ANTICHI VINAI
THE ANTICHI VINAI METHOD
BEHIND EVERY WINE IS A STORY
AND A METHOD THAT ENHANCES IT
FOR A FULL-BODIED WINE WITH INTENSE AROMAS
«Knowing our roots helps us understand who we are. It’s the same for wine: we have to know its origins to know what we’re drinking.»
EVERY PHASE OF PRODUCTION HAPPENS IN OUR CELLARS
To protect the quality of the wine we use inert nitrogen; this prevents oxygen from damaging the wine and avoids having to use large quantities of sulphur dioxide.
We keep white, rosé and red wines ready to drink for about four months before bottling them, in the large stainless steel tanks you can see when you visit the winery.
The red wines for ageing, including the reserve labels, spend at least 12 to 24 months in large oak and chestnut casks, stored in beautiful cellars excavated from the lava rock, where the temperature is stable. This preserves them from thermal shocks and guarantees their quality.
The wines are all bottled in our winery.
Blending of the various cuvées and tirage (adding sugar and yeast) are the last two steps before the second fermentation of the final base wine.
The second fermentation takes place in an autoclave using the Martinotti-Charmat method (with at least 6 months ageing on the lees), or in bottles with temporary crown-closures following the Classic method (with at least 36 months ageing).
In the second case, as tradition requires, we do the remuage, putting the bottles in sloped riddling racks known as pupitres. The yeast residues gather in the neck of the bottle, where they are frozen and expelled (dégorgement). The space they occupied is filled with the liqueur d’expedition, the company’s secret mixture that gives the wine its character and personality.
With a final seal of natural cork and wire muzzle, the bubbles we are so proud of are ready.
SECRETS AND TRADITIONS OF WHITE WINE MAKING.
HOW WE GET BUBBLES FROM THE VOLCANO
Etna is particularly well suited to the production of sparkling wine: Alpine altitudes with Mediterranean latitudes and thermal range guarantee optimum grape ripeness while maintaining crisp acidity.
Since 1870, sparkling wine has been produced in this spectacular terrain from Etna’s best grape variety, Nerello Mascalese.
We pick the grapes from the eastern slope and the highest areas of the northern slope just before they’re fully ripe and treat them with great care.
After reducing the temperature to 8-10˚ C, we press the whole bunches very gently to get the free-run juice. The resulting must is clarified before being left to ferment at a controlled temperature of 13-16˚ C.
Blending of the various cuvées and tirage (adding sugar and yeast) are the last two steps before the second fermentation of the final base wine.
La rifermentazione avviene in autoclave secondo il metodo Martinotti-Charmat lungo (almeno 6 mesi di affinamento sui lieviti) o in bottiglia tappata provvisoriamente con tappo corona e bidulle, secondo Metodo Classico (almeno 36 mesi di affinamento).
In quest’ultimo caso, come comanda la tradizione, ricorriamo al remuage posizionando le bottiglie leggermente inclinate sui cavalletti, detti pupitres. I residui dei lieviti si raccolgono così nel collo della bottiglia dove vengono congelati e poi espulsi (degorgement). Il loro spazio rimasto vuoto in bottiglia, accoglie il liqueur d’èxpedition, la miscela segreta della casa, che ne completa le caratteristiche e la personalità.
E con la tappatura definitiva in sughero naturale e gabbietta, nascono le bollicine di cui siamo fieri.
Segreti e tradizione della vinificazione in bianco.
Come nascono le bollicine del Vulcano
L’Etna è un territorio particolarmente vocato per la produzione degli spumanti: altitudini alpine, esposizioni mediterranee ed escursioni termiche garantiscono un’ottimale maturazione delle uve, preservando elevata acidità.
È dal 1870 che su questa magnifica terra si producono bollicine dal “vitigno principe” del Vulcano, il Nerello Mascalese.
Raccogliamo le uve non ancora del tutto mature dal versante orientale o dalle zone più alte del versante nord del vulcano e le trattiamo scrupolosamente.
Dopo aver abbattuto le temperature a circa 8-10 °C, deponiamo i grappoli integri in pressa per ricavare il mosto fiore da una delicatissima pressatura. Otteniamo così un mosto da chiarificare prima di lasciarlo fermentare a temperature controllate di circa 13-16°C.
Blend delle varie cuveè e tirage sono gli ultimi due passaggi che precedono la rifermentazione della base spumante definitiva.