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New York Times talks of Brunello: time for harmony

Eric Asimov writer, wine critic at The New York Times since 2004, says that the secret is, balance, and he loves Sangiovese from Casato Prime Donne

Eric Asimov

The beginning of the article doesn’t promise much <<For a great wine, Brunello di Montalcino has had more than its share of detractors>>. And then he worsens the situation by reminding one that many wines are far too muscular and intense to be made of only Sangiovese, and how , in the past some producers asked to add other grapes to Brunello, << a disastrous redefinition that was narrowly averted>>

So as is usual in the Anglo-Saxon world his opinions are stated without too many twists, Eric Asimov likes Brunellos that are traditional, that respect the noble tradition of the Biondi Santi’s, and it is from those who hope to attain this that the most interesting contributions arrive.

31 July 2015

in Uncategorized

Minerality in wine: yeast not terroir

Many now exclude a connection between the mineral ‘licked stones’ character in wine and the soil, they believe that it is the yeasts in wine that give flint aroma

Chablis

Read for you by Donatella Cinelli Colombini

More and more research is being done as the fashion for mineral character increases especially in English speaking nations. All wineries would like to give a mineral touch to their wines, but until the cause in unknown it will be difficult to increase

Minerality

Now everyone is sure that it does not come from the soil. Researchers now smile at the widespread idea that stones give taste and aroma to wines. <<With the odd and fairly irrelevant exceptions like sodium chloride, by and large, minerals have no taste.>> says Alex Maltman, geologist at the Aberystwyth University!

16 July 2015

Brunello maker performs in Montalcino with Bacalov's music

Carlo Cignozzi producer of one of the most famous Tuscan wines in the world writes and performs a play with music by Oscar-winning Luis Bacalov

Brunello di Montalcino producer – Barbatelle play

Among my friends I have many interesting people, one of them is Carlo Cignozzi, 72 and a genius. In his estate, where he makes Brunello, he has music in the vineyards, where Mozart is played all day long to his vines. His vines do not get ill and so he needs no pesticides. His project arrived well before the recent discovery “musica delle piante” (music by plants) -study by Demanhur at Cascina Trivulza at Expo.

Brunello di Montalcino producer – Carlo Cignozzi

And that is not all, this eclectic man also wrote a book in 2010 called “L’uomo che sussurra alle vigne”. The man who whispers to his vines, edited no other than by Rizzoli, the true story of his adventure, lawyer from Milan who turns into a Brunello winemaker, through a Brazilian shaman.

13 July 2015

How much does a vineyard cost?

From 2000 to 2013 Brunello vineyards have tripled their value while the average price of Italian vineyards increased by 21%

Barolo-vineyard

The most expensive vineyards are in Barolo and in the Bassa Langa di Alba dove where it is possible to find those who buy at a million euro per hectare, although the average is of around 600,000 euro. This list puts in second position the Doc areas of the lago di Caldaro (BZ) with 500,000 euro per hectare, with an historic overtaking of those that have always been the most expensive vineyards in Italy. Veneto gives an exceptional show with Docg di Valdobbiadene at 404,000 euro, a price which however seems too low for the Cartizze area, where if someone sells, they want astronomic amounts. I mean astronomic if compared to the prices of French vineyards, especially in Burgundy, ours appear to all seem quite affordable.

Alto-Adige-vineyards

This study by the “Filiera vitivinicola: tendenze e prospettive per l’Italia. La Toscana e i valori fondiari agricoli”, carried out by the Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena, finally reaches Central Italy where the average prices in Montalcino soar. For Brunello vineyards the request is for 350.000€ .

8 July 2015

in Uncategorized

A vineyard on the roof among the skyscrapers

Vines grown on rooftops in New York, Rooftop Reds, have been talked about the world over, and it’s really easy. Let me tell you how to grow an urban vineyard

Seen for you by Donatella Cinelli Colombini

Rooftop Reds New York

As there are many urban vegetable gardens now the vineyard on the loft must not create illusions: this will not be the beginning of a career at will bring to a managerial role at Château Lafite Rothschild.

Rooftop Reds Team

However it is a new trend. And it is a lot less complicated than what it might seem. All you need is a terrace and a lot of passion. The idea comes from Devin Shomaker, a young New Yorker who is also about to be financed to develop the project. The vineyard on the terrace seems about to duplicate the success of vegetables grown on the balcony and tomatoes grown in bags. This type of production has been studied for residual toxins absorbed from traffic. To swap domestic productions for something else that was absolutely healthy, only because they have no pesticides is wrong because leaves can also absorb heavy metals in polluted air. However to grow plants is however a fun activity and it stimulates the consumption of vegetables so it must be encouraged.

