CANTINE DEI - VINO NOBILE DI MOTEPULCIANO
- History: Back in 1964, Alibrando Dei, a wine-growing enthusiast, recognised in the area of Bossona, splendid for its exposure and pedological characteristics, lands predestined to produce great red wines,and promptly purchased them and planted the first vineyards.
Later, during the course of the 70s, the family acquired the Martiena property with the attached manor (restored in the 1930s by the architect Piacentini) surrounded by a vast age-old garden and situated at the foot of the village of Montepulciano.
In the first years, the grapes that were produced were sold. However, considering the quality of the grapes picked, the family soon decided to embark upon the path of their own wine-making tradition and in 1985 (an exceptional vintage year) they decided to produce the first bottle of Vino Nobile di Montepulciano Dei, renting an old winery in the historic town centre.
In 1989,the family built its own winery, beside Villa Martiena, in the heart of the vineyards.
- Maria Caterina Dei: Caterina Dei spent part of her childhood in the Montepulciano countryside as a little girl breathing the scent of the vineyards and grapes.
With a humanities degree in music from the University of Siena, she then studied acting at the Accademia dei Filodrammatici in Milan followed by opera singing and finally performed at the Greek theatre of Syracuse in Sicily for a number of summer seasons.
At the beginning of the 90s, she decided to move to Montepulciano to devote herself with loving care to the vineyards and her land.
She took in hand the winery founded by her grandfather yet continued, every so often, to dedicate herself to music and singing by recording her first CD thanks to the cooperation of professional musicians.
Forever in love with the nature and architecture of her 16th century village, she immediately understood that her wines were made to heighten and convey the peculiarities of a land that is unique for its charm and history.
Her main goal, shared by wine-making expert Paolo Caciorgna, technical director of the winery, has always been that of producing excellent and elegant wines that represent the terroir, by making the most of native vine species and the undisputable quality of Vino Nobile di Montepulciano.
- The Vineyards: Overall, the winery covers approximately 120 hectares, 55 of which planted with vines.
The average altitude is approximately 300 m above sea level and the vineyards are divided into four production units: Martiena, Bossona, La Ciarliana and La Piaggia, privileged for their exposure and the composition of the soil where Vino Nobile di Montepulciano is produced.
The vineyards feature different pedological characteristics: the areas of Martiena and La Piaggia consist mainly of fresh and average sandstone mixture;the vineyards of Bossona, from which the cru is produced, is characterised by a surface layer of tuff and skeleton and fossil subsoil; finally, the vineyards of La Ciarliana are rich in clay and limestone.
The green pruning and selective thinning out of the bunches maintain the average production per hectare extremely limited.
In the past few years, the average production has been approximately 90,000 bottles of Nobile di Montepulciano, 90,000 bottled of Rosso di Montepulciano, 5,000 bottles of Sancta Catharina in addition to small quantities of Vino Bianco di Martiena and Vin Santo di Montepulciano.
In the best years, when the climate and nature reward the labour of man, the precious bottles of Nobile coming from the vineyards of Bossona, are destined to be refined and aged to produce a limited quantity of Vino Nobile Riserva Bossona.
The vineyard also produces an extra-virgin olive oil from its own olive groves and from the fresh marc of Vino Nobile comes a limited quantity of grappa.
- The Winery: The will to build a new winery rises from the dream of the engineer Glauco Dei, Caterina’s father, to create a new place for wine ageing that combines his life’s two passions: the desire to produce great wines and the love for working with travertine stone.
From here comes the idea of using this precious natural material for building the new ageing cellar. Designed with fervour and enthusiasm, together with the architect Alessandro Bagnoli, the new spaces are completely made of travertine stone, glass and wood, natural materials that integrate perfectly with the environment.
The love for nature and the soil, which has always inspired the family to dedicate its efforts to activities tied to their land, has led to technical and planning choices that employ to the utmost sources of renewable energy, primarily geothermal energy.
Completely immersed in the vineyards that surround the winery, the architecture of the new wine cellar blends harmoniously with the sweetness of the hilly landscape that envelops Montepulciano while the nuances of the travertine stone combine with the colours of the soils from which our best grapes are produced.
Even the shape of the entrance to our cellar and underground areas, a downgrade that morphologically calls to mind the shape of a snail, is a strong reference to the land that produces Vino Nobile Dei, which draws from the fossil shells of the earth of Bossona its flavours, its complexity, its elegance and its personality.
AGRITURISMO DEI
- The magic of an exclusive stay in the heart of an unforgettable and charming territory: A small corner of Paradise, where one can enjoy a unique stay. Surrounded by century-old olive trees and vineyards you will discover the charm of Tuscany.
