A beautiful, pure red with blue fruit and minerality. Notes of slate and sage, some sanguine iron too. Medium to full body. Firm tannins and a fresh, bright finish. A stunning example of Cabernet Franc. So good right now but will age gracefully for some time to come. Decant in advance and would be great paired with any form of Game.
The first vintage to be 100% Cabernet Franc from the Ampeleia di Sopra parcels at 450-600 meters above sea level. Vines were planted between 1995 and 2004. The grapes are fully destemmed and there is a maceration of 20 days. Fermented in cement tanks and 5000-6000L casks. Aging is 12 months in these same vessels, followed by 2 years of aging in bottle before release
AZIENDA AMPELEIA, Roccateterighi, Maremma - Certified organic and biodynamic by Q Certificazioni and Demeter
Ampeleia (from the Greek word for ‘vine’) is owned by Elisabetta Foradori and Giovani Podini. The winemaker and agronomist, Marco Tait has been with the estate since its inception in 2002. It was founded with Elisabetta’s overarching vision of allowing the true nature of an area, its diversity, its grapes, land and culture to be expressed. The wildness of the southern Maremma, bounded by the Colle Metallifere and the sea were virgin territory, far removed from the glamour of Bolgheri and Montalcino. The estate is large and biodiverse with a total of 40 ha of vineyard interspersed with chestnut and cork oak forests as well as Mediterranean scrub. There are three parts, across differing altitudes, with differing soils and microclimates: Ampeleia di Sopra; di Mezzo and di Sotto.