Gigliola Giannetti, owner of Le Potazzine winery, and her daughters Viola and Sofia met me for breakfast at Tarrallucci e Vino in NYC, a meeting arranged by Riccardo Gabriele of PR Vino. That night, I would meet them again for a dinner featuring their wines at La Pizza Fresca but it was a pleasure to get to know them when we could just sit and talk.
Gigliola explained that potazzine is the Italian word for the very colorful and vivacious birds which inhabit the Tuscan country side. In Montalcino, grandparents and parents often use potazzine as a term of endearment for children. Viola and Sofia were affectionately nicknamed potazzine by their maternal grandmother.
Viola, Sofia and Gigliola
At the dinner that night, Gigliola spoke about the winery and the wines. The estate consists of five hectares of vineyards in Brunello. Three hectares are located close to the winery at 507 meters and the average age of the vines is 14 years. The rest are located in the area of Sant’Angelo in Colle and are at 340 meters and were planted in 1996. The training system is unilateral cordon and there are 6,0000 vines per hectare. She said the wines are made in the most natural way meaning natural fermentation with indigenous yeast, long maceration, and aging in medium-sized oak barrels of 30 to 50 HL of the Garbellotto Company, in compliance with tradition for both the Brunello and the Rosso.
The Brunello is usually aged in barrels for 40 months and the Riserva produced only in the 2004, 2006, 2011 and 2015 vintages remains in wood for about 60 months.
They have always worked organically and beginning in 2019 the wines will be certified organic. The rosso remains in wood for 12 months even though there are no specific aging requirements.
Rosso di Montalcino 2015 made from 100% Sangiovese. The grapes come from two distinct vineyards the winery property Le Plata which has a southwest exposure at 500 meters and La Torre with a southeast exposure at 320 meters. The wine is aged in big oak barrels of 10, 30 and 50 HL for 12 months. It remains in the bottle for an additional 5 months before release. The wine has hints of red fruit, violets and a touch of herbs. This is a wine that can age for a few more years but is drinking very well right now.
At the La Pizza Fresca dinner, we enjoyed it with Beef Carpaccio.
Brunello di Montalcino 100% Sangiovese it is aged in oak barrels of 30 and 50 HL for 42 months and 8 more months in bottle before release. These are complex and elegant wines with hints currants, balsamic, violets, red fruit and a touch of herbs. They will age for a long time.
Here are the wine and food matches we enjoyed for the following vintages:
2013 — Mezzi Rigatoni con Polpettine
2012 — Pizza Margherita
2011 — Pizza Salame Piccante
2010 and 2007 — Manzo Brasato al Vino Rosso with the last two wines.
It was an enjoyable dinner and the food was well matched with these traditional Brunellos.