Pizzini Il Barone 2008

The wine as a deep brick red colour. The nose is rich and complex with floral, blackberries, earth, tomato leaf, tar pepper leather and subtle violets. On the palate you will get rich mouth filling flavours or blackberries, plums and red berries, balanced by warming spices. The length is fabulous with persistent lingering tannins.

Each variety is fermented separately and aged for 18 months in varying makers of French oak and then aged a further two years in bottle prior to release. Sangiovese the ferment was inoculated with yeast BM45. The ferment temperatures reached and were maintained at 30°C. Once the wine finished alcoholic fermentation the free run wine was drained and the skins then lightly pressed. The wine was allowed to settle for a day before it was transferred to barrels for malic acid fermentation and barrel aging. Cabernet Sauvignon was harvested in the heat of the day so fermentation could start immediately. The grapes were crushed, de stemmed and inoculated with yeast. Ferment temperatures were allowed to reach 30°C to help with extraction of colour, flavour and tannins. After fermentation was finished the skins stayed in contact with the wine for 10 days so as to help soften and round the tannins and improve texture. Shiraz after crushing and de-stemming, fermentation starts immediately. The grapes are inoculated with a yeast strain isolated from the Rhone Valley; the yeast specifically enhances the varietal characteristics of Shiraz - cassis, pepper and violets. The grapes are then pressed before fermentation is finished and transferred to barrel to complete alcoholic and malolactic fermentation. Nebbiolo after crushing and de-stemming fermentation starts immediately, the juice is inoculated with a yeast strain form Barolo (a region famous for producing Nebbiolo). Fermentation lasts for about four days then the wine is lightly pressed and allowed to finish fermentation in oak barrels where polymerising helps to soften and round the tannins. The wine then goes through malolactic fermentation in barrel aged.

Fermentation vessel: Stainless steel and oak
Type of oak used: Cabernet Sauvignon: Tonnelleorie Remond French, Shiraz: Gamba & Saury French oak blend, Sangiovese and Nebbiolo: Oak age: new 55%, 1-2 yr old 45%
Oak toasting: medium
Fining agent: NIL
Filtration: Cross flow

Alcohol: 13.8.% Alc/Vol
Acid: 6.82
pH: 3.56