The Wines of Tenuta dell'Ornellaia

?The estate of Ornellaia lies in the coastal Bolgheri area of Tuscany and has an enviable reputation of producing some of the finest ?super-Tuscan? styles??
Decanter Magazine
September 2002.

Tenuta dell'Ornellaia was founded in 1981 by Lodovico Antinori in the hills near Bolgheri, next door to the estate of Sassicaia. After the very successful joint ownership of Marchesi de' Frescobaldi and Robert Mondavi, the property is today owned by Tenuta di Toscana, a company controlled by Marchesi de'Frescobaldi. This gives the Ornellaia team the resources of a large business but autonomy when developing the estate's wines. They are deeply conscious of the heritage of which they are the current custodian. The Tenuta dell'Ornellaia Estate is on the Via Bolgherese, set in a triangle formed by the sea, the medieval hamlet of Bolgheri and the town of Castagneto Carducci. Covering 97 hectares (about 240 acres), the vineyards are planted with Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot.

This beautiful, once-wild area has become synonymous with winemaking of the highest order and the estate's wines reflect the exceptional terroir of the region, complemented by the wonderful Mediterranean climate of coastal Tuscany. Ornellaia and Masseto comfortably rank amongst the world's greatest wines, while Le Serre Nuove dell'Ornellaia and Le Volte are rapidly building formidable reputations.

Ornellaia are committed to producing world-class, contemporary wines through the careful interpretation of the unique terroirs of the Bolgheri region. Each grape variety and each vineyard is vinified separately, then assembled to produce wines that reflect the nuances of each vintage.

Ornellaia DOC Superiore is the estate's flagship wine, produced from vines planted on the property at Bolgheri in 1982. Aged in French oak barriques for 18 months, it is about two thirds Cabernet Sauvignon, one third Merlot, with small amounts of Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. The exact blend varies from year to year. As with Le Serre Nuove, the final blend for each vintage of Ornellaia is decided about 6 months before the completion of its barrel ageing. The percentage of new wood is varied according to the characteristics of the vintage, and the wine remains in the bottle for a further 12 months before it is released.

?2001 World's Number 1 Wine? The Wine Spectator

Masseto was first produced almost by chance when it was decided to vinify the Merlot of the Masseto vineyard separately in 1986, because it was 'so promising'. This is an exclusive and rare wine which, because of the strict selection, is made in very limited quantity from a unique parcel of only 7 hectares. In the few years since its first release it has become one of the world's most sought after wines. The wine matures in French oak barriques for 24 months and in the bottle for 12 months before release and shows superb structure and great longevity.

Born in 1997, Le Serre Nuove, the 'second' wine of the Ornellaia estate was created to allow even more rigorous selection of the base wines during the creation of Ornellaia. Produced mainly from the estate's younger vines, Le Serre Nuove combines the pedigree of the flagship wine with the suppleness and youthfulness of a more approachable style. Vinification and barrel ageing of Le Serre Nuove is identical to Ornellaia itself and produces a complex, well-structured wine dominated by ripe attractive red berry fruit aromas.

'?.Bordeaux origins are evident from its depth and polish, while the rather brambly fruit is pure Tuscany. A brilliant wine'. Steven Spurrier, Country Life.

Introduced with the 1991 vintage, Le Volte has scored a major success with consumers who are accustomed to high standards and who are seeking a complete, contemporary and original wine. The grapes are sourced from carefully chosen terroirs which have a clear potential for producing wines with personality and harmony. Le Volte is a blend of the region's most typical grape Sangiovese (opulent, rich Mediterranean flavours) and two Bordeaux varieties, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot (structure and complexity), resulting in an extremely pleasant, versatile wine.

The Grappa Ornellaia is made by distilling the marc coming from the Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot grapes harvested on the estate. Carefully selected lots are chosen for elegance and aroma and spend 18 months in barriques before bottling.

Mid-way along the Tuscan coast, where the Maremma starts, is Bolgheri, one of the world's great wine regions. A breathtaking avenue lined by towering cypress trees leads inland from the Aurelia, the old Roman coastal road, up to the walls of Bolgheri's medieval hamlet. From the village the view extends far out to sea and on a clear day the islands of the Tuscan Archipelago and Corsica can be seen. The low hilly landscape is dotted with ancient olive groves and vineyards, surrounded by acres of dense woodlands and typical Mediterranean maritime vegetation - a haven for wildlife. In the midst of this beauty lie the vineyards of the Ornellaia Estate.

The vineyards are exposed to the south-west at altitudes ranging from 50 to 120 metres and extend for about 97 hectares in two different neighbouring locations: on the original property, where the winery is located, and at ?Bellaria?, a more recently developed area just northeast of the village of Bolgheri. The well draining soils in these locations are extremely diverse - marine, alluvial and volcanic - thereby creating a unique combination of terroirs highly suitable for the growth of Cabernet Sauvignon in particular, but also well suited to Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Petit Verdot.

Vintage usually begins in the first 10 days of September for Merlot and lasts from mid-September into the early days of October for Cabernet. Everything is handpicked and the grapes from each vineyard are vinified separately. Once the fruit has been picked, it undergoes a double selection at the winery. Before removal from the stalks, the bunches are placed on a sorting table and unripe or damaged fruit is removed. Following destemming the grapes are taken to a second sorting table and are checked again, mainly to ensure that no foliage enters the vats. name to wines in which they have complete confidence and in the very best of vintages.

Alcoholic fermentation takes place in stainless steel tanks and the wine is then transferred to French oak barrels for maturation. Through tasting, which usually confirms the decisions already made in the vineyard, the wines for inclusion in the Ornellaia blend are selected. This is followed by a separate selection of the wines to be used in Le Serre Nuove, the estate's second wine. With every new vintage different dominant characteristics emerge in the finished wine. The period of maceration on the skins, the fermentation temperature, the duration of the wine's maturation in barrels and its subsequent development in the bottle vary considerably, allowing the unique personality of each vintage to express itself in the best possible way.

"Ornellaia embodies the modern renaissance of Italian wine"
The Wine Spectator

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