The Story Behind the Wines

Zavatti Vino The Story Behind the Wines Salvatore Zavatti, founder of Zavatti Vino, was born in the town of Cansano (historically spelled ‘Canzano’), Italy. Spending many of his years abroad, Zavatti maintained strong relationships with Cansano, and the wider region of Abruzzo (Ah-broot-so). Today, he continues to be an ambassador for the region, and has partnered with Abruzzo’s oldest winery ‘Italo Pietrantonj’ (Pee-et-tran-toe-nee), to share their tradition in Asia. The crests of: Cansano (Canzano), Zavatti’s birthplace (l) as well as Vittorito (c) and Corfinio (r), the sites of the Pietrantonj estates For more than 200 years, the Pietrantonj family has been passionately committed to continuing the traditions and methods of production, so core to the foundations of the winery, whilst staying at the forefront of innovation. Stemming as far back as eight generations, the family have been involved in winemaking activities on estates in Vittorito and Corfinio, towns that are both in the province of L’Aquila, Abruzzo. These estates are nestled in the heart of the Valle Peligna, the birthplace of the Montepulciano d’Abruzzo grape, an area at the centre of production for the region’s celebrated wines since Roman times. The mouth of one of the two underground tanks, featuring Murano glass tiles In 1893, after increases in production, Alfonso Pietrantonj, an ancestor of the present owner, enlarged the capacity of the cellar by building two magnificent tanks, holding a total of 1402 hectolitres. These tanks, which had no equal in the world, were a true architectural jewel of the period and testify to Alfonso’s courageous and creative spirit. Their most unusual characteristic was the internal sheathing, made of Murano glass tiles, which have been carefully preserved and can still be admired today. A map of Central Italy, focusing on the area around Sulmona. The town of Cansano is to the South, and Pietrantonj is based in the area just to the North In 1889, Nicola Pietrantonj, son of Alfonso, became the first winemaker from Abruzzo to graduate from the Regia Scuola in Conegliano, in the Veneto. A renowned winemaking expert, he was responsible for growing and strengthening the winery’s production from the second half of the 19th century onwards. This knowledge has been passed down through the generations, which is fortunate, as it is often said that it takes two lifetimes to perfect the art of winemaking. The Winery Today Today, the winery has 60 hectares (148 acres) of vineyards, on estates that total 100 hectares (247 acres). The grapes are processed in the family’s historic cellars located in the small medieval hamlet of Vittorito. The commitment that begins in the vineyards continues through to the cellars, which are the oldest in all of Abruzzo. One of Pietrantonj’s vineyards, sited on some of the best vine growing land in Abruzzo The vineyards lie in the area between Vittorito and Corfinio, at elevations from 350 to 400 metres above sea level. The vines enjoy excellent exposure to sunlight, and experience significant temperature differences between day and night, which are the best conditions for grapes to grow in. The primarily clay-based soil is medium textured and rich in organic material, which gives an assertive character to the wines that is typical to the area. The vines grow on mid and high level hill slopes, optimal not only for the ripening process, and also to concentrate the flavours and aromas. This balances the relatively high acidity, making it enjoyable with or without food. The winery is committed to developing the full potential of an area that has a tradition of producing great wines of the highest quality. They are also dedicated to preserving and improving the status of indigenous red grape varieties such as Montepulciano, as when it grows in Abruzzo it produces world class wine. There is a saying that “wine is made in the vineyard”. With this in mind, 90% of the vines are trained to the spur-pruned cordon and Guyot systems, which tend to reduce the crop, and significantly improve the concentration and balance in the wines. Alongside younger plantings, older vineyards of 30-35 years old have been preserved, whose grapes go to produce select, limited-production wines. The winery deliberately keeps the grape yields below the DOC production codes in order to always maintain high quality standards. Over the years, the family has increased its original nucleus of vineyards by gradually acquiring additional properties. Each parcel of land gives a unique expression of its own individual climate. The distinctive personality of each area provides the wines with a sense of place, one difficult to emulate anywhere else in the world. The grapes are picked when they have reached the perfect ripeness, and have an ideal balance between sugars and acids, so that they show the full characteristics