The hill, which dominates the proprieties of the estate, offers a privileged position to admire the noble town of Montepulciano and the gentle rolling hills that slowly slope down towards the Val di Chiana. Set in a wonderful landscape, the farmhouse and the villa are nestled within the Dei estate. Both houses have been finely renovated so as to maintain the typical Tuscan rural architecture and are in perfect harmony with the territory.
The swimming pool, surrounded by the winery vineyards, gives relaxing moments in a natural environment. The visitors have the possibility to taste the well-known Vino Nobile di Montepulciano while visiting the winery.
- La Ciarliana Farmhouse: The farmhouse that the Dei Family has rebuilt within the area of “La Ciarliana” has a 16th century tower in its centre and 3 apartments: two inside the main structure and one in an old barn.
- Villa Il Boschetto: The Villa dates back to 1700 and has recently been renovated. It is made up of 2 suites and 4 rooms. The furnishing is made with antique pieces of furniture and Tuscan handicrafts; the ceilings are characterized by old wooden beams, the beautiful floor of the villa and walls of the bathrooms are made of travertine marble from the Rapolano quarries. The Villa is surrounded by a large garden with laurel hedges and by an orchard, where lavender and rosemary are grown, and tall trees provide shade.
- The Territory: The unique location, in the middle of a splendid territory rich in history and arts, is the privileged point of departure to visit some pearls of Tuscany, among which Montepulciano, Pienza, Siena and Florence.
Within a few kilometres from the winery and the farmhouses there is the ancient town of Montepulciano, known for is impressive Renaissance palaces, its elegant and beautiful churches and, of course, for its “Vino Nobile”, the local red wine which is highly appreciated worldwide.
Pienza, declared a “UNESCO Human Heritage site”, is a small Renaissance jewel, which dominates the entire Val D’Orcia.
Siena and Florence, cities of art “par excellence”, thanks to their important artistic and cultural heritage, represent undoubtedly two of the most desirable destinations for thousands of tourists coming to visit Italy every year.
- Directions: If you drive from Firenze/Florence, you have to exit at the motorway A1 exit called "Bettolle/Valdichiana"; if you drive from Rome, you have to exit at the motorway A1 exit called "Chiusi-Chianchiano Terme". In both cases, once you leave the mortorway, there are directions towards Montepulciano.
Once you arrive in Montepulciano, drive towards the bus-station (Autostazione dei bus). Next to the bus station there is a small road on the far left, that goes downhill and next to a tennis court and football field (there are BROWN road signs with directions to the Azienda Agricola DEI). You must drive straight on this narrow road (called "via di Martiena") until the end of the asphalt/paved road. Then turn left (there is a sign) and drive the last 300m on a gravel road until you find the last sign for Azienda Agricola DEI, turn left again and you will find the winery at the end of the road.
When you arrive at the winery, we will drive you to the apartment.
The closest main train station is in Chiusi-Chianciano Terme at 25 km circa.
- Name: Az. Maria Caterina Dei
- Adress: Via di Martiena 35 / 53045 Montepulciano (Siena) - Italy
- GPS: Latitudine 43.09269 / Longitudine 11.80751
- Tel. +39 0578 716878 - Fax +39 0578 758680
- E-mail: info@cantinedei.com
- Web: www.cantinedei.com
VINO NOBILE DI MONTEPULCIANO
Potentially majestic and certainly noble red wine made exclusively in the township of Montepulciano 120 km/75 miles south east of Florence in the hills of toscana in central Italy. It was one of the first four docgs conferred in 1980. Following a change to the DOCG regulations in 1999, the wine can now be made solely from Sangiovese, and must be at least 70 per cent Sangiovese, here called Prugnolo Gentile. Traditionally, producers would have blended in Canaiolo, Mammolo, Trebbiano, and even Gamay, but since the mid 1980s Sangiovese has come to the fore as the principal variety of Montepulciano.
The soil of the zone has a higher percentage of sand than the production zones of Chianti Classico or Brunello; the slopes, which face mainly east to south east, are planted at altitudes of 250 m to 600 m/2,000 ft, although , the best wines undoubtedly come from the lower vineyards.
Vino Nobile has an illustrious history, having been lauded as a "perfect wine" by the cellarmaster of Pope Paul III in 1549, by Francesco Redi in his "Bacchus in Toscana" of 1685 (he called it "the king of wines"), and by G. F. Neri in the late 18th century, who gave it the title "noble". The area planted rose rapidly after the introduction of the doc in 1966. Between 1970 and 1989, the total vineyard rose from less than 150 ha/370 acres to 760 ha; production rose from 8,000 hl/211,000 gal to 30,700 hi; and the number of producers bottling their own wine increased from seven or eight to 40. By the mid 2000s there were 820 ha of vineyard in the zone owned by 167 producers who account for an annual production of just under 34,000 hl.
