Reciso is a cru wine made from sangiovese, the first wine belonging to my own programme.  It saw light in 1995, after a lengthy process of massal selections from my family’s old vineyards, utilising sangiovese vines that had always been cultivated in the area.
Today, Reciso is produced in very limited quantities, sourced from six small ridge-top parcels that total three hectares, laid out evenly with southeast and southwest exposures. In addition to their elevations and exposures, the vineyards are selected for the complexity of their mineral component and for the prominence of white clay, in addition to the omnipresent fossil seashells that constitute the basic matrix of our soils.
Reciso is without doubt my most representative wine, both from the point of view of terroir and from winemaking philosophy. That philosophy is founded on the best possible care of my vineyards, never simply to satisfy one or another market; its only objective is to demonstrate the greatness of the sangiovese grape grown in San Miniato.
Reciso is vinified and matured following very traditional practices, in order to preserve as much as possible what the vineyard has given us. Fermentation is carried out in lined cement vats at 27-30oC using only ambient yeasts, and the maceration on the skins lasts for 5 weeks in full vats.
For maturation, I use 10-hl Slavonian oak botti and 550-litre French oak tonneaux. It begins in late spring and lasts 18-24 months, with the objective of achieving the finest possible development and of encouraging the most genuine personality. The wine then ages in the bottle 15-18 months before release.
ALCOHOL: 14.5% vol.
BOTTLES PRODUCED: 11,000
BLEND: Two Sangiovese clones, one of which estate-grown.
GROWING AREA: San Miniato (Pisa), Italy.
SURFACE AREA: 2.5 hectares
AGE OF VINES: 25 years
TRAINING SYSTEM: Spurred Cordon
HARVEST PERIOD: Second third of September.
SOILS PROFILE: Base of sandstone, with considerable intrusion of marine fossil formations, well integrated with abundant clay.
ALTITUDE: 100-150 m.
VINEYARD DENSITY: 7,000 vines per hectare.
YIELD PER VINE: 0.8 kg grapes
VINIFICATION: In temperature-controlled glass-lined cement vats, with three weeks’ maceration on the skins.
MATURATION: 24 months in big barrels Sloveninan oak.
AGEING: 1 year in glass
RECOMMENDATIONS: Store the bottle on its side at 20°C or less. Avoid full light. Uncork at least an hour before serving.
SERVING SUGGESTIONS: Stews and marinades, wild fowl, aged cheeses.
SENSORY PROFILE:
Colour: very deep garnet
Nose: complex, livey aromas of wild berry fruit, particularly blackberry, enriched with nuances of tanned leather, barley, and roasted coffee
Palate: dry and lean, with pronounced but silky tannins; the finish develops a classically bitterish note suggesting dark chocolate, a characteristic encouraged by our clayey soil.