Ca' del Bosco Selva della Tesa Chardonnay 2019
Since its inaugural vintage the Ca' del Bosco Chardonnay has received critical acclaim from renowned international critics who continue to consider this as a reference point as the finest Italian example. Starting with the 2019 harvest and with the aim of strengthening its identity, Ca’ del Bosco’s Chardonnay takes on a new name "Selva della Tesa", in honour of the vineyard where this wine was born. Selva della Tesa embodies the territory’s vocation for coaxing out the nuances of the variety, and the winemaker’s skill in transforming them into a great wine. It is obtained from meticulously selected grapes skilfully vinified in full compliance with the Metodo Ca’ del Bosco. Grapes from five superior vineyards are picked, using small cases, and then graded and chilled. Each bunch is selected by experienced cellar staff before visiting the “berry spa”, an exclusive air-bubble bunch-washing system that incorporates three soaking vats and a drying tunnel. After pressing in the absence of oxygen, only the best must from the first fraction is transferred for alcoholic fermentation in small oak casks, made from selected wood seasoned for three years. The wine remains on its own lees for 9 more months, during which time malolactic fermentation is completed. “bâtonnage”, or lees stirring, is carried out every week to bring the wine to a peak of harmony on the nose and complexity on the palate. Later, the various parcels are blended and the wine is bottled naturally by gravity flow. Innovative bottling systems ensure that the wine is not subjected to oxidative stress or disturbance, and that no further sulphites are added. Integrity and healthfulness are guaranteed. Finally, every bottle is given an individual marking to ensure its traceability. Brightly hued, intensely scented, underscored with a hint of vanilla and a characteristic note of hazelnut. Its taste is full and rotund and its organoleptic structure is so intense as to be comparable to a red, yet it lingers in your senses for its extraordinary finesse.