Toscana: Appellations of Eastern/Southern Toscana Flashcards
Where is Cortona DOC located?
This is Toscana’s easternmost DOC. It lies in proximity to the border with Umbria and Lake Trasimeno.
When did Cortona achieve DOC status?
1999; it is growing in terms of both production and recognition.
What styles of wine are produced in Cortona DOC?
- rosso
- riserva
- vin santo
- vin santo occhio di pernice
- varietal wines
What grapes are used to produce wines in Cortona DOC?
The focus is on red grapes:
* Syrah
* Sangiovese
* Merlot
What is the most widely planted grape in Cortona DOC and has become the signature wine for this appellation?
Syrah; it accounts for more than half of the total wine production.
Where is Val d’Arno (or Valdarno) di Sopra DOC located?
This appellation overlaps the northern Chianti Classico region and is situated on both sides of the Arno River.
When did Valarno di Sopra achieve DOC status?
2011
What styles of wine are produced in Valarno di Sopra DOC?
- spumante
- bianco
- rosato
- rosso
- passito
- varietal wines
What grapes are used to produce wines from Valarno di Sopra DOC?
Sangiovese is widely grown as is a substantial amount of international grapes.
Where is Valdichiana Toscana DOC located?
This appellation corresponds almost exactly to the expanse of the Val di Chiana (Chiana Valley) near the border to Umbria.
What styles of wines are produced in Valdichiana Toscana DOC?
- frizzante
- spumante
- bianco
- rosato
- rosso
- vin santo
- vin santo riserva
- varietal wines
What grapes are used to produce wines in Valdichiana Toscana DOC?
White blends based on:
* Trebbiano
Red blends based on:
* Sangiovese
Where is Montalcino located?
This small medieval hill town is located in the southeastern part of Toscana about 25mi/40km to the south of Siena.
The winegrowing zone exactly corresponds to its municipal area.
The area almost forms a square (9mi/15km wide) delimited almost completely by the Asso, Orcia and Ombrone Rivers.
The town overlooks the surrounding hills and valleys offering a charming view of the typical Tuscan landscape. The historic Old Town lies on the very top of the hill and is surrounded by 13th century walls. At the highest point lies a medieval fortress built in 1361.
How can the territory of Montalcino be described?
As a corrugated upland where a series of irregular hills, slopes and ridges rise to form roughly four irregular slopes that depart from the borders of the square and converge towards the central part of the appellation in proximity of the town.
The 59,000ac/24,000ha of land is largely wooded, particularly the northwestern corner of the territory. Vineyards account for 15% of the total area and are interspersed with olive groves, other food crops and pasture.
What is the altitude of the hills in Montalcino?
It varies from a base elevation of 390ft/120m up to 1,900ft/600m.
What is the climate of Montalcino?
Mostly Mediterranean with a little continental influence due to its position inland and to the proximity of the Apennines range.
What topographical features contribute to the climate in Montalcino?
Its location and elevation creates significant diurnal temperature swings.
Monte Amiata to the southeast protects the area from humid air currents, storms and hail.
How does Montalcino compare to other Sangiovese producing areas in regards to location?
Compared to Chianti Classico (further north) or Montepulciano (further inland to the east), the climate is milder and warmer allowing Sangiovese to achieve ripeness more easily and consistently.
This explains why these wines have historically been 100% Sangiovese. The grape is successful here and yields riper, more structured and fuller-bodied wines.
What types of soils are found in Montalcino and how were they created?
The soils are the result of different geologic eras as well as the repeated retreats and returns of an ancient sea. Both factors explain the particularly complex and diverse nature of these soils.
They are at lower altitude possessing younger soils, largely marine deposits consisting of clay and sand.
Areas at higher altitude possess older, poorer and shallower soils with high proportions of gravel and stones. They are characterized by the presence of galestro and alberese.
How long has Montalcino been a quality winegrowing district?
Historic evidence has been documented since the 16th century. At the time, the most prominent wines produced were sweet white wines made from Moscato (known locally as Moscadello)
When did the first mention of Brunello appear in conjunction with red wine?
During the late 18th and early 19th centuries. However, information on this period is difficult to verify as there are few documents left.
Who is Clement Santi?
He was a pharmaceutical graduate of Pisa University who established a reputation for being a quality producer of Moscadello in the 1850s. He experimented with the production of red wines made from Brunello grapes grown at his estate, Fattoria del Greppo.
He introduced monoculture when the great majority of vineyards in Toscana were cultivated in a practice of coltivazione promiscua (mixed crops) typical of the mezzadria system.
In the cellar, he recommended longer fermentation and maceration times for red wines in order to obtain dry wines with more colour, structure and ageing potential.
He is considered one of the pioneers of historic Brunello.
When was the first documented appearance of a “Brunello” wine?
In 1869, a red wine of Santi’s labeled “Vino rosso scelto (brunello),” 1865 vintage, won a silver medal at the agricultural fair of Montepulciano.
Who is Ferruccio Biondi?
The grandson of Clemente Santi, he became one of the main contributors to modern-day Brunello.
In honor of Santi (his maternal grandfather), Ferruccio linked the two family names: Biondi-Santi.
Ferruccio took over the Greppo estate in 1885 and continued the Santi spirit of innovation with even more severe production criteria. One of his major advancements was the careful identification of his best Brunello vines with regard to fruity quality and disease resistance for massal selection.
In the cellar, He destemmed the grapes in order to avoid astringent tannins and made use of large Slavonian oak casks when aging his wines for an extensive period of time.
Convinced of the quality of his red wines, he began selling them as “Brunello” in the late 1880s.
What does “Brunello” mean?
“Little dark one”, in reference to its colour.
Brunello is a biotype of which variety?
Sangiovese; for a long time, Brunello was considered a distinct variety independent of Sangiovese. Today, we know that Brunello is, in fact, a biotype of Sangiovese.
Name one of the other historic Brunello producers that began to emerge within the next two decades after Ferruccio released his “Brunello” wines in the late 1880s.
Fattoria dei Barbi
Who is Tancredi Biondi-Santi?
The son of Ferrucio Biondi, who took over the Greppo estate in the 1920s. Under his direction, the Biondi-Santi Brunello became among the most sought-after and expensive wines of Italy.
The practices adopted by him had a significant influence on the disciplinaire and Brunello di Montalcino achieving DOC status in 1966.
Who are the Italo-American Mariani brothers?
They were outside investers who founded Villa Banfi (later renamed Castello Banfi) in the 1970s, which produces Brunello di Montalcino wines.
When did Brunello di Montalcino receive DOCG status?
1980
