile de
Montepulciano Banditella
Ca 4000 bottles made. Bright ruby.
Scented, red berries, floral, nuanced, tighter nose. Fresh acidity, ripe
tannins, anise, some structure going on here, cherries and red fruits finish,
long. 92
2017 Avignonesi Nobile de
Montepulciano Le Badelle
Ca 4000 bottles made. Bright ruby.
Scented, raspberries, anise, bright and detailed, nuanced nose. Floral. Fresh
acidity, ripe tannins, cherries, anise, bright red fruity, elegant if
structured, long. 92
2017 Avignonesi Nobile de
Montepulciano Pogetto di Sopra
Ca 4000 bottles made. Bright ruby.
Scented, red berries, floral, nuanced, cherries, detailed nose. Fresh acidity,
ripe tannins, fresh, fruity, anise, spices, bright, but a little bit flat on
the tasting curve here and there, long. 92
2016 Avignonesi Nobile de
Montepulciano Pogetto di Sopra
Bright ruby. Scented, red berries,
floral, strawberries, nuanced nose, detailed. Fresh acidity, ripe tannins, red
fruits, anise, juicy, elegant texture, nuanced, long. 94
2015 Avignonesi Nobile de
Montepulciano Pogetto di Sopra
Bright ruby. Scented, red berries,
floral, nuanced, ripe fruits, strawberry jam nose. Fresh acidity, ripe tannins,
red fruits, anise, spices, bright, elegant and long. 93
