tenute donna olga ico

Terroir

Tenuta Pietranera

Donna Olga Vineyard

Tenuta Pietranera

Embracing the majestic Castello di Velona – the defensive fortress along the ancient Via Francigena – few kilometers away from the Sant’Antimo Abbey, Tenuta Pietranera estate consists of a total of twenty-three hectares of Brunello, which are divided into three different plots, each with their own peculiar pedoclimatic characteristics. From these plots we obtain three different Brunello di Montalcino: Poggiotondo Brunello considered our “Second Vin”, Pietranera and Clos degli Amodeo both Brunello that we consider our “Grands Vins”.

Poggiotondo vineyards cover the most part of Tenuta Pietranera. It is named after the circular shape that characterises the edges of this plot. We consider Poggiotondo our “Second Vin”, it is very well known all over the world and achieved very good ratings.

Pietranera vineyard, covering seven hectars (seventeen acres), is a beautiful and huge single vineyard protected by the ancient vulcan Monte Amiata, surprisingly surrounded by a rich flora of wild myrtle bushes and disa. While in Montalcino we can frequently find vineyards adorned with roses, we have prefered to keep the wild flora to protect this distinctive area’s bioma. The main plant is the disa (Ampelodesmos mauritanicus) also known in Tuscan dialect “tagliamani” that Circestensian monks utilized to tie the vines.

Although, the true treasure of this vineyard, is the millennia-old Cork Oak—an awe-inspiring tree that stands as a living witness to history. Officially recognized among the Monumental Trees of Italy, this millennia-old giant is considered one of the estate’s most precious natural treasures. Regardless of the legends surrounding it, the ancient tree provides the biodiversity in this vineyard, attracting useful insects, mitigating the climate, reducing soil’s erosion, keeping useful humidity for the soil by intercepting the meteoric waters.

TAGLIAMANI IN PIETRANERA VINEYARDS

Historian Alessio Varisco identifies the tree as a historic gathering place for three revered chivalric orders: the Knights Hospitaller, the Knights Templar, and the Order of Saint Stephen. In his book “I segni dei cavalieri”, legends are recounted that tell of these knights convening beneath the very branches of this venerable oak, its roots entwined with centuries of mystery, faith, and valor.

Clos degli Amodeo Vineyard

Nestled at the foot of Castello di Velona, the Clos degli Amodeo vineyard spans just three hectares (seven acres), bordered and crowned by a dense forest of holm oak, mastic, myrtle, heather, cork oak, Turkey oak, hawthorn, sorb tree, and black hornbeam.

This woodland plays a vital role in preserving biodiversity: the intricate underground network of tree roots interacts with those of the vines, fostering a balanced and healthy ecosystem. The forest also protects the vineyard by providing shade to the vines and acting as a natural barrier against potential hailstorms.

Donna Olga Vineyard

The southwestern side of the Montalcino hill, is much more anthropized, it is easy to find reinassance villas, ancient castles and attended farms. In the heart of this beautiful area, Donna Olga’s four hectars (9,8 acres) producing the single vineyard Brunello di Montalcino Donna Olga, are surrounded by a stunning landscape, dotted by cypress trees, and curated gardens. Standing over the vineyard, Villa Donna Olga welcomes wine lovers, artists but also young people interested in the magical world of wine.

It is precisely the geological map developed by the experts appointed by the Consorzio del Brunello that highlights that, while the estates are positioned on two opposite slopes, they originate from a common Sillano formation, rich in calcilutites and argillites bestowing minerality and longevity to the wines of the estates, while the climatic differences between the two slopes allow the Brunellos to differentiate in terms of fruit, structure, and bouquet.

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Contatti

Ageing in Barrels

The objective of ageing in barrels is to allow the wines that so deserve to acquire a potential of harmonious ageing in bottles. During this period of at least two years and half, respectful of the “Brunello di Montalcino disciplinare di produzione”, a certain number of physico-chemical transformations occur naturally, which lead to a perfect transparency and a better wine stability, as well as a refinement of its organoleptic character.

Nowadays, the barreling is effected as early as possible after the completion of the fermentations, towards the end of October or the beginning of November. It almost always takes place in new or medium aged, slavonian oak barrels, of which the aromatic finesse and the delicate tannins have a natural complicity with our wines. The temperature and humidity conditions that are prevalent in the cellar follow more or less the rhythm of the seasons: the winter cold favours the precipitation of the unstable components, therefore the stability of the wines, whereas the moderate highs of the summer temperatures speed up the chemical reactions and allow the wine to evolve both in finesse and sweetness.

Press Wine

At the end of the running off, when the free-run wine has been put into vats, or already into barrels and is waiting to start its malolactic fermentation, the grape skins that form the marc are extracted from the vat and pressed, so as to produce the press wine. It’s a very delicate operation that we do with a lot of care because the future success of the blending depends in part on the success of the press wine.

When the marc hasn’t been exhausted during the vinification through excessive extraction, it’s capable of producing by pressing, a rich, powerful, very tannic but well-balanced, bold, with a long finish, sweet and fleshy wine. Such a press wine can only improve the blending, because it brings strength, structure and length, without upsetting the subtle harmony that the addition of the better free-run wines build spontaneously.

