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Vitae 2025: awards for Podere il Castellaccio

Vtae 2025: awards for Podere Il Castellaccio: Associazione Italiana Sommelier awarded the Rosso Toscana Valente 2020 with 4 Viti.

Rosso Toscana Valente 2020 IGT

Grapes: 70% Sangiovese 30% mix of foglia tonda & pugnitello.
Training System: Spurred cordon.
Harvest: Late September/early October.
Vinification: Fermented and macerated in oak barrels at controlled temperature.
Ageing: 12 months in 20 hl barrels and 12 months in the bottle.

TASTING NOTES:
Dark, luminous ruby red colour predominant aromas include refined spices, sour cherry and blackcurrants, balsamic notes, vanilla and resinated aromas of mediterranean pine; a highly classical expression of a native tuscan wine.
On the palate the tannin is dense and elegant, and heading towards a soft, velvety feel. to bring out the best in the wine, match with local products, such as cheeses, cured meats, pasta with meat sauce or grilled meats.

The passion of one man marks the beginning of the history of Podere Il Castellaccio. In the 1960s, Luigi Corradini, the maternal grandfather of current owner Alessandro Scappini, found an estate of 18 hectares on the hills of Castagneto Carducci. The area is Bolgheri, a place that was not yet world famous and had nothing to recommend it other than the essence of the land and the potential it had to produce great wine.
To plant his first vineyards Luigi was only able to use grapes that were native to the Chianti and Scansano area. Thus were Pugnitello, Foglia Tonda, Sangiovese planted – just a few hectares, native wine varieties and a small wine cellar. Over the years, the management of the estate gradually transitioned into the hands of his son Roberto.

However, it was only in 2009 that the winery Podere Il Castellaccio was founded by Alessandro Scappini, the third generation in charge of the estate.
Alessandro Scappini, born and raised in Bolgheri, decided indeed to work with a 60 years old family vineyard planted with ancient varieties.

In the meantime he also starts growing the signature grapes of the DOC and makes his debut on the market with its first Bolgheri wine with the vintage 2015.

His path inside the DOC is completed in the vintage 2018 when his Bolgheri Superiore Il Castellaccio is born and it was released for the first time on the market at the begin of 2021.

Podere Il Castellaccio is situated in Castagneto Carducci, across the seaward side of Segalari Hills, at an altitude of 194 meters a.s.l.

Due to its geographic position, the vineyards enjoy a Mediterranean climate, with more solar radiations, a better thermal excursion and a higher ventilation.

Not only Bolgheri

“A sip from the past, while looking to the future” is the catchphrase used by this highly-manicured Bolgheri winery.

The family passion and the expertise added by the winemaker Attilio Pagli have the aim to tell the story of the region through the salvaging of ancient varieties that are inextricably linked to the tradition of Tuscan wine, specifically in the area of Bolgheri.

The older vineyards, occupying more than 2 hectares, are planted with Tuscan natives Sangiovese, Ciliegiolo, Foglia Tonda and Pugnitello.

6 labels:

More info?
Take a look at the website and follow the producer on the socials

Vitae 2025: awards for Grati

Vtae 2025: awards for Grati: Associazione Italiana Sommelier awarded their Vin Santo 2006 and Canaiolo Bianco 2018 with 4 Viti.

Canaiolo Bianco Borgo Prunatelli
Since its first vintage (2012) it’s the only single varietal Canaiolo Bianco.
It’s very important to underline that it is NOT a Canaiolo Nero vinified without pomace, but it is a wine made with the Canaiolo Bianco variety.

Vin Santo del Chianti Rufina
A masterpiece where freshness and elegance are combined with a thick mouthfeel

How it the Vinsanto made?

The vinsantaio, where vinsanto is made, hangs full of grape bunches, quite appropriately above the family chapel at Villa Vetrice, as ‘vinsanto or vino santo‘ means ‘holy wine’.

In the Grati family, it is a tradition that began over a hundred years ago, with which the great secret of vinsanto, the madre (mother), is also over a century old.

The madre is an aromatic sediment of inactive fine lees. She, a natural yeast, is ‘eterna’, for ever, because each new production uses some of the old that has multiplied at the end of the process and is then kept again.

