Antinori Winery –
Q: – βKey My Cropsβ InterNational/ InterCultural project here in Italy for the third day in Montalcino, with a nice guy, a good agronomist. Who are you and please what are you doing here?
A. – Hello, I am Fabio Ratto, I am the manager in Pian delle Vigne | Marchesi Antinori and we are in the heart of Tuscany, we are in Montalcino. Behind us we can see Sangiovese plants. These are the plants that produce Brunello di Montalcino and in other fields that we have around we produce Rosso di Montalcino.
Q. – Actually itβs the only variety.
A. – Yes, it’s the only variety, it’s Sangiovese because I think this is the best place in the world to produce Sangiovese, for the quality of the grapes.
Q. – What are the main styles in the vineyard, do you use cordoni?
A. – Yes we use cordoni, we have a plantation of about 5000 plants per hectare and the cordone it’s 80 centimeters per 80 centimeter and the leaves are about 1 meter.
Q. – Why did you choΞΏse this style?
A. – Because a lot of light can arrive to the plant and the plant can make a big nutrition for 6-7 grapes per plant. So our production is not a big production but high type quality.
Q. – What is the average age of the vine plants? How often do you change them?
A. – Normally in Montalcino we think that to produce Brunello the plant needs at least 10 years. Then, from 10 to 30 years the production is in top quality. After ten, thirty years, if the field has been good for all its life, you can go on for other ten, twenty years but this depends from the managing and the soil, this is very important.
Q. – What are the main problems or the main challenges you face every year?
A. – This type of soil is poor so we balance this soil with a little quantity of organic matters and also chemical matters. This is to arrive to the equilibrium, not to arrive to big production but for the equilibrium of the plant. If the plant is well, all the grapes are well and we can have a very good glass of wine.
Q. – What are the stages of the vine plants?
A. – Behind us we have 10-15 years old plants and in this estate the medium age is about 20.
Q. – From the fertilization point of view what are the needs of the vine plants and what products do you use?
A. – When the plants are young they need a good quantity of nitrogen and also the organic to restore the soil and for the fertilization of the soil. So in this age we use NPK Original Gold and then when the plants are older, like these behind us, we use NovaTec Classic. We use different quantities depending on the vigor of the plant. This is in order to arrive to a good equilibrium of the plant, not to arrive to big production but for the right nutrition of the plant.
Q. – Is it allowed by law to irrigate the vine plants?
A. – Here we don’t use irrigation because of our law; it’s not possible. We can use water only in emergency not for the normal cultivation.
Q. – So in this way, do you use any biostimulants in order to help the plants, because you don’t irrigate?
A. – Some of us here use some stimulants in the beginning. When, during the start of growing, we have low temperature we use some products to help the plant to start. With a regular start you can have a regular season and arrive to a regular harvest.
Q. – One question about the wine: how do you decide to harvest, to start harvesting?
A. – This is a very beautiful question. We decide to test the grapes but with a chemical analysis of the quantity of sugar in the grapes, but also the quantity of acidity that goes down with the maturation. It’s very important. Then there are a lot of other things, like the maturation of tannins. Sometimes it happens that we have a good quantity of sugar for example, but we don’t harvest because the tannins are not so soft. When we harvest itβs very important that the tannins have arrived to the very sweet and soft. We don’t want green tannins, because they arrive in the wine and they are not good for the wine.
Q. – Talking about tannins: in this place you produce high quality wines. When do you believe is the best time to consume this type of wine? After how many years in the barrel?
A. – Brunello normally has to remain minimum two years in a big oak barrel and then we wait other two years in the bottle and in the fourth, fifth year it goes in the market, but then the wine is very young. Normally Brunello is better after the seventh, eighth year and it can go on for another 10, 15, 20 years. It depends on the year, on the estate, on a lot of things but it’s a wine for a long long life.
Q. – Thank you very much, we really appreciate your time, what you shared with us. So one last question: what is your message to the rest of the wine world outside of Italy?
A. – The messages is: if we all work well, weβll be sure for the good quality of the product and especially for the good quality of the wine.