It’s firstly the gentle manipulation of the marc that makes it possible to obtain press wines; as in times gone by their transfer from the vat to the press is manual, in order to avoid any form of crushing. But, the real quality is naturally in the press. Modern technology allows both a gentle and deep pressing and also rigorous selection according to the pressure levels. And so comes the last and decisive phase of the process: all the barrels of press wine are tasted, one by one, after a few days and blended according to their respective quality.

Bottling​

After two to three years ageing in Slavonian oak barrels from thirty to sixty hectoliters, and one year in bottle before being released on the market (as established by the Disciplinare di Produzione of the Brunello di Montalcino DOCG), it’s in bottles that our wine will spend the rest of its life.

It will experience the vagaries and the fatigue of travel before finding the tranquility of the bottom of a cellar and ending its days in the hands of a wine enthusiast or connoisseur. Ten, twenty, thirty years, sometimes a lot more, will have passed. Time doesn’t frighten it. But it’s important to take the greatest care with the conditions for the bottling process, starting with the wise choice of date.

At the end of its ageing process, the wine has “matured”: its aromas have lost a little freshness but have gained a lot in complexity, its tannins have become more rounded and softer, it has acquired a somehow indefinable ripeness that can only be recognised by the experience of those who love it. Elegance is the ultimate aim.

Running Off

During the vinification of the red grapes the fermentation is accompanied by the extraction from the must, of a great number of components from the skin and pips. This maceration extends for several days after the end of fermentation, up to the running off; which is in fact the separation of the wine from the solids (all the solid parts of the grapes) by pumping.

The running off also ends the very complex process of dissolving the parts of the grapes in the wine. Of course the result depends primarily on the quality of the grapes: only very good grapes have the potential to being transformed into a great wine. When the vintage is more difficult, generally because of lack of ripeness in the grapes, there is a big risk of extracting bad flavours particularly vegetal aromas, as well as rustic and bitter tannins. This is why meticulous checking of a maceration is essential. Only regular tasting enables us to appreciate the wine’s slow acquisition of its aromatic complexity, of its richness and tannic finesse and to detect the moment where this semblance of bitterness risks appearing; this point of astringence indicates the need for the running off.

Fermentation

It’s the alcoholic fermentation that is responsible for the transformation of grape juice into wine. This spontaneous phenomenon was empirically mastered well before being scientifically explained by Louis Pasteur in the 19th century.

The biochemical transformations brought into play by fermentation are multiple and complex. That’s why this process should be carried out in the best possible conditions. The fermentation takes place in steel vats and/or in small barrells: it depends on the researches led year by year by our wine making team.

After numerous experiments, it turned out that the temperature control by the most advanced technology available today is equally as good in wood as in the stainless steel vats. Therefore, Donna Olga has kept its wooden vats along with new stainless steel vats for the vinification of the red grapes, because the wooden vats offer numerous advantages. Their tapered shape and their thermal inertia favour the concept of extraction by creating a stronger contact between the must and the grape skins, where the wine draws its colour and body from. This closer maceration makes the wines both richer and softer, which better express the extraordinary potential of our wines as well as our own conception of taste.

In order to compare all existing techniques, our wine cellars team carries out a great number of tests in an experimental vat room. These tests have already enabled us to build a new vat room for vinification whilst improving our methods of ageing in barrels.

This process is undertaken under rigorous temperature monitoring so as to avoid the heat produced by the fermentation hampering and finishing by killing the yeasts that are responsible for it. Equally, by pumping the must from the bottom to the top of the vat, this favours the dissolution of the composition of the grapes, as well as the small amounts of oxygen required for the metabolism of the yeasts. The more recent use of selected strains of yeast enables certain difficult vintages to avoid a languid fermentation.

Once the alcoholic fermentation is finished the maceration continues until the running off: the wines are almost “finished” at this point. But so that they are completely stable, a last biochemical transformation has to be accomplished: the fermentation by bacteria of malic and lactic acids.

Manure

The objective of manure is to bring to the vine the nutrition that it needs, without excess that would increase the vigour to the detriment of the quality and in respect to the environment.

A manuring process known as “concimazione di fondo” can also sometimes be applied as a preamble to a new plantation. Its objective is to restore structure and life to the soil. In all cases, we only use organic fertilisers that integrate naturally into the environment. A large part of this is brought in the form of bovine manure, from the cows of Val di Chiana region.

Ripening

The acquisition of the grapes in a perfect state of ripeness is the precondition for producing a great wine; consequently, all our winegrowing practices are directed toward this objective. But by far and away the most important factor is the terroir: it’s their aptitude to enable the wine varietal to ripen well that distinguishes the greatest growths. To enable a grape to ripen “well” is to ensure that its components, that is to say sugar, acidity, aromas and tannins, evolve together at the same pace. In Montalcino region, we’re lucky enough to enjoy a temperate climate and a moderately rich soil, allowing the vines to accompany the grapes in this effort to create the perfect balance.