Healthy bunches of grapes were picked in mid-September, and hung in the vinsantaio to slowly dry out for over three months.
70% of the grapes are white, Malvasia and Trebbiano, 30% are blue, Sangiovese.
Vinsanto is made only in years with extremely healthy grape material.
Sulfur is lit daily in the vinsantaio to clean the air of insects and unwanted critters. There is also the game of windows, which are open during the day and closed again at night, depending on the weather. The grapes have to dry properly and slowly. As an extra help, only if needed, ventilators can be used.

In December or January, when 30% of the original volume remains, the grapes are pressed. The must is then put into clean caratelli, small wooden barrels, on top of the madre. The caratelli are then sealed with cement, while 25% of the space remains empty.
Fermentation starts slowly in March, while temperatures rise and stops with the heat in summer. For three years in a row. In winter, spontaneous clarification takes place, including the deposition of the madre.
The wine then remains in the unopened caratelli for at least ten years before being bottled.
Villa di Vetrice Vinsanto del Chianti Rùfina DOC comes with 17% alcohol and 100% class.

It is excellent as a dessert wine, but also by itself, for instance with cantucci, typical Tuscan almond cookies.

The 2006 vintage is currently on sale in 50cl bottles.

Follow them on the socials

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New awards for Patrizia Cencioni

New awards for Patrizia Cencioni: Kerin O’Keefe rated the Brunello Patrizia Cencioni 2020 and Brunello Ofelio 2020 with respectively 93 and 95 Points.

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Tastingnote: “The fragrant 2020 Brunello from Patrizia Cencioni opens with heady aromas of dog rose, sun-warmed hay, new leather, espresso and Mediterranean scrub. On the enveloping palate, tightly woven, velvety tannins accompany fleshy red plum, Morello cherry and cake spice before a soothing licorice close.
Drink 2028–2035.: Abv: N/A”

Kerin O’Keefe November 2024 ©kerinokeefe.com

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Tastingnote: “Aromas of forest floor mingle with dark exotic spice, Mediterranean brush and blue flower on the fragrant 2020 Brunello Ofelio. Aged for 40 months in 15 Hl Slavonian oak casks, it’s enveloping and savory, featuring layers of ripe red cherry, zesty orange, tobacco, mocha and licorice. Firm, velvety tannins provide structure and finesse.
Drink 2030–2036. Abv: N/A”

Kerin O’Keefe November 2024
©kerinokeefe.com

GOOD MONTALCINO WINE IS BORN IN THE VINEYARD AND GROWS IN THE CELLAR,
FROM THE PASSION OF THREE UNIQUE WOMEN

THE WINERY
Patrizia Cencioni winery is family-run, managed by the owner Patrizia and her two daughters Annalisa and Arianna.

Thanks to the long family experience and the entrepreneurial skills of the owner, a refined feminine touch is added.

THE LAND
The vineyards date back to 1989, the year in which the company was born, which draws its origins from an ancient company in Montalcino created in the 1950s by grandfather Giuseppe Cencioni, one of the founders of the Brunello di Montalcino Consortium.
Located a few kilometres from the town center of Montalcino at about 350 meters a.s.l., overlooking the Val d’Orcia.
A total area of 50 Ha, of which 9 Ha of Sangiovese vineyards and 7 Ha of olive groves.

THE WINES
With the steel vats at controlled temperatures, the correct fermentation is guaranteed.

The slow aging of the wines takes place in oak barrels, with their refinement the elegance and character, already peculiar characteristics of each vintage, stand out also in the bottle.

Tradition, creativity and passion are the main ingredients for good Montalcino wine …

…discover more…take a look at their website

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James Suckling awards for Gracciano

James Suckling awards for Gracciano: 93 Points to the first Vino Nobile di Montepulciano Pieve Gracciano 2021

This new Vino Nobile Pieve Gracciano has a stricter production regulation which foresees:

Grapes grown in a single vineyard of 15 years of age at least
Maximum yield of 7 tons of grapes per hectare
Blend: 85% of Sangiovese minimum. Indigenous red berry Tuscan varieties can be added (Canaiolo, Ciliegiolo, Colorino, Mammolo)
Maturation and ageing:: 36 months of which at least 12 months in wood and 12 months in the bottle
A committee of the Consortium will evaluate the quality of the wine before it is released on the market.

