Grattamacco: The "Bolgherian" arm of the Colle Massari Domaine vision

In an earlier treatment of the noted Brunello di Montalcino producer Poggio di Sotto, I noted that the estate was acquired in 2011 by Claudio Tipa of Colle Massari Wine Estates based on his promise to "retain and respect the same quality standards and production techniques" that were foundational to the estate's success and reputation. At that time Poggio di Sotto was the third estate in the "Domaine" launched with Maria Iris Bertarelli and Claudio's purchase of Castello Colle Massari in 1999. The estates in the current portfolio of properties are shown in the chart below. I explore the Grattamacco estate in this post.

Collage of screen shots from
collemassariwines.it

Bolgheri DOC

Grattamacco is located on a hill to the northeast of the town of Castagneto Carducci within the Bolgheri DOC wine zone.

Bolgheri experiences sunny, dry, and moderately windy conditions which allow the Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot grapes to ripen fully but with its exuberance restrained by the moderating influence of cool Mediterranean breezes. The topography slopes gently from the base of the eastern hills to the sea and the highest-quality vineyards are concentrated in the foothills running between Bolgheri and Castagneto. The hills protect the vineyards from the cold northern winter winds.  The vineyards are bathed in cool winds from the sea during the summertime and this, combined with a significant diurnal shift, causes  slow maturation of grape quality components and retention of high acidity. 

There is significant soil variation in the Bolgheri DOC: alluvial soils with round pebbles (ancient riverine deeposits); Aeolian sands, limestone, and clay (marine origin), and volcanic rock from the hills to the east. The oldest alluvial deposits are found in the Hill zone, the area in which the pebbly, iron-rich Sassicaia vineyard is located. The Intermediate zone has younger alluvial soils while the area closer to the sea consists of an alluvial-deposit and marine-deposit mix.

The Bolgheri terroir, according to Grattamacco winemaker Luca Marrone, is divided into two big areas:

"... the eastern side and the western side of the Bolgherese Road. In the eastern side, there is an important portion of limestone and clay soil. There are some peculiar sites, such as the blue clay of Masseto, the flysch (layers of shale intersperesd with hard sandstone) terrace of Grattamacco, the schistlike calcareous clay stone of Casa Vecchia, the flaky limestone clay of Argentiera. The western side very close to the Bolgherese Road consists mainly of red and brown clay and silt soils, while the sandy portions increase as we proceed to the sea."

In the same article, Wine Spectator identifies the soil as being mineral-rich, "thanks to the proximity of the Colline Metallifere hills behind Bolgheri that are profuse in iron, copper, lead, and silver ... this lends porosity to the soils, allowing the roots to descend and resulting in wines of finesse with mineral elements."

Unlike the broader Tuscany's focus on Sangiovese, the Bolgheri terroir is especially supportive of the Bordeaux varieties, with Cabernet Sauvignon as the most widely planetd grape.

Grattamacco Estate

Tenuta San Guido's groundbreaking success with Sassicaia in Bolgheri was a signpost for other like-minded producers. One of the first responders to the signal was Piermario Meletti Cavallari, a Bergamo-based restaurateur who, in 1977, bought a neglected vineyard in the hills near Castagneto Carducci and founded Grattamacco (Wine Spectator). According to Cavallari, "After a short time, I realized that it was important to follow the road traced by Sassicaia, and I grafted some vines with Cabernet Sauvignon and replanted others with the same vine."

Grattamacco is 80 ha in size with 28 of those hectares planted to vines and 14 to olive groves. The vineyard, located between 100 and 200 m asl, is steep and hilly with soils distributed as follows:

• Silt and sandy soil in the Alberello vineyard
• Calcareous silt on the western side of the vineyard
• Sandy calcareous flysch on the eastern side.

The vines are farmed organically, average 25 years of age, and are trained Cordone speronato, Guyot, and Alberello, depending on location.

The estate was brought into the Colle Massari fold in 2002; first as a managed vineyard, then through outright acquisition.

