Ampeleia IGT Maremma Toscana 2010

Description

Already renowned as superstar for her contribution to winemaking in Trentino, Alto Adige with Teraldego,  Elisabetta Foradori took the opportunity to purchase a Tuscan Estate in 2002 with the help of two friends outside the industry – Thomas Widmann and Giovanni Podini to develop Ampeleia: a completely unique project in the Maremma region of Tuscany, farmed biodynamically, focusing on the synergy between mankind and nature, producing fresh and elegant, silky wines.

The estate overlooks the medieval village of Roccatederighi, located on three different levels of altitude varying from 200 to 600 meters above sea level – Ampeleia di Sopra (Upper Ampeleia), Ampeleia di Mezzo (Central Ampeleia) and Ampeleia di Sotto (Lower Ampeleia). Ampeleia includes a total of 150 hectares of which only 40 are planted with vines. The property slopes down towards the sea, nestled in a territory made of numerous plots of land, hidden among the lush vegetation, where earlier Etruscan settlers nourished the soil to grow grapes. All vineyards on the estate were planted following an in depth terroir research of each single site.

Ampeleia offers three interpretations and expressions of the territory and even though having the same style, they display different characters: Ampeleia is born through a synergic interaction of Cabernet Franc and Sangiovese, mainly grown on higher vineyard sites where the climate is milder (Ampeleia di Sopra and Ampeleia di Mezzo) and with maritime sea & mountain breezes, plus 5 complementary varietals -Grenache, Carignano, Mourvedre, Alicante and Marsellan -grown in the lower and hotter areas of the estate (Ampeleia di Sotto). Ampeleia is a wine with great character and personality, elegance and with intense fruit.

Kepos is the result of a careful and meticulous grape selection from vineyard parcels located in lower and central Ampeleia of Grenache, Carignano, Mourvedre, Alicante and Marsellan. A wine for immediate drinking pleasure, displaying aromas of Mediterranean maquis with hints of spices, flowers and fruit, delicate and immediate fragrant.

Antonio Galloni from Vinous Media on Ampeleia Estate … “…At their best, the Ampeleia wines are among the most pure, transparent expressions of the coast readers will find.  Elisabetta Foradori and her team are doing important work here.  Ampeleia is a young estate. There is every reason to believe the best is yet to come.”

Ampeleia is born from the synergistic blend of different grape varieties sourced in vineyards found on the hillsides dominated by the town of Roccatederighi, in the heart of Maremma. It embodies this land from the chestnut woods on higher ground, through the Mediterranean scrubland, to the lower fields with cork-oak woods. Six grape varieties are blended in this wine aspiring to represent the Mediterranean tradition of cultivating diversity.
Grape Varieties: mainly Cabernet Franc, the rest is Sangiovese and four other varieties native to the Mediterranean Basin followed by 16 mths in French oak.
94+ points Antonio Galloni, Vinous “Another compelling red, the 2010 Ampeleia is dark and rich but not at all heavy. An exotic mélange of blackberries, sage, rosemary and crushed rocks emerges over time, but it is the wine’s textural finesse that impresses most. This is a seriously beautiful wine from Ampeleia. The blend is approximately 60% Cabernet Franc, 25% Sangiovese and 15% assorted other grapes. 55% Grenache, 20% Mourvedre, 15% Carignan, 5% Marselan, 5% Alicante Bouschet.”
RRP $88