The wine itself is rather fuller in body and more alcoholic than Chianti, reflecting its warmer production zone. It has so far not shown the aromatic finesse and elegance of the best Chianti or Brunello, possibly because of the lack of limestone in the soil, or because of Montepulciano’s warmer evenings and nights. In recent years, producers such as Avignonesi and Poliziano have shown the po¬tential that the zone undoubtedly has with Riserva wines such as Grandi Annate and Vigna Asinone, both of which contain some Cabernet. New oak has replaced large old casks in many cellars, and while an excess of oak is evident in some wines, this is balanced by a decrease in the number of oxidized or musty wines that spent far too long in old casks. Legally, the wine must be aged for twoyears (from January i following the vintage) in order to qualify as a Vino Nobile; for Riserva, this period is extended by a year. Despite these improvements, the wines have not been able to gain the prestige or fetch the prices of the better Chianti Classico Riservas and are undoubtedly the poor relation of Brunello Di Montalcino.
In an attempt to mirror the success of Rosso di Montalcino, a DOC for Rosso di Montepulciano was created in 1989 for earlier-maturing wines but the total production is less than 5 per cent of that of its big brother. D.T. & D.C.G.
MARTIENA I.G.T.
- Grape verieties: 70% malvasia, 20% grechetto, 10% trebbiano.
- Soil characteristics: Medium texture, sandy
- Planting density: 4700 per hectare
- Average grape harvest per hectare: 60 quintals / hectare
- Training method: Horizontal spurred cordon
- Vinification techniques: Gentle pressing; fermentation in stainless steel tanks at a controlled temperature .
- Refinement techniques: Stainless steel tanks followed by 3 months of bottle refinement.
- Aging possibilities: 3 years
- Number of bottles: 10.000
- Description: Martiena has a lively straw-yellow colour. Delicate but intense flowery fragrances; harmonious and fruity taste on the palate.
ROSSO DI MONTEPULCIANO D.O.C
- Grape varieties: 90% Sangiovese, 5% Canaiolo Nero, 5% Merlot
- Soil characteristics: Clayey, mixed tufaceous
- Training method: Horizontal spurred cordon
- Planting density: 4700 per hectar
- Average grape harvest per hectar: 60 quintals / hectar
- Vinification techniques: Gentle pressing; fermentation in stainless steel tanks at a controlled temperature of 26° - 28°C; maceration for 15-20 days.
- Refinement techniques: 3 months in 33hl Slavonian oak barrels 6 months in bottle refinement.
- Aging possibilities: 10 years
- Number of bottles: 90.000
- Description: The Rosso di Montepulciano is a young wine with a lively ruby-red colour. It is winy and full of fruity fragrances. It is dry to the taste, fresh and pleasantly tannic.
VINO NOBILE DI MONTEPULCIANO D.O.C.G.
- Grape varieties: 90% Sangiovese, 10% Canaiolo Nero
- Soil characteristics: Clayey, mixed tufaceous
- Training method: Horizontal spurred cordon
- Planting density: 4700 per hectar
- Average grape harvest per hectar: 60 quintals / hectar
- Vinification techniques: Gentle pressing; fermentation in stainless steel tanks at a controlled temperature of 26° - 28°C; maceration for 15-20 days.
- Refinement techniques: 24 months in 33hl Slavonian oak barrels 6 months in bottle refinement.
- Aging possibilites: 10 years
- Number of bottles: 90.000
- Description: The Vino Nobile has a bright ruby red colour and a rich texture. Refined aromas of cherry and plum follow through to a full-bodied palate, with soft, round tannins and a flavourful finish.
VINO NOBILE DI MONTEPULCIANO RISERVA BOSSONA D.O.C.G.
- Grpe varieties: 100% Sangiovese
- Soil characteristics: Tufaceous
- Planting density: 4700 per hectare
- Average grape harvest per hectar: 40 quintals / hectare
- Training method: Horizontal spurred cordon
- Vinification techniques: Gentle pressing; fermentation in stainless steel tanks at a controlled temperature of 26° - 28°C; maceration for 28-30 days.
- Refinement techniques: 36 months in tonneaux of 7,5 hl and 12 months of bottle refinement.
- Aging possibilities: 20 years
- Number of bottles: 20.000