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2006

The autumn/winter 2005/2006 has been characterised by temperatures which were slightly below the average, and rains within the standard average for this time of the year. A rather hot and rainy spring has been followed by an initially hot summer, then followed by a fresh and rainy August, and a wonderful September with mild temperatures, almost no rains at all, and a wide thermal range between days and nights. October, our harvest month, has been sunny for the biggest part, allowing us to harvest our grapes in a very easy way. The season has been generally good enough not to create any particular problem to the defense of vines and grapes, which have been harvested in very good health conditions .

 

Harvest time has fallen within the historical average; the first grape varieties harvested, in the first decade of September, have been Chardonnay for Le Busche and Merlot for Pelago; since September 20th we have started harvesting Verdicchio, Sangiovese, and Bianchello (Fortunae), followed by Cabernet Sauvignon, Petit Verdot, and Syrah. Verdicchio grapes for producing our Casal di Serra have reached the proper ripeness in the beginning of October, which has been the time when we have also started harvesting our Montepulciano for Serrano and San Lorenzo. From the end of the first decade of October, then, Verdicchio grapes for Plenio and Le Busche were also ripe, and after a few days we have started harvesting our Montepulciano for our Cùmaro and Pelago. As far as concerning the Montepulciano d’Abruzzo, harvest time has been the same as for the Montepulciano grown in the Conero area, with Jorio grapes arriving to the winery starting from the end of the first decade of October.

 

This vintage, as far as quality is concerned, will surely be remembered for the excellent balance between acidity and sugar, which the climate has favoured particularly on white grapes; that’s why we have very high expectations for the longevity of our most important Verdicchio wines Plenio, Casal di Serra Vecchie Vigne, Casal di Serra, and a wonderful freshness and finesse for our Villa Bianchi. Our red grapes, in particular those used for production of San Lorenzo, Cùmaro, and Pelago, have reached a good phenolic maturity which will keep these wines very elegant and complex even through the years. Our Montipagano estate, in Roseto degli Abruzzi, has provided great quality grapes, fully ripened and with the usual concentration we normally get from this fantastic location.
Quantity is slightly up in the Verdicchio area, whereas in Abruzzo and Conero area, despite the very positive prospect we had in August, we ended with a quite short vintage, about 5% below the average.

 

L’ottima qualità delle uve ha senz’altro facilitato le operazioni di vinificazione che sono state caratterizzate dal lavoro fatto in riduzione, con l’utilizzo di CO2, sui Verdicchi più giovani e con la tecnica della criomacerazione su parte delle uve destinate ai rossi di annata. Tutte le fermentazioni si sono sviluppate a temperatura controllata ed alcuni tra i prodotti di maggior spessore (Cùmaro, Pelago, Casal di Serra Vecchie Vigne  e Plenio) hanno fermentato solo su lieviti autoctoni.