Grattamacco L'Alberello Bolgheri Superiore

L'Alberello bottle image

Wine Description

Grattamacco was founded in 1977 and was the second winery of the Bolgheri appellation, following Sassicaia. Grattamacco has lead the region in environmentally responsible farming, and was the first to use an Alberello or head-pruned method in Bolgheri. 

Barrel Samples
Vineyards
Subsoil
Luca Marrone Chief enologist of Grattamacco
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Acclaim
“The 2018 Bolgheri Superiore L’Alberello is another fabulous wine from Grattamacco. Effusive and light on its feet, the 2019 impresses with its striking balance and poise. Crushed flowers, dark red berry fruit, incense and spice open gradually, but it’s the wine's total sense of harmony that carries the day. Silky, polished tannins wrap it all together.”
— Vinous, Jul 2022
“A blend of 70% Cabernet Sauvignon and 30% Cabernet Franc. Bright, deep ruby red; aromas of red raspberry, red currant and raspberry preserves. Medium-full with impressive concentration. Beautifully made wine with a rich mid-palate, excellent persistence, very good acidity, rich, well balanced tannins and excellent harmony.”
— Tom Hyland's Guide to Italian Wines, Jun 2021
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Vineyard & Production Info
Soil composition
silt soil,browny and red clay
Training method
alberello (sapling) bush vine
Elevation:
165 feet
Exposure:
Various
Year vineyard planted:
2004
Harvest time:
September 23rd-24th
Bottles produced of this wine:
9,000
Average Vine Age:
14
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Winemaking & Aging
Maceration length:
21 days
Varietal composition:
70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Cabernet Franc
Fermentation container:
conical oak vat
Length of alcoholic fermentation:
15 days
Fermentation temperature:
75-86 °F
Maceration technique:
Punchdown
Malolactic fermentation:
Full
Fining agent:
no fining
Type of aging container:
Barriques
Size of aging container:
225 hl
Type of oak:
French
Length of aging before bottling:
16 months
Age of Aging Container:
50%new oak, 50% second use
Length of bottle aging:
6 months
Total SO2
73
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Analytical Data
pH level:
3.36
Acidity:
5.65 g/L
Alcohol:
14.7 %
Dry extract:
30.3 g/L
Total SO2
73
Residual sugar:
0.6 g/L
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Wine Production

The three varieties are harvested together on the same day, creating a blend that spontaneously ferments in small oak truncated cone vats with manual punching down and long maceration with indigenous yeast. This wine is aged for 16 months in oak barriques prior to bottling.

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About the Vineyard

L'Alberello (head-pruned) is the way the vineyards are trained. It is a vineyard of 2 hectares trained in the traditional “settonce” formation, such that each vine is equidistant from the others surrounding it. This vineyard features mainly clay and is run according to the criteria of organic farming with a maximum production of 1 kg of grapes per vine. Harvesting and other works on the vines are done manually.