of the grape and the vineyards. The respect for tradition can be easily witnessed by visiting the historic production complex, built before 1830. Today, this facility is used to mature the winery’s finest red wines in large Slavonian oak botti, a unique type of barrel. The oldest of the cellars, still used today to slowly mature the wine In the underground cellars by the production facility, lie the centuries-old botti, in sizes ranging from 32 to 365 hectolitres, crafted by local artisans in 1870 from oak and walnut. Thanks to careful renovations, they are still in use today. The modern winemaking facility rises alongside the cellars, and employs the most state-of-the-art technology for vinification, storage and bottling, with every operation focused on preserving and maximising the individual qualities of the grapes. It is here that Pietrantonj perform their exclusive bottling for Zavatti Vino. Of particular importance is the considerable investment that went into temperature control of the numerous stages of grape handling, wine maturation and bottled wine storage. The Pietrantonj production philosophy dictates that the maturation of red wines is carried out in oak casks of medium and large capacity. This helps to ensure that the qualities of the grape varieties, and the winery’s sense of tradition, are both faithfully preserved. Abruzzo and its World Class Wines Abruzzo is a region in the heart of Italy, famed for producing wine from the Montepulciano grape for over 2000 years. The region itself has a wide variety of foods which complement its wines. Peperoncino, known locally as diavolino, or ‘little devil’, is a key ingredient in the cuisine. There are also lots of different types of meats, seafood, such as brodetto soup as well as many sorts of pasta, cheeses and vegetables. The region is also Italy’s main source of saffron, known as the most expensive spice in the world. Montepulciano d’Abruzzo typically has moderate acidity and very smooth tannins. As the vines grow on some of the best land, this produces an ideal balance in the grapes and structure in the wine. It is full-bodied, deeply coloured with ripe fruit flavours balanced with notes of pepper and spice. Montepulciano also has the right amount of tannin to balance the sweetness of the wine. However, relatively speaking it has a slightly lower amount than other wines, which means it will integrate with many more foods, such as Italian, Spanish, American, as well as Asian foods, which is quite rare for a red wine. Another advantage is that Montepulciano d’Abruzzo has relatively high levels of nutrient compounds in the wines such as flavonoids, which are thought to lower the risk of heart disease. The wine is sometimes mistaken for Vino Nobile Di Montepulciano, which is made around a town named Montepulciano, where they make wine based on a different grape. Trebbiano d’Abruzzo is a highly successful grape, enjoying the status of producing one third of all white wine in Italy. It delivers refreshing acidity with a full citrusy flavour and a distinctive almond aftertaste, but doesn’t overpower food, making it extremely versatile. Malvasia di Candia is quite exclusive as it is rarely found outside of Italy. It is part of the Malvasia family but is distinct from the other varieties. It has intense floral aromas and as with the Trebbiano, a fresh structure, balancing sweet and dry elements, making it a pleasure to drink with food, as well as being able to stand well by itself. The courtyard at the Pietrantonj winery A range of barrels, each with its own characteristics for different wines Map of Central Italy reproduced courtesy of OpenStreetMap contributors (CC-BY-SA). Map of Italy reproduced courtesy of Wikimedia Commons (CC-BY-SA 3.0). The Wine Collection Zavatti Classico Malvasia IGT Terre Aquilane TYPE: White ALCOHOL: 13% GRAPE VARIETY: 100% Malvasia di Candia SENSORY PROFILE: Appearing a pale straw-yellow, it offers up appealing, refined impressions of fruit and spring blossoms. It is elegant and full-flavoured in the mouth, and exhibits a finely-measured structure, supported by a lively vein of crisp acidity. FOOD PAIRING: It is ideal paired with antipasti, fish dishes and sushi, vegetable soups, and lighter meats. VINIFICATION: Gentle pressing of the clusters, cryomaceration on the skins to extract fruit aromas and varietal characteristics of the Malvasia grape, followed by static cold-settling of the must (at about 10°C), then controlled-temperature fermentation at 16–18°C and maturation in stainless steel. VINEYARD: The Vitare hill (300 metres’ elevation) in the commune of Vittorito. SOIL PROFILE: Medium-textured. TRAINING SYSTEM: Vertical trellised to spurred cordon. VINEYARD YIELD: 130-140 q/ha. HARVEST PERIOD: End of September - first ten days of October. SERVING TEMPERATURE: 10-12°C (50/54 F).

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