The vineyards are situated in the lower Illasi valley near San Zeno di Colognola ai Colli and Illasi. These areas have a strong tradition of viticulture because of the nature of the land (partly clay and partly a mix of stones and sand) and the favourable microclimate: the wide, sunny valley is protected from the north by the Lessini Hills.
We are currently cultivating 18 hectares of vineyards divided into seven parts: Casetta, Cassòla, Creàri, Pessétta, Perantònie, Orgno and Sànde. The soil type varies from one vineyard to the other, which has helped to determine which varieties should be planted. In the clay soil there are 30 to 40 year-old Garganega vines, traditionally cultivated for the production of Soave wine.
In the 1978 we planted Merlot, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir in the stony and sandy soils, adopting a system of vine training known as “pergola corta” and “cordone speronato”, to improve aeration, reduce spoilage and thus improve ripening. This has allowed us to obtain wines of better structure, which are therefore more suitable for fermentation and barrel maturation.
The meticulous viticultural practices include: cover crops, fertilizing with bovine dung, balanced pruning to control the quantity per hectar. Pest control is made by using natural products and predators. The harvest is made by hand, picking up the grapes in different times to guarantee the optimum ripening point.
The vinifcation is followed with modern technologies respecting the criteria for organic production. This involves: destemming, light pressing, musts cleaning by natural decanting, fltration with fossil dust, fermentation at controlled temperatures and fining using bentonite.
In this way we were able to obtain wines which maintain in the years characteristics of genuineness and typicality.