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The Prime Donne conquer the  NY Wine Experience

Let me take you to the New York Wine Experience by Wine Spectator, this is the most exclusive wine tasting in the world, with the most important wineries in the world

by Donatella Cinelli Colombini, Montalcino, Casato Prime Donne

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Here one finds Champagne Salon, Chateaux Lafite Rothschild, Chateaux Margaux, Opus One, Chateau d’Yquem, Penfolds… myths from the wine world. IN their midst I feel so excited, like a child. To be invited to the Wine Experience has always been a dream of mine but I really thought it would never be possible, like winning an Oscar or the Nobel Prize. But I am here and after only 18 years from the birth of my wineries.

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Angelo Gaja, as always so kind, comes towards me in the Marriott Marquis hall where each producer has a table to pour their wine. He embraces me and says  <<they should have invited you sooner, you deserve this!>>. Among the producers are also Piero Antinori with Solaia and Lamberto Frescobaldi with Masseto but nobody gets the same reaction as a star like Angelo.

The French wineries have shipped all their wines in wooden cases and before the arrival of the guests they decant them. Noblesse oblige! There is a lot to be learned from them, but there are some Italian wineries that do the same, Sassicaia for example.

The Prime Donne at the NY Wine Experience: a dream come true

Donatella Cinelli Colombini’s Brunello flies to the NY Wine Experience, the famous tasting of the 250 top wines selected by Wine Spectator for their prestige and quality

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It’s 18 years old, the young company of Donatella Cinelli Colombini (it was born in 1998) is of age now and it has received the most desired invitation of all, the debutantes’ ball of wine cellars.

The invitation to the Wine Experience, the tasting organized in New York by the prestigious American magazine Wine Spectator. A selection of the 278 best wines in the world selected for thier prestige and quality.

A tasting so exclusive that attracts winelovers from all over because here they are certain to find the best of the best and a lot of new products. The ticket costs 2.495$ and it has a limited number, and the tickets are purchased online until the fully booked. For Donatella Cinelli Colombini there has been another gift: hers is one of the 4

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Brunello chosen to be part of the seminar. She will be speaking in front of 1.000 people, telling the story of a country house in ruins that becomes the first Italian winery with a staff of all women; and the story of the Ardita vineyard, a small piece of land about 2 hectars, that produces extraordinary grapes with an extraordinary qualitative continuity in the different vintages. A magical place for the cultivation of Sangiovese.

The Chianti Superiore in the TOP year of Organic

Chianti Superiore DOCG 2014 is old style for Donatella Cinelli Colombini: who appreciates a more traditional and easy to drink Chianti will love it!

Chianti Superiore DOCG – Fattoria del Colle, Trequanda

2014 has been the year of the Organic, and those like us who have chosen this method to cultivate their vineyards, have brought to the winery grapes that were sound and especially apt to produce young wines. 86 days of rain, from April to October and an almost Nordic climate, have favoured the synthesis of perfumes in the grapes and the production of “old style” wines, elegant and easy to drink like those of thirty years ago.
The Chianti Superiore Docg 2014 is a wine with a typical Tuscan imprint, with tannins that are evident but well balanced by the fruit and a remarkable pleasantness that makes it easy to match with any dish: from the chianina ox tagliata to Indian or Chinese dishes.
Donatella Cinelli Colombini‘s Chianti Superiore is produced in Fattoria del Colle at 404 meters of altitude, on top of high hills that surround the Crete Senesi area. The vineyards are on ridges, in a position that is ventilated and well exposed to the sun; they have 5.500 vines per hectare that produce only a little over one kilo of grapes each one. Few grapes and a lot of manual work – both during the cultivation and harvest – they give us an excellent result. Vinification and ageing are carried out in the winery and cellar of Fattoria del Colle that is placed right among the vineyards.

Drago e le 8 Colombe IGT Toscana 2013

The story of Donatella Cinelli Colombini’s Supertuscan dedicated to a man in the all women winery

Drago e le 8 Colombe IGT Toscana 2013

The wine “Il Drago e le 8 Colombe” has a strange name because it has a curious beginning. It is produced in Donatella Cinelli Colombini‘s wineries, where the staff are all women, represented by the 8 doves on the label: Donatella, her daughter Violante who together with Debora takes care of wine sales, Alessia who is in charge of the incoming, Barbara the cellar master with her helpers Antonella and Margherita, and last but not least Valérie Lavigne the wine maker. A formidable team flanked by the men and women grape growers but also by Donatella’s husband Carlo Gardini, who has created a range of sweet wines for this winery. He is the dragon in the label to emphasize a male presence in an all female winery, which is feminine not feminist. Il Drago e le 8 Colombe is a “Supertuscan” a Tuscan wine not covered by a DOC regime. To begin with this type of wine included those of modern style and high quality. It was created in the 1970’s as a reaction to the rules of the appellations that limited the possibility of experimenting. Practically a rebellion against tradition, and this was sustained by the press and by America consumers. Later the Supertuscan became IGT Toscana appellation, and in some cases (such as Sassicaia) they become DOC. Il Drago e le 8 Colombe is an IGT Supertuscan produced at Fattoria del Colle.