2 July 2015

in Farm experiences, Vines and wines

by Donatella Cinelli Colombini

Donatella's Sanchimento 2014

“Sanchimento” IGT : 2014, vintage without winter and without summer, gives us a white wine with more perfumes and aromas than in previous years

Sanchimento IGT Bianco Toscano

The 2014 harvest was definitely Nordic. 86 days of rain from April to October, ten more than the perfect vintage 2010. During the months of June and July it you thought you were in London where you can never go out without an umbrella.

These Nordic conditions resembled those typical in the Traminer vineyards and so favoured the synthesis of the aromas. The Sanchimento 2014 shows in fact more fragrance and more freshness compared to previous years.

Donatella Cinelli Colombini Sanchimento IGT

The Sanchimento wine gets its name from the Chapel at Fattoria del Colle which is dedicated to San Clemente – in local dialect Sanchimento – and is obtained from the small vineyard of Traminer grapes around the chapel. It faces north and is 404 hectares above sea level on clayey soil of sea origin

30 June 2015

A spring- like aroma for Donatella's 2014 rosé

The cool 2014 summer gave this wine a rich aroma, a more French style than Italian to the Rosa di Tetto IGT 2014 from Fattoria del Colle

Rosa di Tetto 2014 IGT Toscana Fattoria del Colle

The practically “northern” characters are evident in the pink shade, in the freshness in taste and most of all in its perfumes which recall green apples and spring flowers. Characteristics perfectly apt for a wine to be consumed during summer evening meals but also after.

The Rosa di Tetto comes from Sangiovese vineyards at Fattoria del Colle; these are cultivated with an organic regime, without the use of pesticides, and with pruning, diminishing the yield, removing the leaves…. all done manually. The picking was also done by hand with a careful choice of the clusters in the vineyard and later in the cellar.

Rosa di Tetto gets its name from the climbing roses that can be seen on the front of the chapel at Fattoria Del Colle. These are hundreds of years old and tend to climb up to the roof and grow beneath the roof slates.

17 June 2015

in Uncategorized

Fettuccine all'Alfredo, the true story behind a cult dish

This is the lovely story about Alfredo di Lelio creator of the “Fettuccine Alfredo” born as a reconstituent for his wife after the birth of their first child

Alfredo Di Lelio with John Kennedy

by Ines di Lelio from the Ristorante “Il vero Alfredo” – “”Alfredo di Roma”

With pleasure I would like to tell you about my grandfather Alfredo Di Lelio, born in September 1883 in Rome in Vicolo di Santa Maria in Trastevere. He began working as a young man in a small trattoria belonging to his mother Angelina in Piazza Rosa, where there was a small square, that disappeared around 1910, and existed before the construction of the Galleria Colonna now Galleria Sordi.

1908 was an incredible year for Alfredo Di Lelio: his son Armando was born and at the same time his fettuccine were born in the trattoria in Piazza Rosa, these then became famous all over the world. This trattoria was “the birthplace of fettuccine all’Alfredo”.

Fettuccine Alfredo

Alfredo Di Lelio invented his “fettuccine” as a natural reconstituent made with butter and Parmigiano, for his wife (my grandmother) Ines, prostrated after given birth to her first child (my father Armando) The dish “fettuccine” was a family success before being the dish that made famous and popular Alfredo Di Lelio, a character with a moustache like Umberto I di Savoia and calluses on his hands because of making his “fettuccine” in front of his numerous clients.

10 June 2015

in Forum: News and lifestyle

Enough antidepressants, drink a drop of wine!

The resveratrol contained mostly in red wines helps fight stress and maybe there is a connection between the decrease in wine consumption and increase of use of antidepressants

Dinner with friends

Read for you by Donatella Cinelli Colombini

The experiment was carried out on mice forced to live with another mouse, a bully and very aggressive, so this is only a preliminary phase of the study, but it confirms what everyone suspected: there is a connection between the tonic effect of a daily small amount of wine and the “better life” in society, in the family and even at work. There is a proverb in Italy that says that wine is the milk for the elderly, well it actually indicated the beneficial effect of a couple of glasses of wine, maybe had at the bar with friends, for those who have to put up with aches and pains and the loss of a social role, feelings common in the elderly.

Bevute d’altri tempi 2008 – olio su tela

Susan Wood’s studies, professor at the University of South Carolina School of Medicine and published in the college magazine, regards the antidepressant and anti-inflammatory effects of resveratrol, and seem to confirm the ironic quote by Denis Saverot editor of the “La Revue du Vin de France << The village bars are gone, replaced by a pharmacy>>.

4 June 2015

in Forum: News and lifestyle, Not only wine...

