Le Serre Nuove dell’Ornellaia, Tenuta dell'Ornellaia

LE SERRE NUOVE DELL’ORNELLAIA

Bolgheri D.O.C. Superiore

Variety

28% Cabernet Sauvignon - 54% Merlot - 14% Cabernet Franc - 4% Petit Verdot

Climate and Harvest

More than most vintages, the year 2019 was characterised by a highly variable climate, which alternated periods of cold and rain with long bouts of drought and heat. After a normal winter, the buding took place in the first week of April. The cold and rainy conditions throughout April and May significantly slowed down the vegetative vine growth, leading to a 10-day delay in flowering compared to the average. Very hot, rainless weather suddenly arrived in June, reaching temperature peaks of 37°C at the end of the month. The weather stayed warm and sunny throughout the summer with temperatures 2°C above average and 45 consecutive days without rain. The long dry period was interrupted by two days of rain in the last week of July, bringing the temperature back to the seasonal norm, with ideal conditions for ripening. The harvest began slowly on 5th September. As usual, the last week of September saw a lowering of temperatures which made it possible to preserve a great finesse and aromatic freshness. Sunny conditions returned after another rainy event on the 21st September, which allowed us to conclude the harvest of the later ripening varieties on 4th October

Vinification and Ageing

The grapes were handpicked into 15 kg baskets. The bunches were selected by hand on a double sorting table before and after de-stemming, then finally soft pressed. In addition to handpicking, we introduced optical selection in 2016 in order to further increase the quality of selection. Each variety and each parcel of land was vinified separately. The alcoholic fermentation took place in stainless steel tanks at temperatures between 2630°C for two weeks, followed by maceration for a total of about 10-15 days. The malolactic fermentation began in the stainless steel tanks, and was completed after the wine was racked into barriques (25% new and 75% used once). The wine remained in barriques in Ornellaia’s temperature-controlled cellars for about 15 months. After the first 12 months the wine was assembled and then returned to the barriques for an additional three months of ageing. The wine remains in the bottle for another six months prior to release

Winemaker 's Notes

With its usual intense colour, Le Serre Nuove dell’Ornellaia 2019 has a nose full of fresh notes of ripe red fruits, accompanied by a lively balsamic vein with aromatic hints of cypress and eucalyptus berries. The wine is soft and silky in the mouth, filling it with an elegant tannic texture and a sapid and persistent finish