Introducing the PIEVE

Last year the neighbouring Vino Nobile di Montepulciano appellation in southern Tuscany has delineated 12 specific subregions within the appellation: the Pieve*

Pieve Cervognano
Pieve Cerliana
Pieve Caggiola
Pieve Sant’Albino
Pieve Valiano
Pieve Ascianello
Pieve San Biagio
Pieve Le Grazie
Pieve Gracciano
Pieve Badia
Pieve Argiano
Pieve Valardegna

* In the past the area of this part of Tuscany was divided into “Pievi”: these were religious and civil constituencies which were represented by a rural church.

Click on the link on the right for more info

The Gracciano Estate is one of the oldest wineries in the Montepulciano region.

In the beginning of the 19th century, Gracciano was owned by the Svetoni family who built the Villa and created the Italian-style gardens that surround it. With over 400 hectares and 22 farms, the very extensive Gracciano Estate also produced a wide variety of typical Tuscan products.

The property was inherited by the current owners, Marco, Vannozza and Galdina della Seta Ferrari Corbelli Greco, through their father Giorgio.

Today, the winery covers roughly 70 hectares of which 20 are vineyards.
The vines grow on the clay and silty soil of the Gracciano hills, one of the oldest and most prestigious crus of Montepulciano.
Already in 1864 the Vino Nobile di Montepulciano produced by the then Svetoni winery (today Gracciano della Seta Estate) was awarded the first prize at the International Fair of Turin.

The cellars of the Gracciano Villa still contain several bottles of wine from exceptional vintage years.
Giorgio della Seta, after working for many years abroad as a manager in a multinational company, decided to return to Tuscany and take up the family Estate.

He proceeded to renew the vineyards and build, in 2013, a new winery alongside the traditional unit which is still used for ageing wine in wood.

The winery has always been run by renowned oenologists (such as Nicolò d’Afflitto from 1985 and Beppe Rigoli since 1995) who ensured that the Tenuta di Gracciano produced an excellent Vino Nobile, fully respecting the terroir and using autochthonous vines.

More info?
Take a look at their website

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Podere Il Castellaccio: new high prize by Decanter

Podere Il Castellaccio: new high prize by Decanter.

94 Points for the Bolgheri Superiore Il Castellaccio 2021.

BOLGHERI SUPERIORE IL CASTELLACCIO 2021

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Grape variety: Cabernet Franc, Pugnitello
Climate: the area enjoys a temperate climate with very long summers that offer excellent exposure during the daytime. The winter is quite mild.
Training system: spur pruning system
Fermentation: the fermentation takes place by means of indigenous yeasts in stainless steel tanks temperature controlled with a maceration on the skins from 45 to 50 days.
Aging: after racking the wine is kept in French oak barriques for 12 months and in amphorae of ceramic composition for further 12 months. After bottling further ageing in bottles for at least 6 months.

What’s in the label?
The graphics were entrusted to an Italian artist from Castagneto Carducci, Andrea Carciola, here the thought of combining the two passions of the owner the horse and the terroir through the vineyard.

The producer:

An historic Estate

The passion of one man marks the beginning of the history of Podere Il Castellaccio. In the 1960s, Luigi Corradini, the maternal grandfather of current owner Alessandro Scappini, found an estate of 18 hectares on the hills of Castagneto Carducci. The area is Bolgheri, a place that was not yet world famous and had nothing to recommend it other than the essence of the land and the potential it had to produce great wine.
To plant his first vineyards Luigi was only able to use grapes that were native to the Chianti and Scansano area. Thus were Pugnitello, Foglia Tonda, Sangiovese planted – just a few hectares, native wine varieties and a small wine cellar. Over the years, the management of the estate gradually transitioned into the hands of his son Roberto.

However, it was only in 2009 that the winery Podere Il Castellaccio was founded by Alessandro Scappini, the third generation in charge of the estate.
Alessandro Scappini, born and raised in Bolgheri, decided indeed to work with a 60 years old family vineyard planted with ancient varieties. In the meantime he also starts growing the signature grapes of the DOC and makes his debut on the market with its first Bolgheri wine with the vintage 2015. His path inside the DOC is completed in the vintage 2018 when his Bolgheri Superiore Il Castellaccio is born and it was released for the first time on the market at the begin of 2021.

Podere Il Castellaccio is situated in Castagneto Carducci, across the seaward side of Segalari Hills, at an altitude of 194 meters a.s.l.
Due to its geographic position, the vineyards enjoy a Mediterranean climate, with more solar radiations, a better thermal excursion and a higher ventilation.