After an entire summer season spent between the tables of our restaurant, we finally managed to organize an educational trip to Predappio, one of the most interesting subzones of Romagna DOC Sangiovese.
When talking about a wine or a winery, the first reference is bound to terroir, which, in this specific winery, is precisely the thread that binds the 3 Sangiovese wines produced at this winery.
A tradition protracted since Roman times, who as early as the first century produced wine in San Zeno (a small hamlet in the municipality of Galeata). We learn about it from historical references written within the Malatesta Library.
We are talking about Piccolo Brunelli, the winery that has taken over since the 1930s a farm whose walls date back to the 1200s. Over the years they have expanded the building by digging underground in the stone a part of the cellar in which they keep their historical reserve.
Essential is the word that defines this family-run business that has always had a biodynamic and circular perspective, which is why 98 percent of the work is done in the vineyard and they try to intervene as little as possible in the cellar.
The backbone of the Romagna Apennines consists of a millefeuille of marl and sandstone, or an “ancient marine mud” and limestone sands. We are at 400m/sl with a northern exposure that maintains a nice acidity in the berry.
What is certainly striking is the meticulousness of Pietro, the passionate winemaker, who emphasizes with great energy how much the winery has evolved in terms of quality.
If before they worked on extraction as the fashion of the period demanded, now they aim to tell a terroir story and make it a winning weapon, with a clear idea of what they want to get from their grapes.
They have seven biotypes of Sangiovese that are vinified separately and, after a blind tasting, blended so that the best wine is chosen without conditioning.
Manual harvest in 15l crates, whole grain to ferment with indigenous yeasts and start with pied de cuve in concrete avoiding delastage and working by reduction so as to achieve verticality and elegance. The wine then undergoes a mild filtration just to remove small impurities; they do not use stabilizers as they take advantage of the mountain winter to keep the cellar at temperature.
The wines produced are dedicated to the various tenants of the organic farm.
Pietro 1904 is a nimble, clean and crisp 2020 Sangiovese with cement aging.
Dante 1872
Sangiovese Riserva of 2019 sees aging in tonneau and cement.
Pure and direct with a muscular sip that envelops the palate.
Cesco 1938
Sangiovese 2020
The most representative wine of the winery and terroir, their flagship wine.
Vertical and peremptory, with exuberant fruit.
It lives in two phases: one cooler and forested, the other more mature, gastronomic.
Cesco you can find in our wine list, which is always carefully updated.
We return to Quel Castello with a great experience not only on a working and cultural level, but also on a human level thanks to Pietro, who with passion and care explained all the details and reasons for their business choices to the guys on our staff, making sure that they could have a positive imprint on their wine and this great terroir.
