1998 vine year

1998 was a year with extremely high temperatures. The high values in February and March led to the early start of the vegetation phase on the vines. On Brancaia, the Sangiovese started to bud at the end of March. Fortunately, the temperatures in April remained mild, which averted the very high risk of frost when budding early. The whole spring was marked by abundant rainfall. From the beginning of June until the grape harvest, however, there was no rain. The second week of August caused a lot of excitement, because the temperatures reached 38 ° C! Thanks to the good water storage capacity of the soil and the thinning of leaves, the plants were spared the feared interruption of the ripening phase. From the beginning of September the temperatures dropped and there was some rainfall. Because of these meteorological conditions, the reading started very early. The harvest of the Merlot began on September 10th on Brancaia and ended on October 7th on Poppi with the Sangiovese.

The must had a high sugar content, an intense color and an increased content of polyphenolic substances. Under these conditions, in 1998, despite the atypical course of the summer, it was possible to produce great wines with a pronounced typicality.