Soave Classico DOC “La Rocca” 2021 Pieropan (1,5L)

The grapes to produce the Soave Classico DOC “La Rocca” Pieropan were hand harvested and selected in the vineyard, before arriving at the winery to be destemmed and crushed. After a short period of maceration on the skins, the wine was fermented at 20°C in stainless steel tanks and 2,500 litre oak casks. It was then racked into 500 and 2,000 litre oak casks where it was aged for 15 months on its fine lees, followed by further ageing in bottle before release.

The grapes were grown in the vineyard of ‘La Rocca’, which takes its name from the adjacent medieval castle and fortress (“La Rocca”) that dominated the town of Soave, just east of Verona. Vineyards are located at an altitude of 200-300 meters above sea level and are south-west facing.The soil in La Rocca is unique in Soave in that it is a limestone outcrop (the same soil as in Valpolicella Classico) in a sea of basalt. Because of this soil, the family feels they get sufficient ripeness in the Garganega to make a wine solely from this variety. The vineyard benefits from a special microclimate, which in turn produces a wine with great personality. Innovative since its first release in 1978, it has become a definitive symbol of quality and tradition for the region. Vines are spur pruned and cordon trained and are 10 to 50 years old.

Pieropan’s estate covers 58 hectares of vineyard which are situated on the stony hills of Soave Classico. The Pieropan family has been producing wines in Soave since the 1890s. Indeed, they were the first producer to bottle a wine with the name Soave on the label in the early 1930s. Nino Pieropan took over from his father in 1970 and was the first producer in Soave to make a single-vineyard wine, ‘Calvarino’, in 1971. Nino’s two sons, Andrea and Dario, took over the running of the estate in 2017 when Nino fell ill and before he passed away in April 2018. From the 2015 vintage onwards, all Pieropan wines are organically certified.