Wine cellar:
Where we do mature work
The modern cellars in Chianti and Maremma are an important factor in the production of our wines. They enable us to process the first-class grapes carefully and gently.
After the spontaneous fermentation, the Brancaia wines are aged in small wooden barrels, cement or steel tanks for twelve to twenty months, depending on the quality. In addition to the classic barrique (225 liters), we use 500 liter tonneaus, which are especially suitable for the Sangiovese. In the new generation of cement tanks, the wines can breathe and develop a finer tannin structure. That makes these tanks very exciting, especially for fresher, younger wines.
We also consistently pursue this quality approach in filling. The use of the most modern, carefully selected machines helps us to fill the carefully cared for product under optimal conditions. After bottling, the Brancaia wines remain in our cellars for up to two years, depending on the product, before they are put on the market. In this way, we guarantee that they are ready to drink right from the start.
By dividing the building into three floors, for example, we can use gravity and largely dispense with pumps. Each individual vine parcel is also picked separately by hand and brought to the winery for further processing as quickly as possible. The spontaneous fermentation takes place in temperature-controlled, conical steel tanks. Due to their shape, the contact area between mash and must is significantly larger, but that between air and mash is smaller. We have replaced the traditional pumping of the mash with a modern pestle. Accordingly, we do not use pumps here either.
We let the individual grape varieties vinify and ripen separately. The assembly takes place shortly before bottling. In this way we can perfectly do justice to the peculiarities of each individual location and optimally express their character. The most important decisions in this central process are made by Barbara Widmer together with Fabrizio Benedetti and Amar Amarouche, the two cellar masters from Brancaia. You will be supported by the external oenologist Carlo Ferrini, who can look back on decades of experience.
