酒窖女王

托斯卡纳的La Braccesca葡萄园

It’s an extraordinarily beautiful morning. The mellow light is slowly spreading over the vineyard and the mist lies like a delicate veil over the slopes. The sun is shining discreetly in the background – unlike during the summer just gone, referred to as the “summer of the century”, when the exceptionally hot weather helped the grapes to mature.

Fiamma Cecchieri正在考虑这个田园诗般的秋天场景。对她来说，这是一年中最美好的时光。自葡萄收获自葡萄收获的第一次，事情在La Braccesca再次定居。风景如画的葡萄园位于托斯卡纳南部，位于意大利最好的葡萄酒区之一，距离Montepulcianoand Cortona的中世纪城镇半小时之遥。

Fiamma is an oenologist and is the cellar master for the long-standing, traditional estate, which cultivates vines for exquisite red wines on its historic slopes. “After the harvest, it feels like you have got to the top of a mountain and you can stop and enjoy the magnificent view,” says the 29-year-old as she opens the door to the winery.

Most of Fiamma’s time is spent in the cellars with the large stainless steel tanks or in the “barriccaia”, the barrique cellar where the fine wines mature in oak barrels. First thing in the morning, she checks the condition of the youngest wines in filled tanks.

Fiamma品尝每个样本，评估她的分析并决定如何进行。专家迅速促进了男性主导的葡萄酒世界。事实上，她的同事Matteo和Leonardo - 目前正在倾倒坦克的人 - 开玩笑地称她是窖的女王。

One vineyard, two first-class regions of provenance

In Italy, strict rules apply to winemaking. Only premium products from certain areas of cultivation with permissible grape varieties can obtain a DOC or the even more prestigious DOCG label. La Braccesca is unique in this respect as the estate produces premium wines in two designated regions of provenance which, despite being so close together, are completely different.

自中世纪以来，葡萄酒在这里培养。遗产的前核心区延伸超过一百公顷到Montepulciano。托斯卡纳山坡从传统的桑岛葡萄品种生产Vino Nobile di Montepulciano。这款葡萄酒具有令人垂涎的DOCG分类，可能是如此命名，因为据说据说奥斯特别行为为自己保留了“贵族葡萄酒”。

In the area around Cortona, the vineyard cultivates Syrah, an aromatic variety that is not native to this area. By planting international vines on Italian hills, La Braccesca is able to produce a premium wine with a unique quality.

在酒厂，菲亚玛精致地改善了水果的特点。“这是我唯一可以应用我对葡萄酒的热情并产生差异的唯一方法，”本土佛罗伦萨说。她在佛罗伦萨和阿斯蒂的大学学习了五年的葡萄栽培。但令人作呕的，品尝和“感觉”葡萄酒的行为，不是在大学可以获得的技巧。菲阿迈笑了。你只能通过不知疲倦的品尝来学习。

Knowledge, experience and diligence

在学习之后，她在新西兰和意大利的庄园里造成了感官，例如在基安蒂大学的起源领域。然而，激情必须在你的血液中。她的祖父在蒙特普尔科诺地区酿酒。作为一个年轻的女孩，她对瓶子上的标签着迷，她很高兴地复制。如今，如果她在伦巴第上周时，她的业余时间都会在业余时间开学或滑雪。

当卸下新鲜葡萄时，事情会触及。前几个小时非常重要，影响所有后续过程。特殊的橡木桶，垄权和大橡树，发挥着基本作用。La Braccesca属于Antinori家族 - 世界上最古老的葡萄酒家庭之一 - 近30年来，为Syrah和Hungarian Oak使用法国橡木桶为Sangiovese。

除了原点,和年龄的大小barrels also affect the style and taste of the wines. Above all, however, the oak must be carefully cleaned to prevent harmful microorganisms from disrupting the sensitive maturation process of the wines.

Clean thoroughly before filling

Each barrell is cleaned before the aging period. The inside of the barrels must be prepared as quickly as possible. The barrel cleaner, a special high-pressure cleaner accessory, is inserted into the bunghole of the barrel. A rotating spray head cleans the inside of the barrel evenly and thoroughly. The water is then extracted from the barrel by the barrel cleaner. “The organic material must be meticulously clean to reach the best quality of our wines,” explains Fiamma.

它在宽敞的Barriccaia Cellar内部凉爽，湿度自动调节。Vino Nobile在木桶里花了最长的一段时间。一年后唯一的瓶子才被倾倒在瓶子之后，它在地窖里呆了另外12个月。用后缀“Riserva”标记的较长的变体留下至少24个月。

橡树的选择是保持葡萄酒的托斯卡纳特征非常重要：“它应该为自己说话。”菲亚玛说。“红宝石红色和平衡，最后收获的溢价葡萄酒只会在大约两到三年的时间享用时才能保持橡木的微弱音符，一旦他们在地窖的宁静中成熟了。”与此同时，菲阿迈也享受宁静的时刻，因为托斯卡纳傍晚的太阳落山，她让她回家的路。

5 Tuscan Facts

• 意大利中部地区被认为是一个重要的历史和文化景观。
• 托斯卡纳以其传统的葡萄园和大胆的红葡萄酒而闻名。
• In addition to viticulture, the region’s economy is supported by olive oil production and tourism.
• Florence is the capital of Tuscany and is considered the birthplace of the Renaissance.
• Tuscan cuisine is very varied and should be accompanied by high-quality olive oil and fine wines.