Few days left to participate in the Casato Prime Donne award 2015

An award that wishes to thank those who divulge the territory and open new horizons for women. An award born in Montalcino in the first winery in Italy with an all female staff

Casato Prime Donne Award 2014 Jury and winners

There are still a few day left to be able to take part in the Casato Prime Donne 2015 award with photographs , articles, and TV and radio material regarding the wonderful Montalcino territory and Brunello, published between June 15th 2014 and June 1st 2015. Before the 15^th of June your entries must reach the Award Secretariat (Casato Prime Donne 53024 Montalcino SI- casato@cinellicolombini.it).

Art, landscapes…. But most of all people from a land made famous by the excellence of its wines. As a prize there are bottles of prestigious wine as well as money (respectively 1.000 and 1.500 €) and the possibility of spending a week in an agritursimo apartment in this enchanted countryside.

Duccio Nacci 2010 Winner

The winners of the journalistic sections are chosen by the jury made up of Francesca Colombini Cinelli, Rosy Bindi, Anselma Dell’Olio, Anna Pesenti, Stefania Rossini, Anna Scafuri e Daniela Viglione. The list of past winners is full of wonderful names from Italian and International wine journalism: the last edition saw as protagonists Anna Di Martino, Daniele Cernilli and Ian D’Agata.

28 May 2015

in Not only wine..., Vines and wines

How about playing winemaker?

Would you like to prepare the blend of your very own wine? Donatella Cinelli Colombini is waiting for you in her wineries so that you can experience just this

Let’s play winemaker

The project is an absolute novelty and is called “let’s play winemakers”. Instead of being a game for kids though this is an activity for adults, wine lovers, who wish to experience making a great wine according to their own taste.

Two locations: Casato Prime Donne in Montalcino and Fattoria del Colle in Trequanda in Southern Tuscany Minimum 4 pax (at 18 euro per person and maximum 12 pax at 16,00 euro per person

Fattoria del Colle Let’s play winemaker tasting

The programme lasts about two hours and is great fun. The first step is a guided tour of the vineyards and the winery. At Casato Prime Donne, where the Brunello is made and aged, the barrels are alternated with paintings which talk about the history of Montalcino. At Fattoria del Colle where the Orcia, Chianti Superiore and supertuscan are produced, the winery is underground, beneath the 16th century villa and there is also a hermitage where we store the antique bottles of Brunello, and in the loft the Vin Santo is stored. These are two boutique wineries one different to the other but both equally interesting. During the tour our guests will take some pure Sangiovese out of an oak barrel.

19 May 2015

in Farm experiences

7 dishes and 7 wines for 7 dinners

Restyling for the Osteria at Fattoria del Colle that proposes a weekly calendar of dishes made to measure for Brunello, Chianti, Orcia e Supertuscan

Roasted duck breast- Cenerentola

The Chef Roberta Archetti who for the past few years has collaborated with Donatella Cinelli Colombini, has dedicated months to studying some recipes able to emphasize the wines Casato Prime Donne and Fattoria del Colle.
Roberta started form the culinary traditions and the prime ingredients, in majority of local produce, such as the Cinta Senese medieval pork breed or the Chianina meat, the Pecorino cheese or the Lentils from Castelluccio for the nearby Umbria, to all of which she has added a sprinkling of creativity. The result is a fantastic weekly programme of 7 dishes for 7 dinners matched with Brunello, Chianti Superiore, Orcia and Supertuscan wines which allow for a different and intrigueing tasting.

Ravioli stuffed with pecorino- Leone Rosso DOC Orcia

Reversed roles as usually the food is chosen first, whereas in the case the best wines including Brunello, the Brunello “Prime donne” 2010 and the Riserva 2008 where they have been an inspiration for the creation of recipes to be matched with them

The idea is of proposing a different dinner for our guests together with a different wine in a silver frame exhibited in place of honour in the dining room. It will be Florjan Canaj, our young maitre who will tell guests the virtues and small anecdotes about the dishes and the wine, including the ratings that at present are rewarding our wonderful Brunello 2010.

17 May 2015

in Uncategorized

Orange wines many sommelier's salvation

Lisa Cardelli AIS sommelier born in Lucca and now in Melbourne explains Orange wines, a niche category, non academic and often looked upon with scepticism

Lisa Cardelli AIS Sommelier

By Lisa Cardelli

My first experience with an orange wine was in 2010 when I was not yet an AIS sommelier and I was lucky to work in Sydney as Commis Sommelier in an Italian restaurant. From their very interesting wine list I chose, one day, the only bottle left, and for a long time unsold, of the Denavolo Dinavolo from Romagna, I was mostly curious that there could be an orange coloured wine, rather than by its name. My first impression was that the wine was awfully oxidized and undrinkable!

Decanting Orange wines

At the same time its tannic structure and full taste left me perplexed and brought me to talk about this wine for days, without being able to come to conclusions about its quality

Since then I have been more and more curious about this category of wines. Here are some that I have tasted.

6 May 2015

in Uncategorized