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The Befana’s* Newsletter

posted on 5 January 2011
*[In Italy the feast of Epiphany is “personified” by la Befana, an imaginary, witch-like crone who brings gifts to good children and (sweet) “coal” to those who have misbehaved]. I always like to be a little bit different, so the Befana’s feast is one I identify with… and that is why I am only now taking the opportunity to wish everyone a Happy New Year, assuming you have survived the massive beanfeasts during the recent holiday period! I just have one or two TEENSY-WEENSY bits of news to tell you about: Cantrina has also gained a foothold in MonteCarlo, for now just with our most extreme wine, the ERETICO 2007… I am increasingly convinced that unique products really do make a difference in the marketplace and so one should always be prepared to TAKE A GAMBLE! Speaking of which, I spent a couple of days in the Principality of Monaco in December of last year, where I had a chance to visit the Cellar of the Hôtel de Paris… I got down on my knees in front of the well-locked “shrine” containing the various vintages of Château Pétrus and in the end I also tossed a coin into the fountain, dreaming of being able – one day – to create such wonders myself!!! (Only an absolute nutcase like me could think such a thing!). In the meantime, though, I managed to leave samples of my wines with the sommeliers of some of Monte Carlo’s most prestigious restaurants. There are new experiences and new arrivals in Cantrina’s product range, too: I take every opportunity I can to talk about our production zone and I wanted to be able to offer one of this area’s noblest products: Olive Oil. I carried out a selection (at the Cooperative of San Felice del Benaco) of D.O.P. (P.d.O) olive oils. I was uncertain between two products with quite different scent and taste characteristics, so I decided to opt for 100 bottles of one type and 100 of the other… I called them Verve (more lively and fruity) and Silk (more elegant). This was the splendid idea of my friend and great oil connoisseur Angelo Peretti; I’m only sorry that journalist Andreas Maerz (one of the major experts in this field) wasn’t there to help me choose between them. Here are the two labels, in keeping with our other “open-minded exercises de style”. The Grappa del Poeta is another new product: Pilzer has distilled the pomace from the 2008 Nepomuceno for Cantrina , which I collected earlier on today. My dear friend Eugenio gave me an idea for the label: a tribute to the poet Gabriele d’Annunzio, one of the iconic figures from our area. The poem was written by Eugenio Farina and is really moving; I trust that the grappa will display the same sensibility and love. The Pinot Nero Rosé… I am happy to inform you that, in spite of the difficult 2010 vintage, we have made an excellent rosé: our second edition of this wine, which is already in bottle and which will be released in February or March. Among the other curiosities, it is my pleasure to tell you that we have now been listed by the Michelin-starred Da Vittorio Restaurant at Brusaporto (Bergamo). What else can I add? This Befana will soon take up her broom once again and fly to New York, in the hope that sooner or later, if I knock long and hard enough on the doors of Manhattan, the Big Apple will eventually let our wines in! But that’s another story… I’ll give you an update when I get back. BEST WISHES TO EVERYONE FOR A NEW YEAR FULL OF HIGH SPIRITS… Cristina

Harvest in Cantrina

posted on 8 October 2009
Here we are almost at the end of the harvest (we still have to pick just a tiny part of our grapes and press those that we have set aside for drying) and so, strange as it may seem, it’s time to take stock of the overall situation once again. It was a precocious harvest for the early-ripening grapes (Pinot Nero, Chardonnay and Sauvignon), due to early flowering in the spring and very favourable weather during the summer. The picking time for Merlot, Rebo and Marzemino was more in line with the norm, thanks to a fine September with cool nights and rain-free days. The health of the grapes and the first analyses of the new wines allow us to rate 2009 as a good year. Only time will tell us whether it will be an excellent vintage: yes, time, which is much more truthful than all those exaggerated proclamations we tend to be bombarded with each year as the harvest approaches…

Let’s talk about…Vinitaly 2009

posted on 20 March 2009
vendemmia 2019
Here we are getting ready for Vinitaly 2009, even if it seems to us less and less like a fair that is appropriate for small producers like ourselves: amid all the hustle and bustle of this great event it is difficult to explain to people about our “open-minded exercice de style”. This year, therefore, we are concentrating on alternative methods of getting together with our friends (let’s hear from you!). However, if you are at Vinitaly on 2nd and 3rd April you can find us in the Lombardy pavilion in the PalaExpo on stand C7. If you so desire, we will be able to give you more details about our new releases, which we will merely outline below: Groppello, an indigenous grape variety of the Valtènesi, has become a part of Cantina’s range; with the 2008 vintage we have sought to express and interpret the potential of this cultivar in line with our particular philosophy of production. Rinè 2007 will have a new label, which will also reflect a few small changes we have made in the wine itself. Incrocio Manzoni is the new grape variety that gives this wine a stronger identity.

Cantrina from the old to the new year

posted on 20 January 2009
2008 is now just a memory: it gave us cause for concern with its rains in the spring and then cause for satisfaction with a late summer and early autumn that were ideal for ripening the grapes. The harvest then took place in cool, dry weather conditions: this, together with our efforts to keep down yields, allowed us to pick healthy grapes with a good sugar/acid balance. The resulting wines combine concentration with very fresh aromas and flavours, suggesting that they will have excellent ageing potential. 2008 was also a year for reflection. We thought long and hard about the type of wines we produce, constantly asking ourselves the same questions: “Can we express our terroir even without using indigenous grapes?” and “Can we demonstrate that quality and personality are independent of autochthony?”
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