We are thrilled to share the news that Barone Pizzini has brought home a gold medal from the Decanter World Wine Awards 2013 for its Ghiaccioforte 2008 Toscana Rosso Estatatura (100% Sangiovese from Maremma).
“This year,” write the editors of the magazine, “the 219 judges were from all around the world [and they] assessed 14,362 wines from 52 countries. This year’s expert panel of judges included 75 Masters of Wine, and 13 Master Sommeliers.”
Tomorrow, the Barone Pizzini winery will host a tasting and wine pairing featuring edible wild grasses from their vineyards.
The guided tour and tasting begins at 3:30 p.m.
The cost is €20 per person.
Please call +39 030 9848311 to reserve a spot (reservations required).
The idea behind the tasting is to show how biodiversity and the absence of chemicals in the vineyards is part of what allows the winemaker to create such vibrant and brilliant aromas and flavors in the wine.
Part of the reason why the grasses are edible is that Barone Pizzini — a certified organic farmer — doesn’t use chemicals in the vineyard.
Founded in 1870, Barone Pizzini is one of the oldest wineries in Franciacorta and it was the first estate in the appellation to practice organic farming. Ever since its conversion in the 1990s and the organic certification of all its vineyards in 2001, the winemaking team at Barone Pizzini has remained faithful to its belief that chemical-free farming is essential to the production of high-quality wines.
In the 2007, the estate opened the doors of its new eco-friendly cellar and winemaking facility. Every stage of vinification is carried out with the lowest possible impact on the environment and with the lowest possible carbon footprint. The team at Barone Pizzini is convinced that this approach is vital in achieving the fullest expression of each growing site’s terroir.
Among the various practices employed by the winery to lower energy needs, the estate’s solar energy panels can supply up to 55 kilowatts. And in recent years, Barone Pizzini became one of the first Franciacorta wineries to adhere to a carbon offset protocol. Its carbon footprint is measured annually by the Italian agricultural consulting firm Ita.Ca.
The vineyards cover a total surface area of 47 hectares (roughly 116 acres), divided into 25 parcels in the municipalities of Provaglio d’Iseo, Corte Franca, Adro and Passirano. The average altitude is 200 meters above sea level and the average age of the vines is 15-20 years. The estate’s growing sites are among the best in the appellation and are noted for their morainic subsoils and glacial deposits, the hallmarks of Franciacorta’s unique terroir.
Above: Wine writer and Italian wine industry veteran Alfonso Cevola has had Franciacorta on his mind. Alfonso was the winner of the Vinitaly International Prize for 2013.
Barone Pizzini general manager and Franciacorta Consortium vice president Silvano Brescianini has asked the blogmaster to share the following post with readers of the Barone Pizzini-Pievalta blog: “Franciacorta vs. the World“, by Italian wine writer and industry veteran Alfonso Cevola aka @ItalianWineGuy.
In it, Alfonso writes:
Franciacorta is like the tall gangly middle child, nestled between her older sibling Champagne and the cute youngest child, Prosecco. While the eldest has had more experience and is wiser to the ways of the world, and the baby is cute and cuddly, Franciacorta’s beauty often goes unnoticed.
Click here to continue reading this thought-provoking and insightful post.
A note from the Barone Pizzini agronomist Pierluigi Donna:
Here are the first flowers that announce the vine’s upcoming production. It’s a very delicate phase in which the interaction between all the essences present in the soil and the biodiversity of the organisms become active again after the winter break.
With their presence and complexity, they help to contain the spores of the early parasites.
Thoughts and prayers for our brothers and sisters in Boston today…
From the department of “extreme wine”… Sent today from a fan of and friend to the Barone Pizzini winery…
Barone Pizzini Bagnadore DOCG Pas Dose Riserva at 3,500 meters, atop Mt. Adamello (a peak in the Adamello-Presanella Alps).
The following translation is from top Italian wine writer Franco Ziliani’s review of the Barone Pizzini 2008 Franciacorta Rosé for Cucchiaio.it, one of Italy’s leading online food and wine resources:
[Barone Pizzini's Franciacorta Rosé 2008] was declared ‘the best organic wine in the world’ at the International Wine Challenge [in London] 2012
Made from 80% Pinot Nero and 20% Chardonnay sourced from vineyards named Ciosèt, Troso, Prada, and Santella Nord, the wine is aged on its leeds for 34 months. It doesn’t touch wood, unlike other high-profile Franciacorta rosés that receive the “kiss of death” imparted by barrique aging, which cancels out any pleasure in drinking the wine. Despite the pronounced structure in this wine, it’s also endowed with notable freshness and drinkability.
Gorgeous color, an ancient rose, like a light cerasuolo, with brilliant sparkle and delicate and persistent fizziness, as the bubbles chase after one another in a wide glass.
Unmistakably Franciacorta in character, this wine is a thoroughbred. On the nose, it delivers the juicy, meaty fruit that you typically find in this appellation, raspberry and currants but with layers of citrus (pink grapefruit and mandarin orange), hints of rose that complement aromas that are generous but judiciously smooth, yet fresh and vibrantly salty.
In the mouth, it’s satisfying and indulgent, with good plumpness and substance. The bubbles are creamy and rich, making for wine that is more generous and substantial than vertical. Great balance in play here, with calibrated mouthfeel and flavor. And even though the persistence of the bubbles is marked, the nervy acidity and pronounced flavorfulness shine through.
A fine rosé, to be enjoyed generously at the dinner table.
Above: Barone Pizzini was featured in an article on the carbon footprint of wine last week in the Corriere Vinicolo (The Wine Courier), Italy’s leading wine industry trade publication. The winery was cited as an example of how winemakers are using environmentally intelligent building materials (like the wood paneling pictured above) to help conserve energy and reduce their carbon footprint. Click here for a copy of the article (in Italian but with English-friendly illustrations).
Here on the blog last week, Pievalta winery manager Silvia Loschi noted how a new and lighter bottle format will help to reduce the winery’s carbon emissions.
“It’s a small step,” she said, “but an important one for people like us, who have always made the environment and its wellbeing a priority in our daily work.”
This attitude is part of a mission shared by both the Barone Pizzini and Pievalta estates.
That’s just one of the reasons that Barone Pizzini has participated in a study of fifty Italian wineries and their carbon emissions that began in 2009.
An article in last week’s Corriere Vinicolo profiles the study and reports some of the preliminary results.
The research was conducted using the Sata institute’s Italian Wine Carbon Calculator using a protocol developed by the Wine Institute in California.
Wine and its carbon footprint are one of the topics that will be discussed at this year’s Vinitaly, the annual Italian wine industry trade fair.
Barone Pizzini manager Silvano Brescianini will be meeting later this week with the Sata research institute to discuss how the results of the study will be presented and applied.
And we’ll be following this story here on the blog as it develops.
