Ampeleia
Bianco di Ampeleia
White Blend | 2020
Regular price $33.00
Product Specifications
- Producer
- Ampeleia
- Winemaker
- Marco Tait
- Importer
- Walden Selections
- Country
- Italy
- Region
- Tuscany
- Farming
- Biodynamic / Organic
- Type
- White
- Varietal
- White Blend: Ansonica, Malvasia, & Trebbiano
- Vintage
- 2020
- Alcohol %
- 10
- Background
"Ampeleia was born in 2002 from the collaboration and friendship between Elisabetta Foradori, Thomas Widmann, and Giovanni Podini; they saw in Ampeleia a place where they could not only develop an agricultural project but also fulfill a common vision. The project aspires to represent the inherent diversity and huge potential of this particular area of Maremma, the "Colline Metallifere," which are not the coastal lowlands one usually associates with the Maremma, but mineral-rich hills that have been mined since Etruscan times.
The estate results from the purchase of different plots of land, located far apart and on different altitude levels, with the precise aim of creating a great variability in altitude, soil type and microclimatic conditions; each vineyard has a distinctive identity that is enhanced by the uniqueness of the surrounding environment. Variety is the keystone and soul of Ampeleia. In fact, variety represents the project’s constant quality, both physically and symbolically, and is harmoniously expressed in its wines that taste of the varied lands of the area around the village of Roccatederighi. Many of the grape varieties that have been planted in Ampeleia are common in Mediterranean farmlands. In past times, vineyards were not planted with just one grape variety but many types of grapes were present and they were all harvested at the same time; the vineyards at Ampeleia reflect this tradition.
The 1st vintage of Bianco di Ampeleia was 2016. A neighbor's vineyard had old vines of a local biotype of Trebbiano Toscano; Ampeleia used its cuttings and starting planting in 2013, between Ampeleia di Mezzo and Ampeleia di Sopra (300-600m with varied soil composition). The vineyards were planted to 90% Trebbiano, 5% Ansonaco (aka Ansonica aka Inzolia), and 5% Malvasia. In true field-blend fashion, the three varieties are interspersed through the vineyard. The grapes were co-harvested at yields of 50hl/ha in mid-September and co-fermented in concrete vats, with 7-10 days contact with the skins. It aged on its lees for 6 months in concrete. 12,000 bottles made." - David Bowler Wine