Le Boncie

Giovanna studied oenology herself and in the mid-1980s, at Castelnuovo Berardenga near Siena, began working on a project for San Felice to plant some 300 traditional Tuscan grape varieties gathered from old vineyards. When Giovanna’s father gave her a small property with olive groves, called Le Boncie, she added a vineyard planted with her favourites from the experimental project: Sangiovese, of course, but also Ciliegiolo, Colorino, Foglia Tonda, Mammolo and Prugnolo. Planted at a very high density of 7,000 vines per hectare and given over mainly to Sangiovese (complemented by a few rows of Fogliatonda and the others for blending), the vineyard yields the estate’s definitive wine: “Le Trame”. Work in the vineyard follows the general principles of the biodynamic movement. The harvest is done by hand. Fermentation takes place in traditional open-topped wooden vats. The élevage is long and calm, with the occasional racking to aerate the wine. Maturation takes place in medium-sized casks; the wine is then left to rest for at least six months in bottle before release. In the normal course of things, the wine therefore reaches our cellars no earlier than 30 months after the harvest.