Cinquecento Sangiovese 2020

Story

'Five Hundred'. Named in reference to the magnificent five-hundred-metre-long rows from which this sangiovese is picked.

Tasting Note

Evocative on the nose with fresh and dried strawberry present, rose petal, leathery, tarry notes and light brick dust. Brooding and strong but showing an overtone of red fruits into savoury. Strawberry, crunchy red cherry and tart plum, tomato concasse and bay leaf, roasted red peppers, dried oregano and light tobacco. Very fine dusty tannins firm up the structure, carrying the complex fruit spectrum to a fine grained and food friendly finish. 

Vinification

Crushed and destemmed, fermented in two tonne open fermenters for up to two weeks with twice daily pump overs. Temperatures were kept cool, between 20 and 24˚C to retain fruit vibrancy and ensure a soft tannin structure. After ferment the wine was pressed to tank, racked off gross lees and matured in seasoned French and American oak, 75% and 25% respectively, for 6 months. Malolactic fermentation was completed by indigenous strains following which the wine was racked, sulphured and returned to oak to complete its maturation for a further 18 months. No finings and only light filtration were used prior to bottling.  

Vineyard

Lopresti Lot 11 Vineyard - Flour Mill Road, Whites Valley, McLaren Vale. 

The fruit for this Sangiovese comes from a single five hundred metre long row from the Lopresti family vineyards. Located at the southern end of McLaren Vale between Sellicks Hill and Willunga on the foothills of the Mount Lofty Ranges. These vineyards are a mix between Ngaltinga & Christies Beach Formation with north-south orientation. The rich, heavy clay loam soils and warm summer days produce a more deeply coloured, full flavoured wine with soft, silky tannins.

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