Sometimes, in the varied world of wine, it happens that the owner of a large Venetian industrial group, Diotisalvi Perin, lover of nature and good wine, decides to take the risk and turn his passion into a fascinating wine project. Diotisalvi did so initially with a company, Antiche Terre dei Conti, engaged in an organic production at 360 degrees, and today converted to the production of ancient grains and flour. The dream of producing organic and biodynamic quality wine, far from being over, continues in a new reality that we could define the spin-off of Antiche Terre dei Conti, the homonymous Società Agricola Diotisalvi.
Today Diotisalvi winery is led by his son Simone Perin and continues to pursue the aim of producing quality wines in Colfosco di Susegana, less than 10 kilometers from Conegliano, the beating heart of Prosecco in the province of Treviso. The vineyards (previously owned by Antiche Terre dei Conti) have been cultivated, for over 15 years, according to the organic disciplinary but this did not seem sufficient to preserve the health of the land, and therefore, a few years ago, it has also chosen to adopt the biodynamic philosophy, certified by Demeter since 2020. In this regard, with the aim of conducting a simpler and more effective communication of organic and biodynamic wine making techniques, on 31 August 2018 the winery was among the founding members of the Treviso based #Bio consortium.
The ecological vocation, however, does not stop only at the vineyards, and in fact the cellar techniques are constantly updated with processing protocols that differ for every single vine and every single parcel. It is precisely to enhance this vision that it was chose to use aging containers of different sizes and different materials, all located below ground level, in the fertile belly of the earth. Finally, at the end of the production process, berries, skins and stems are sent to an energy recovery structure to ferment and produce methane-rich gases, capable of generating electricity, with the final residues used as organic fertilizer; a circular path without waste.
Having drunk, until today, only their white wines, I was very curious to try a red one, in particular Blunotte, a blend in equal parts of Merlot and Cabernet Franc from vines planted in 2009, on the traditional volcanic soils of the Euganean Hills, at 400 meters of altitude. The first vintage produced, the one I had the opportunity to taste, is 2019, and this because the winery left the plants to reach at least 10 years of life, the maturity needed to obtain the desired quality standards wine. The harvest of this vintage took place between the second and third week of September, and the grapes, after the delicate pressing, were left to ferment and macerate, in unshielded concrete tanks, at a controlled temperature, for about two weeks. The obtained wine then aged for a year on the lees, undergoing also malolactic fermentation, always in concrete tanks.
In the glass the wine shows an intense but rather fluid ruby color, almost presaging a pretty smooth drink, with a nose opening on notes of cooked plum, tomato puree, mulberry blackberry and black cherry jam, followed by pot pourri, rhubarb, clove, fresh blond tobacco, with final echoes of humus, blond leather and smoky hints. The palate has an attack almost hesitant in which emerge, in progression, freshness, beautiful tannins and that much softness enough not to unbalance the sip, with an ending savory/ mineral dimension; all accompanied by the almost overpowering return of the smoky scent that, with pot pourri and noble spices, accompanies the sip to a good length closure.
Rating: 88/100