Grattamacco Wines

Wine Spectator sees the Bolgheri terroir as driving three styles of wines:

1. Old World -- reminiscent of Bordeaux
2. New World -- emphasizes fruit
3. A more Tuscan character.

The periodical also sees the wines of Grattamacco -- maybe because of its hillside location -- as "more Tuscan, in general, and more Mediterranean, specifically. Grattamacco's Vermentino Bolgheri and Bolgheri Superiore ... are saline and minerally, firmly structured, even rustic in their youth, and full of wild herb notes. The L'Alberello, from a vineyard on the plain, is the most typically 'Bolgherian' wine from its cellar."

The full slate of Grattamacco wines -- and their production processes -- are illustrated in the chart below.

I have not tasted the Vermentino to date but have had some experience with the red wines in the portfolio.

The 2018 Bolgheri Rosso was broad on the nose with red fruit, baking spices, green herbs, butter, and an egg-like character dominant. Cranberry and spice on the palate. Textured. Good acid levels. Pleasant. Perfumed, drying finish.

The 2012 Grattamacco Bolgheri Superiore is the more powerful of the two pictured below. Dark/red fruit, pepper, tar, licorice, and tobacco on the nose. Weightier red fruit, tar, and spice, along with power and structure, on the palate. Lengthy finish. The peak drinking window for this wine is still ahead.

The 2012 L'Alberello Bolgheri Superiore showed rusticity, rose petals, green herbs, baking spices, red pepper, blackpepper, tobacco, anise, mint, and dried toast on the nose. Bright red fruit, coal, and spice on the palate. Sweet fruit. Medium weight.

After bringing Grattamacco on board, Claudio and Maria went on to add the two Montalcino properties to their portfolio. I have already written about Poggio di Sotto so, in the future, I will double back to cover the starting point (Castello Colle Massari) and then close out with Tenuta San Giorgio.

©Wine -- Mise en abyme

Fontodi's Flaccionello della Pieve: A vertical tasting (1995 - 2015)

Besides its DOCG, Vin Santo, and Gran Selezione wines, Chianti Classico is also known as the birthplace of the now-famous Super Tuscans. The Super Tuscan wines grew out of producer frustration with earlier iterations of the wine laws which prevented them from making wines that were 100% Sangiovese, or removing the allowed white varieties from the wine. Some producers made these types of wines anyway but they could only be called table wine under existing laws. These wines were so finely made, and widely accepted, however, that the laws were modified such that a new level -- IGT -- was created above the table wine to support their initiatives. The current instance of the Chianti Classico wine laws would allow many of the Super Tuscan wines to be labeled as Chianti Classico but many producers continue to retain the IGT label and the success that they have enjoyed as standalone brands.

Such is the case for Fontodi and its vaunted Flaccionello della Pieve, a 100% Sangiovese wine made in an international style. Wine Watch (Ft. Lauderdale, FL) recently held a tasting of selected vintages of the wine produced between 1995 and 2015. I report on that tasting in this post.

The Estate and the Wine

The Fontodi estate sits on 130 ha of land -- 70 of which are planted to vines -- just south of the village of Panzano, itself located in the commune of Greve in Chianti. The estate, which includes vineyards that have been operational since the days of the Roman Empire, was purchased by Dino Manetti in 1968 and his son Giovanni came aboard in 1979 (Prior to their involvement in the winery, the Manetti family produced and sold terracotta amphorae.). Giovanni took over the running of the business in 1980.

Panzano, the estate's home village, sits at one end of  ridge which divides the valleys of Pesa and Greve. On the Pesa side, the land falls away from the crest of the ridge in a number of amphitheater-like structures, the largest of which is called Conca d'Oro (golden shell). It is upon this south-facing, sun-drenched amphitheater that the Fontodi vineyards reside.