Harvest

At the end of the year’s work comes, at last, harvest time. Everything is finished, or nearly finished: ripening is completing “August develops the must”, the great balances are happening, or not, in the grapes.

However, a bit of suspense remains, because it’s in these last days that a good vintage still has a chance of becoming great. First, we have to choose the date, examine the grapes and analyse them, squeeze them, feel under our fingers and our tongue the softness of the pulp and the firmness of the tannins; ignore the big clouds rolling around in the sky in order to gain several more days and allow the Sangiovese to finally reach perfect ripeness. In the meantime, we’ve formed our two hundred pickers into five teams, each made up of wine growers, and a majority of young students, who, instead of experience, bring us their willingness and their good humour. The pickers, more than half of whom come back year after year, receive training.

Trellising

The very high density of the plantation in our vineyard (6,600 plants per hectare) would lead very quickly to an impossible tangling of the branches if we didn’t provide a good trellising. Primary objectives are to allow free circulation between the rows, on foot or by tractor, and to maximize the exposure of the clusters to the sun, a factor so necessary to their optimal ripening.

The trellising consists of two successive steps: first, lifting of the branches. That is done thanks to a set of mobile wires that we pick up as and when the vine grows. Then the cutting, or “topping”, of the tips of the branches, carried out mechanically by a piece of equipment on the overhead clearance tractors.

Thinnings

We are proud to practise thinning, which consists of removing a certain number of clusters before the start of the ripening period. In most of the young vines, the harvest in practice is too abundant to produce a quality wine; by reducing them at their mid-term, that is to say just before they change colour about the beginning of August, we encourage the ripening of the other clusters left on the vine, without increasing the vigour of the plant.

This technique also allows us to select the best clusters and to eliminate those that are badly placed on the vine, or that are already late compared to the others. It is work that is really meticulous and differs for each vine, grape by grape, which gives a good idea of the increasingly precise and rigorous attention given to the care of the vineyard.

The yield from the vines, expressed by their production (kilos of grapes or hectolitres of wine) is a key factor in the quality of the grapes. Too abundant a harvest never ripens because the vines become exhausted for no other reason than trying to feed too many clusters at once. In order to protect the quality of the wine and the longevity of the vines, the Brunello di Montalcino appellation has fixed a limit that is in general the most restrictive in Italy.

Protection of the vines

Obtaining grapes that are ripe enough presupposes a perfect control of the phyto-sanitary condition of the vineyard. Mildew, powdery mildew, black-rot, excoriation, almost all fungal diseases, with the notable exception of the wood diseases, mal dell’esca, are now well controlled, after decades of researches of more sustainable methods of cultivation.

The case of grey rot (Botrytis cinerea) is certainly more delicate, but the low instance of vigour in our vines and their traditional behaviour create rather unfavourable conditions for the development of this disease.
The problem presented by parasites, insects and spiders is complex in a different way. In the nineteen eighties we questioned all of our vineyard protection policy with the objective of finding an alternative method to chemicals to preserve the balance of the spider and insect populations. After a few years of work, we were able to stabilise the situation. Since then, all these populations cohabit and autoregulate themselves without us having to take any action, or only in an organic way. At the end of the nineteen nineties, sexual confusion was developed in order to stop the grape worms reproducing. Not one insecticide is now used in our vineyards, SIAMO BIOLOGICI!

Ploughing

Donna Olga intentionally keep traditional the work of the land, although a great part of it is carried out by high-clearance tractors and equipment that is of ever-increasing efficiency.

Our four ways of ploughing: surfacing and desurfacing, surfacing, desurfacing rhythmically throughout the farming year is done in an almost unchanging way. It’s true that our soils, generally light and well-structured thanks to regular addition of manure, lend themselves well to this superficial work.

Pruning

Pruning, the “potatura secca” is essential to ensure the production quality and the longevity of the plots. Indeed, the number of buds per plant determines the delicate balance of the vigour; pruning that leaves too many buds leads to a harvest that is too abundant and unable to ripen sufficiently.

Conversely, pruning that is too severe leaves vines that are too vigorous, encouraging excessive growth to the detriment of the maturity of the grapes.
There is, not only for each plot, but for each grape variety, an optimal balance that only winegrowers understand with experience.

Winter pruning extends into the spring by a green pruning, the “potatura verde”, and bud-thinning. This means avoiding a build-up of vegetation that is harmful to the exposure of future grape clusters to the sun and as well to concentrating the nutrients produced by the leaves towards the branches that support the grapes, which encourages ripening. Lastly, bud-thinning enables the winegrowers to select future branches for thinning in advance.

Planting

Great wines are always produced from vines that are at least twenty years old. So the main objective of our wine-growing practices is to maintain the old vines in production for as long as possible, but when vines become too old, the best is to replace the plants, one by one. This is called “complantation”. This practice, as old as the vineyard, occupies all our winegrowers for two months just after the winter pruning.

The complants themselves have a limited life expectancy… At the end of the day, it’s the whole plot that expires. So we then have to carry out a complete renewal. What a sacrifice! First, we have to pull up all the vine stocks and then let the soil rest for six years. Finally, we replant it and wait until these new vines grow and age in order to produce great wine.

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