Travel

Grifalco della Lucania
«Enoteka» №4-5(63) 2008

Why did Fabrizio and Cecilia Piccin leave a successful Salcheto winery in Montepulciano and start a new project in Basilicata with the underappreciated Aglianico grape?

The decision was not born overnight, but the confidence in the area and grape’s potential made them take calculated risk. First release of Grifalco wine with 2004 vintage was instantly noticed by the critics and the press. A new winery has just been built — another confirmation that the Piccin family has arrived in Basilicata with long-term and serious intentions.

Contours of the extinct Vulture volcano prominently dominate the open landscape around Melfi town in the north of Basilicata. The mountain is the symbol of Aglianico del Vulture winemaking zone — along with the antique Aglianico grape that has been grown in the south of Italy since ancient Greeks. Aglianico del Vulture DOC is one of the two most prestigious production regions where the historic variety manifests all complexities of its great character.

The area attracted the attention of Fabrizio Piccin back in 1997 when the winemaker started to visit Basilicata regularly. At first he bought small lots of harvest from local winegrowers, and then took it back to Tuscany for micro vinifications. The experiments showed that Aglianico could produce serious wines, but it took five years for the winemaker to get a full assurance in the grape’s potential. Then Piccin was ready to invest in own vineyards. He spent another year and a good deal of effort to choose the right plots. “I drove 110,000 kilometres around the area to find vineyards and territories with which I would be perfectly satisfied”, recalls Fabrizio.

Thus the winemaker with twenty years of experience with the Tuscan Sangiovese grape moved to the south of Italy and took a new challenge. The number of estates to get recognition with Aglianico can still be counted on the fingers of one hand. With the exception of very few wineries, no scientific research was undertaken, and the nurseries even today cannot guarantee the quality of vines. Before farmers were proud to have Aglianicone — “big Aglianico” with high yields. Fabrizio was ready to prove to him and to others that the wines can and must deliver quality results. “Aglianico has a very good level of acidity — much higher than in Sangiovese, but general technical parameters are different”, notes Piccin. High content of dry extract and soft tannins lead to good concentration and appealing structure. The wines can develop for a decade, and good acidity makes it fresh and easy to drink.

“Today I have 18 hectares of vineyards. Some are over half a century old and others are 10 to 30 years old”, says the winemaker. The Tuscan experience has long determined Piccin’s winemaking philosophy. He believes that a wine’s style is born through a finely tuned assemblage of various vineyards. That’s why he chose four plots in various zones, so that they can supplement each other through individual characteristics.

Maschito vineyard is a particular example that tells about Aglianico and former agricultural way of life. The plot takes 7.5 hectares, with old olive trees scattered here and there. “Before families in Basilicata owned one, maximum two hectares of land and tried to grow the greatest possible number of crops, from vines and olive tress to vegetables, fruit and grain. There are no more vegetable patches, but we decided to keep the olive trees”, explains the agronomist Antonio Basso.

A rare advantage of old vineyards, such as 30-40-year old Maschito, is that initial density of planting was quite high, reaching 6-8,000 vines per hectare. Thus, there is no need for replanting. The espalier training system and low yielding vines with small berries have also come from former owners. It is allowed to have yields to 70 hectolitres per hectare, but it doesn’t exceed fifty there. Maschito’s altitude is 400-450 metres above the sea level. The older part lies on the plateau, and the younger plantings run down soft curves. The soils feature a high content of clay and stones. The wine has a strong structure and a well focused bouquet, with floral notes in aromas and minerality in flavours. Fabrizio Piccin is placing high hopes on Maschito.

There are three more vineyards — Ginestra, Rapolla and Venosa. Ginestra with 30-year-old vines sits on top of a hill at 500 metres of altitude. Clay soils give the wine a good structure and appealing berry scents — of wild strawberries, blackberries and mulberries; the palate is intense and spicy. Rapolla’s main difference is about the terrain. Sandy soils mean particular mineral aromas in wine. The vineyard lies low at 200-250 metres next to a stream. The youngest five-hectare Venosa plot was planted with material taken from old vines. There are many stones in soils, brought by the rivers. The wine doesn’t show much complexity yet, but appeals with energetic, fresh, spicy-fruity character.

“It is very important to have different sites. They complement each other and help understand the difference between vineyards. Just by looking at soils we can understand potential character of wine”, notes the enologist Gianpaolo Chiettini. The native of Tuscany, he consults several leading Basilicata estates and is a quickly rising star of the Italian winemaking.

Cecilia Piccin hopes that the estate will be able to make single vineyard wines one day. At present all grapes go into Grifalco — it was first produced in 2004 and hit the markets several months ago. As Fabrizio Piccin explains, the vinification is traditional. There is soft destemming and open vat fermentation. The winery doesn’t use artificial yeasts. The wine is pumped over or delestage is done when necessary. Then the wine is aged in stainless steel tanks and in casks of various sizes and wood. Wines from individual sites are vinified separately, and the choice of aging vessels is dictated by the wine’s character. Thus, Ginestra can easily cope with barrique aging; larger barrels are taken for Maschito; Rapolla copes with large casks best. Final blending is, in Cecilia’s words, “a week of arguing”. In general, Fabrizio, Cecilia and Gianpaolo Chiettini are looking for the balance of aromas and good structure and for respecting the features of each vintage.

Starting from 2005 the estate also produces Bosco del Falco from specially selected harvest. Grapes are picked from old vines, vinification is done partially in wooden and partially in steel vats. The wine spends 12 months in barriques and casks of the French and Slavonian oak. 2005 vintage is first, made in the amount of 7,000 bottles and now resting in cellars. Even now, in the unfinished stated the wine impresses with depth and complexity, elegant fruit and the length of flavours. Its debut is likely to attract attention of both Italian and international markets.

In the end of May 2007 Grifalco della Lucania opened the winery built next to Venosa vineyard. As Fabrizio Piccin says, it is not big, but was designed to accommodate all needs. The estate started from 30,000 bottles in 2004. Today the production is 60,000 bottles and the winery’s capacity is at 100,000 bottles — an optimal target for the winemaker. “The idea was to build with maximum effectiveness”, says Piccin. Energy saving systems were installed not only for ethical reasons but in order to save on production costs. The walls and the roof are made double with a wooden insulation inside for a natural air exchange and for keeping constant temperature throughout the year. In the subterranean part there is a corridor with open clay and special holes which naturally regulate humidity.

Flexible approach that combines respect for the land and wise use of the nature’s potential, has already brought recognition. Basilicata region recently awarded Grifalco della Lucania with a special prize for innovative wine production strategies. What is more important, though, that there is an estate in south Italy that strives to bring Aglianico to the new level. “I make wine to the very best of my ability and knowledge”, says Fabrizio Piccin. Aglianico is lucky to have found such support.