Medals in competitions, too many and some for counterfeit wines

English wine competition reward up to 70% of wines with medals while the Concours Mondial de Bruxelles carries out tests to catch those who falsify bottles

The Italian jurt at the Concours Mondial de Bruxelles

By Donatella Cinelli Colombini, Brunello, Casato Prime Donne

A very interesting article by Wine News underlines the excessive number of medals of the English wine contests. According to OIV there should be less than 33% whereas the various contests by  “Decanter” awarded medals to 70% of the participants   and <<“The Drinks Business”, regardless of a jury made up practically of only Masters of Wine, actually awarded in one go medals to 90% of the Champagnes>> state ironically Wine News. A situation that could be connected to the price to be paid for every one of the 16.000 bottles in the first of the competitions mentioned and that was put into evidence by “La Revue du Vin de France”.

Medals from the International wine competitions -International-wine-challenge

The  “Vinalies Internationales” seem to be much more rigorous, they give medals to 29,8% of the 3.500 competitors and the  Concours mondial de Bruxelles gives recognition to  28,2% out of  8.000.

Although the advantages go quite rightly to the sole winners of these competitions every medal, if well used, with commercial actions and with vip clients, can give an increase in wine price between  10-15% and an increase in winery reputation.

Passito 2014 a sweet masterpiece

In Donatella Cinelli Colombini’s all female staffed wineries, the only man around is Carlo, lover of sweet wines and of this Passito

Carlo with the TRaminer grapes for passito

Producing passito is an annual ritual that captivates Donatella Cinelli Colombini and most of all her husband Carlo Gardini. A maniacal attention that is possible only because very few bottles are made and because Carlo Gardini and the cellar master Barbara Magnani  have unlimited passion for sweet wines. Their efforts have been rewarded with 93/100 for the 2013 production by Wine Advocate.

2014 was in fact the “organic” year, for those, like us at Fattoria del Colle, grow vines without the use of chemical products brought grapes home healthy and ripe. The At the beginning of September the pink clusters of Traminer grapes from the Sanchimento vineyard, surrounding the Chapel at Fattoria del Colle , were picked by hand, and chosen one by one. The cluster were then put into baskets to dry naturally.

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This is the most laborious phase in the production because the cellar master Barbara Magnani  must move the grapes continuously according to the weather, if it rains for example. In 2014 the summer was rainy and cool, but at the beginning of September the sun came out and there were only three showers during the whole month. The good weather lasted all of October  while the baskets with the Traminer grapes continued being moved around to find every single ray of sunshine.

A great Rosé from a fantastic harvest

Donatella Cinelli Colombini presents her Rosa di Tetto 2015 which was born from a 5 stars harvest

Donatella Cinelli Colombini Rosa di Tetto 2015

The 2015 harvest has without doubt been a fantastic one. 5 stars and with the ambition to be remembered among one of the best of the century.

The rainfalls that preceded the harvest in 2015 had two effects, the first negative and the second positive. The blooming was disturbed by the bad weather and this reduced the production of grapes, so the vintage resulted in being scarce. On the other hand the water trapped in the soil helped the vines resist the very hot month of July, in so creating the conditions for a gradual ripening of the grapes. The cool august completed the job and the difference in day and night temperatures favoured the synthesis of the aromas. The result is an excellent rosé.

Orcia, the most tourist attracting wine region in Italy

In the wonderful land of DOC Orcia wine, the most beautiful wine in the world, 65% of the wineries have a restaurant or a country inn

Orcia Doc, Fattoria del Colle

The territory where the Orcia wine is born, south of Siena, is between the Brunello di Montalcino and Nobile di Montepulciano wine regions, and is considered the most beautiful wine district in the world. Part of it is a Unesco world heritage site and it contains 13 municipalities, all rich in art and history, as well as thermal spa centres such as Bagno Vignoni, Bagni San Filippo, San Casciano dei Bagni and Chianciano Terme.

So the Orcia DOC wines come from a paradise like landscape that attracts tourists from all over the world. For this reason the Consorzio del vino Orcia has wanted to verify how many of its wineries are open to tourism. The result is extraordinary  65% of the wineries has a country inn or restaurant  <<In other words Orcia is the most touristic wine region in Italy>> said Donatella Cinelli Colombini president of the Consorzio.

Orcia Cenerentola with Roasted duck breast

The 13 municipalities of the wine region receive every year more than 1 million tourists and about the same excursionists, those who visit daily.  Also many foreign tourists own a second home in this area. Tourism is a strong source of finance in this area. This economy is intertwined with wine because the wine and food offer is perceived as an important component of the cultural exponent. In other words wine tasting, like a tour to an abbey, enriches the visitors with emotions and knowledge and is enjoyed with the same amount of interest.