Poggio alle Gazze dell'Ornellaia 2019

Lively and wide: this is how Poggio alle Gazze dell'Ornellaia 2019 presents itself, after a journey in the cellar divided between wood, concrete and steel, and one year of aging in the bottle. Based on Sauvignon Blanc with a touch of Vermentino and Verdicchio, this white from Ornellaia is an elegant expression of the estate's care and style, and grows in some small plots on the Tuscan coast surrounded by Mediterranean scrub, white roads and maritime pines.

"Poggio alle Gazze 2019 is the son of a late vintage" comments the oenologist Olga Fusari. "The expansion of the harvesting times has favored the development of a great aromatic expression, which we find in the intense notes of citrus and exotic fruits, in the hints of cut grass and asparagus. The palate is vibrant, fresh, characterized by a mineral and persistent finish ".

The variable climate of the 2019 vintage has in fact alternated periods of cold and precipitation with dry and hot phases, leading to a delay of about 10 days in flowering. Vegetative development then recovered in June, thanks to the long sunny days. Throughout the summer, the weather remained beautiful, except for two rainy days at the end of July which brought temperatures back to the seasonal norm, ideal conditions for a progressive and complete ripening of the grapes. The harvest of the Sauvignon Blancs began on August 19 and lasted until the first days of the following month, while the later varieties, Vermentino and Verdicchio, reached maturity in mid-September.

The care dedicated to the grapes, from their formation in the vineyard to the passage in the cellar, reflects a deep respect for the ecosystem, in order to maintain its stability and promote the integrity of the soil and the self-regulation of the single plant. All the activities in Ornellaia are carried out with awareness and attention, for a 360 ° sustainability, which includes both interventions on the vines in the rhythm of nature and the social well-being of the collaborators.

These elements together with the coastal climate result in wines with a unique personality in Ornellaia: a multi-voice choir that speaks of beauty, marine influences and brightness. The vinification processes are followed in religious respect for the grapes, and the result is always fascinating. "Poggio alle Gazze owes its elegant Mediterranean style to the unique microclimate we have here in Ornellaia" says Axel Heinz, estate manager. "This authentic gift of nature allows us to produce a wine that boasts a sumptuous structure and ripe fruity notes combined in a style of great finesse, the signature of Ornellaia."

And after this long journey in the vineyard and in the cellar, the 2019 vintage will also be the protagonist of a new project in the most fascinating restaurants on the Italian coast. It is called "Ambasciatori di Poggio alle Gazze" and will see 10 chefs create a special dish for the cuvée capable of interpreting its nature and character. The restaurateurs will have on the menu a mini vertical of four vintages of wine and will create an ad hoc recipe to match the menu.

The name ORNELLAIA evokes oenological excellence and interprets the authentic expression of Tuscan beauty. The estate is located on the Tuscan coast, a few steps from the medieval village of Bolgheri and the famous Viale dei Cipressi. The range sees Ornellaia Bolgheri DOC Superiore and Ornellaia Bianco at the top. The range of reds is completed by the "second vin" Le Serre Nuove dell'Ornellaia, Le Volte dell'Ornellaia and for the white vines Poggio alle Gazze dell'Ornellaia. The constant work of the team and the optimal microclimatic and geological conditions have led in just over thirty years - 1985 was the first vintage of Ornellaia - the wines of the estate to great successes with both Italian and international audiences and critics.