Corte Solidale Selvatico ITALY, PIEDMONT, COLLI TORTONESI ROSSO

RED

WINERY OVERVIEW

Corte Solidale means “Court of Solidarity”. The winery’s name marks the egalitarian rebirth of grounds previously owned by a local count, grounds which had been replete with indicia of social and occupational hierarchies. Grounds currently owned by a commune of the World Association of Community and Family (www.comunitaefamiglia.org).

Enzo Volpi and Stefano Marelli are not descendants of storied winemaking families. They are not famous sommeliers or wine personalities. They are not graduates of an illustrious viticultural or enological educational program. They are not wealthy, gentlemen farmers. They are not even fortunate sons bequeathed a quaint parcel of land.

Enzo is a woodworker. Stefano is an architect and musician. When they abandoned their conventional lives to join the WACF commune, they became way way more: members of a 27- WINE MAKER person interdependent community where every person has an obligation to contribute to the Enzo Volpi and Stefano Marelli material or spiritual well-being of the community, based on their potential and choice.

FARMING That profound sense of obligation led them to volunteer to care for the commune’s 2.5 hectares Organic of neglected vineyards in 2006, notwithstanding their lack of viticultural experience. But they VARIETALS learned…and learned quickly…from friends with farming experience and friendly experts from a local cooperative. 2007 was their ﬁrst vintage. 65% Barbera and 35% Croatina

FEATURES To taste Corte Solidale wines is to connect with Stefano and Enzo and their community: their Low-Sulfur, Vegan rustic setting, their raw curiosity and organic evolution, the depth of their conviction, the artistry of their souls and the hands-on nature of their work. And it is to taste some really good, ABV really unique wine. 14%

AVAILABLE SIZES (L) VINEYARD 0.750 Corte Solidale’s two vineyards enjoy limestone/clay soil and the beneﬁts of some altitude. The high vineyard is at 350 meters and comprises one hectare, facing southward. It has a greater percentage of limestone than the low vineyard and tends to produce more perfumed wines with richer structure and body. The low vineyard is at 270 meters and comprises 1.5 hectares, facing westward. Barbera, Merlot, Resia and Uva Rara grow in the high vineyard; Barbera, Croatina, Bonarda and Merlot grow in the low vineyard.

Corte Solidale farms organically. Their vineyards are covered with uncontrolled nature including weeds. While they prefer a grass covering, they turn alternating rows of soil annually using a tractor-drawn plough. When necessary, insects are controlled using a spray of pyrethrum (from dried blossoms of white daisies). They replenish the soil by using green fertilizer in alternating rows. Surrounded by forest, the vineyards are visited by hares, deer, wild boars and a great variety of insects and birds. Lizards are commonly found basking in the summer sun. The commune also hosts a beehive, which promotes biodiversity.

Regal Wine Imports, Inc. 2 Commerce Drive, Suite 3, Moorsetown, NJ 08057 www.regalwine.com SOIL

The wines comes from Corte Solidale’s low 1.7 hectare vineyard at 270 meters elevation. It is mixed calcareous clay with greater clay content than their high vineyard. Vines were planted in 1999 and 2000. The vineyard has a west-northwest exposition and is surrounded by woodland.

VITICULTURE

Vines are trained using Guyot cane pruning. Grapes are hand harvested with a yield of 4,000 kg/ha (compared to the max of 9,000 kg/ha permitted by the appellation).

VINIFICATION

Select grapes, the healthiest and most mature, are used for Selvatico, destemmed by hand and pressed with the feet (the minute quantities of production allow for such hands-on…rather, foots-on….craftmanship. Fermentation occurs spontaneously in concrete tanks and lasts for at least 10 days, with frequent racking and pumpover. Selvatico is the first wine crafted by Corte Solidale without selected yeast and they are expanding the practice to all of their wines. Malolactic fermentation commences spontaneously and continues to 100% completion. The wine is not filtered or fined. Zero SO2 is added to the wine, which has a total of 35 mg/L. Paradoxically, this wine, in some vintages, may have more SO2 than its sibling Generosa as a result of the different yeasts used.

AGING

The wine is aged for 18-24 months in concrete vessels that are 16-, 21- and 26-hectoliters in size, with an additional 6 months in bottle.

TASTING NOTES

Selvatico has a dense purple color. It has a lightly spicy bouquet with balsamic and herbaceous notes. The wine has a rich, full body with ﬁr tannins. Delicious pairings include cotechino (boiled and stewed pork sausage), zampone (boiled and stewed trotter) and cassoeula (traditional pork and sausage casserole with cabbage and other winter vegetables).