Bianco Transumante IGT 2019 Vini D'Altura - Cioti

The “Vini d'Altura” project started about 5 years ago. At the time, there were just 36 bottles being aged, all from Teramo wineries. Today it is the number of bottles that is growing (next year it will reach 2,400), but also the variety of vines chosen and the geographical extent. The project, wanted by the Pendeche Srl company of Montorio al Vomano (Teramo), "was born as a tool for territorial promotion and development, as it was all centered on local productions", Bruno Carpitella, an expert connoisseur of the mountains and author of this special intuition that extends to wine that typical process of refining at high altitudes, already a reality for cheeses or cured meats. “We continued involving various Teramo companies, mostly choosing Pecorino wines. Over time we realized that this process guaranteed significant transformations on all the samples we took to the top. Over time, we have perfected the technique, creating structures intended to house the wines, we have understood which were the best microclimatic conditions and today we have moved from the experimental phase to actual production". In these oenological shelters, two thousand meters above sea level, in the heart of the Gran Sasso and Monti della Laga National Park, the temperature remains constantly below zero for at least six months, the humidity is 100 percent and the pressure is around 700 hectopascals. "The conditions in which the refinement takes place - he continues - completely break the mold with respect to traditional techniques, giving life to a process that benefits the wine". “It often happens – Carpitella is keen to underline – that when we carry out blind tastings after refinement, even the producer finds it difficult to recognize his own wine”. The first change that is palpable in Vini d'Altura is a rejuvenation of the wine itself. “The wines tasted after this refinement – highlights the creator – are perky wines, young even after many years. This rejuvenation is already visible from the color. Wines that start from amber or garnet nuances, typical of aged wines, return to youthful nuances. Differences that are clearly perceptible also from an organoleptic point of view”. “The wines acquire characteristics deriving from the environment – continues Carpitella -. The Gran Sasso area where the refinement takes place, in which there is limestone, is rich in iron and magnesium, which intervene on the transformation at an organoleptic level. In the wines, both limestone and mineral notes are perceived. On white wines this creates an effect of citrus acidity, while it develops balsamic notes in reds. Our process does not distort the wine, but amplifies its initial characteristics, giving it breadth and elegance". The Vini d'Altura available to date have been made in partnership with companies from Abruzzo. In this version the Cioti company has chosen for the refinement a product vinified from a recently rediscovered grape, native to Abruzzo, on which ampelographic research is underway