Source: fontodi.com

Vineyards on Conca d'Oro are planted at altitudes between 350 metres and 450 metres. The Chianti Classico climate is continental, with long summers and cold winters. Annual rainfall ranges between 700 and 800 millimeters and occurs primarily in the spring and late autumn. Conca d'Oro day-night temperature differentials are enhanced by its elevation.

The soil is a mix of flaky shale, galestro (crumbling schistous rock), and some limestone albarese.

Vineyard practices are focused on sustainability. The estate is certified organic with an end goal of becoming fully biodynamic (24 of 25 wineries in Panzano are either organic or biodynamic).

The Flaccionello label was launched by the estate in 1981 as a 100% Sangiovese (IGT) made in an international style. Grapes are hand-harvested and fermented in stainless steel tanks using indigenous yeasts. The wine is subjected to a post-fermentation maceration (with punch downs) of 3 - 4 weeks, upon completion of which it is transferred to barrels for malolactic fermentation and aging.

Eric Guido (Morrell Wine), in a piece titled The Evolution of Flaccionello, points out a number of changes in the Flaccionello production process over the years:

• Fruit source -- the fruit for this wine was originally sourced from a vineyard named Flaccionello della Pieve. Beginning with the 2001 vintage, and subsequent to the purchase of some additional prime vineyard property, the decision was taken to make the wine as a blend of the best fruit across the estate's vineyards.
• Aging regime -- Prior to 1990 the wine was aged for 1 year in 50% new oak. Beginning in 1990, the estate began a gradual shift to today's practice: 24 months aging in 100% new oak from the Troncais and Allier forests.

The Tasting
Early birds were treated to bottomless Franciacortas as we hung around the bar and engaged in pre-tasting banter. During the time that we were at the bar, all of the wines to be tasted were poured into our glass, giving them some exposure to oxygen prior to the actual engagement. The wines included in the tasting were: 1995 Felsina Fontalloro (don't ask me) and 1995, 1996, 1999, 2000, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2014, and 2015 Flaccinellos.

With the exception of the Fontalloro and the 2000 and 2014 Flaccinello, the wines presented extremely well with a red fruit-herb-tobacco character as a through line. There was a dividing line in the tasting at the 2005 vintage where the wines became more youthful in nature and the fruit subsumed some of the tertiary characteristics. My favorites of the night were the 1995 and 2005 but the consensus picks were the 1999 and 2007.

Tasting Notes
The 1995 Felsina Fontalloro presented dried red fruit, rose petals, and dried herbs on the nose. Flat and dried out on the palate. This wine did not persist well in the glass as an additional pour later in the evening revealed a much livelier character.

The 1995 Flaccionello was more robust on the nose than the Felsina but not as aromatic. Deeper, darker, more concentrated fruit. Elegant on the palate. Lean but powerful. Citrus and burnt orange and a lengthy finish. I loved this wine.

The 1996 Flaccinello showed red fruits and a nuttiness on the nose. A beautiful fruit note on the palate. Elegant. Lengthy finish. High-toned.

Roses, tobacco, and dried herbs on the nose for the 1999 Flaccinello.  Rich and concentrated. Spicy, lengthy finish.

The 2000 also showed herbs and roses on the nose. Big, broad-based fruit. Most developed of the wines tasted up to this time. Browning. Drink now or forever hold your peace.

The 2005 showed red fruit, wet tobacco, and a perfumed nose. Bright on the palate with a slight puckering. Sandy, spicy, and beautiful fruit. Lengthy finish.

The 2007 showed tobacco, smoke, and rich red fruit on the nose. Tobacco, red fruit, and a youthfulness on the palate. Lengthy, grippy finish. Long life ahead.

Red fruit, tobacco, herbs on the nose for the 2009. Herb-infused fruity finish.

Herbs, green bark, somewhat unyielding on the 2014 nose. Mushrooms and red fruit on the palate. Not as impressive as the foregoing.

The 2015 exhibited power. Plum, licorice, herbs, and smoke on the nose. Spicy and structured on the palate. A drying finish.

©Wine -- Mise en abyme