Donatella Cinelli Colombini presents her Supertuscan Il Drago e le 8 Colombe, for the first time in organic version
2019 the harvest of the super Sangiovese, the year in which the bunches and berries of the king of Tuscany grape variety looked like Cabernet, the king of the Bordeaux vineyard.A dream of a harvest, with abundant, perfect grapes that were harvested by hand and then vinified in small vats where the must quickly took on a very intense colour.
Sangiovese 2019 grape harvest after 4 days
The bunches of Sagrantino and Merlot, which also make up the blend of Il Drago e le 8 Colombe were also of the highest quality. Each grape variety was vinified separately but, to make the most of the richness of the 2019 grapes, all made a very long post fermentation maceration. For this reason the racking was postponed for a week – ten days for all types: Sangiovese, Merlot and Sagrantino.
There was also a small variation in the aging in cask compared to usual. When the wine was ready to be moved from the vats to the barrels, the Covid epidemic caused the first lockdown, forcing the cellar work to be slowed down. Too bad because precisely because of the superior quality of the vintage, the quantity of barrels purchased was greater than usual.
IL DRAGO E LE 8 COLOMBE: A WINE DEDICATED TO MEN FROM THE ALL-FEMALE WINERY
The cellars belonging to Donatella Cinelli Colombini, Casato Prime Donne in Montalcino and Fattoria del Colle, in Trequanda, where this wine is born, are the first in Italy with an entirely female staff. Il Drago e le 8 Colombe is dedicated to the only male present: Carlo Gardini, husband to Donatella and creator of small, highly awarded series of Passito and Vin Santo. He is the dragon mentioned in the name of the wine and surrounded by 8 doves: the consultant Valérie Lavigne, the oenologists Barbara, Sabrina, Giada and the cellar staff, the incoming and sales staff. An oenological gynoecium that is constantly growing in number.
SUPERTUSCAN – IGT TOSCANA IL DRAGO E LE 8 COLOMBE
Il Drago e le 8 Colombe is an “author’s wine” and does not belong to any denomination. This category arises from the need to express the creativity of wine makers without subjecting them to the rules of the Doc-Docg regulations. The name Supertuscan highlights the qualitative ambitions of the wines of this type which enjoy a great international prestige. Il Drago e le 8 Colombe contains three different grape varieties: Sangiovese, which gives the wine its elegance, Merlot (20%) which adds pleasantness and Sagrantino (20%) which increases the structure. All the grapes are grown, vinified, aged in cask, bottled and refined at Fattoria del Colle in compliance with the BIO (organic) rules.
