Mirco Mariotti 'Smarazen' Bianco dell'Emilia

Winemaker Notes:

WHY BE CURIOUS: Beach vines! Beach wines! The unique Bosco Eliceo has vines on the beach, and a long tradition of making frizzante metodo ancestrale wines with extremely old vines, some reaching more than 100 years old. Unfiltered. Locals shake lees before drinking, you should too.

WHO: the ever charming and quirky Mirco Mariotti; recreational Smarazen card player (similar to Scopa).

WHERE: Emilia-Romagna region, in the unique seacoast area of the Bosco Eliceo. Salty, sandy, windy, with alternating fog and sun makes for a dramatic place for vines to grow.

TASTE: Frizzante pressure, vinified bone dry, sea salt, cool yellow fruits.

REGION: Emilia-Romagna.

GROWING AREA: Bosco Eliceo

FARMING: Practicing organic.

VINEYARD: 5 Ha.

ALTITUDE: -1 m / -3 ft (first negative elevation wine we have).

SOILS: 89% sand, 7% clay, 4% lime.

VARIETIES: 70% Trebbiano Romagnolo and 30% Malvasia di Candia [non aromatica].

VINE AGE: Extremely old vines. Almost 80 years old vines (planted in 1952), and ultra 100 year old vines on native rootstock (piede franco). Some vines grow on the web-mother of all training systems: Propaggine.

VINE TRAINING: Renewed cordon and Guyot. Vine roots are 1.5 meters deep.

HARVEST DATE: Beginning of September.

YEASTS: first fermentation in tank with native yeasts and then second done in bottle with addition of grape must from same year.

FERMENTATION: 20 days, 18°C without temperature control, 1 day on the skins.

MALOLACTIC FERMENTATION: No.

SULPHUR: 50 mg/L total.

ALCOHOL: 11.5%.

ANNUAL PRODUCTION: 800 cases.