Cantine del Notaio Basilicata L'Atto Rosso 2014
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Upon inheriting the Cantine del Notaio estate from his father, proprietor Gerardo Giuratrabocchetti left a previous career to become a winemaker and brought enologist Luigi Moio of the University of Naples on board as consultant, with the aim of restoring their ancient glory to the wines of the Aglianico del Vulture DOC. There are only a few estates who bottle their own wine in Vulture and Notaio is one of them. These miniscule-production Aglianico wines from the esteemed Rionero zone are fragrant and sweet in the nose, with powerful yet restrained tannins and dense blue- and blackberry fruit with licorice notes. The estate's 27 hectares are divided into 5 different vineyards, and with the exception of 1 very old-vine vineyard, each is planted with identical plants of the same age.
Notaio’s cellars are located in a group of ten underground grottos that once belonged to Franciscan monks. The estate is at the forefront of clonal experimentation, with 40 different ancient clones currently under cultivation for study.
Beyond the usual suspects, there are hundreds of red grape varieties grown throughout the world. Some are indigenous specialties capable of producing excellent single varietal wines, while others are better suited for use as blending grapes. Each has its own distinct viticultural characteristics, as well as aroma and flavor profiles, offering much to be discovered by the curious wine lover. In particular, Portugal and Italy are known for having a multitude of unique varieties but they can really be found in any region.
Inhabiting the arch of Italy’s boot, this southern, mountainous region has a relatively small amount of vineyard area under vine. Basilicata has one DOCG for its prized red grape, Aglianico, Aglianico del Vulture Superior, which is limited to the slopes of an extinct volcano. The best whites are made of Malvasia bianca.