La Braccesca Santa Pia, Vino Nobile Riserva

Producer

Antinori first bought land on the Tenuta Braccesca estate in 1990, situated in southeast Tuscany, between the towns of Montepulciano and Cortona. The former is known for the Sangiovese that ripens into rich Vino Nobile, while the latter is home to Italy’s best Syrah.

Vineyard

The La Braccesca vineyards are in south-east Tuscany, near the border with Umbria; the climate is typically continental, with rain during winter. Nearby Lake Trasimeno moderates conditions both during the hot summers and cold winters. This wine comes from a single fifteen-hectare vineyard in the Santa Pia subzone, where the soil is red clay with plenty of stones. The grapes were picked by hand in mid-October.

Winery

Following destemming and gentle crushing, the grapes underwent a twenty-day fermentation. The wine was then transferred to new French and Hungarian 225 and 300-litre barrels for malolactic fermentation and sixteen months ageing, with regular racking. After bottling, it spent approximately twenty months in bottle before release.

Awards

2 red glasses, Gambero Rosso 2016