Giovanna Morganti is quickly becoming recognized as one of the best of the new generation of Tuscan winemakers. Her small estate is a mere three hectares and her only wine is called “Le Trame” (the intrigues) signifying the wheeling and dealing required to purchase the land. Giovanna’s father was a legendary oenologist who believed in Tuscan varietals long before the “flying consultants” identified this area as a profit center. Podere Le Boncie is situated in the hamlet of San Felice which itself is located a handful of minutes north of Castelnuovo Berardenga, in the southern tier of the Chianti Classico zone.
Giovanna studied oenology herself and went to work in the mid 1980s for San Felice wines in Castelnuovo Berardenga, near Siena, on a project to plant around 300 traditional Tuscan grape varietals collected from old vineyards.
When Giovanna’s father gave her a small farm with olive groves, called Le Boncie, she added a vineyard planted with her favorites from the experimental project – Sangiovese, obviously, but also Ciliegiolo, Colorino, Foglia tonda Mammolo and Prugnolo., The vineyard, planted to a very high density of 7000 vines per hectare and dedicated principally to Sangiovese (supplemented by a few rows of Fogliatonda and the others for blending), produces the definitive wine of the estate: “Le Trame”. Vineyard work is conducted according to the general principles of the biodynamic movement. Harvesting is by hand. Fermentation occurs in traditional open-topped wooden tanks. The elevage is long and tranquil with an occasional racking implemented to aerate the wine. Aging occurs in mid-size barrels; the wine is then left to age in bottle for at least six months prior to release. Thus, the normal rhythm results in the wine’s arrival in our cellars in New York not earlier than 30 months after harvest.
Farming
Practicing organic, with some biodynamic practices
Treatments
Copper-sulfate only
Ploughing
Annual ploughing to maintain vineyard health
Soils
Alberese (Limestone-clay)
Vines
Vines for Le Trame are trained in Albarello, planted at 7,000 vines/ha in the late 1980’s. Vines for Il Cinque are trained in Guyot, planted at 7,000 vines/ha in 2010
Yields
Controlled via severe pruning and debudding
Harvest
Entirely manual, usually in mid-September
Sourcing
Entirely estate fruit
Fermentation
Wines see total destemming and ferment spontaneously. Le Trame ferments in open-top, neutral Slavonian and Austrian oak tini. Il Cinque ferments in stainless-steel tanks. Cuvaison lasts c. 15 days
Extraction
Le Trame sees punch downs during fermentation. Il Cinque sees pumpovers
Chaptalization
None
Pressing
Pneumatic pressing
Malolactic Fermentation
Spontaneous, following alcoholic fermentation
Élevage
Le Trame spends c. 24 months in neutral, 500-l barrels and Slavonian and Austrian oak botti. Il Cinque spends 12 months in c. 5-30 hl Slavonian and Austrian oak botti
lees
Wines remain on their fine lees until assemblage prior to bottling
Fining and Filtration
All wines are unfined and unfiltered
sulfur
Applied at bottling, with c. 40 mg/l total sulfur
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