VINEYARD | The vineyards of Tenuta di Trinoro extend for 23 hectares on plains and slopes at the foot of Monte Cetona, in southern Tuscany, a few steps from the border with Umbria and Lazio. Andrea Franchetti's Bordeaux experience prompted him to bet on the vines of that area: among the rows we therefore find cabernet franc, merlot, cabernet sauvignon and petit verdot. And semillon, from which the Bianco di Trinoro is born. The grapes come from a small plot, just half a hectare, cultivated in one of the highest points of the estate, at an altitude of 630 metres, on sandy soils. The plantings date back to 2001, but in 2006 some adjustments were made with the addition of Bordeaux stock: as per the company philosophy, the planting density is also high for the semillon (10,000 plants per hectare), while the yields are very low (just 30 quintals per hectare).
PERSONA | Among the many prestigious areas of Tuscany on which he could have bet, Andrea Franchetti, who passed away in December 2021, decided to focus on this corner of Tuscany: his great entrepreneurial ability and a different vision of the sector allowed him, in the 80s, to believe in a territory that was until then completely forgotten by winemakers. His intuition was to plant Bordeaux vines, once he realised that the clayey-limestone soils present had the same characteristics as those of Bordeaux, where he had worked in the past. Today the company is run by his son Benjamin, who, together with Calogero Portannese and Lorenzo Fornaini, continues his father's work also on the estate on Mt Etna.
WINE | The hot 2021 vintage forced a slightly earlier harvest compared to those of the other years. The harvest took place on September 9th: after the alcoholic fermentation which took place in steel tanks, the wine matured for about ten months in cement tanks. The result is a Semillon with very elegant, nuanced contours, played on subtle references of acacia flowers that dance on a background that recalls freshly mown grass. The fruity component is entrusted to citrus fruits, like lime, to anticipate a palate of great finesse where a delicate sensation of white peach gives juiciness to a long, vital sip, never over the top.
