La Stoppa is an ancient estate extending over 52 hectares, thirty of which are planted with vines, surrounding an elegant medieval tower. In 1973, the estate was acquired by the Pantaleoni family who, within a short space of time, had invested in and restructured the vineyards, as well as renewing the cellar. Today the company is headed by Elena Pantaleoni, with the assistance of winemaker Giulio Armani. The naturally low yields (due to the average age of the vines and poor soil) together with the intrinsic quality of the grapes, have made possible the creation of wonderfully characteristic wines, which reflect their origin and speak for themselves without the need for excessive reworking in the cellar. This does not mean that no use is made of modern technology or small barrels. However, these serve to accompany the wine towards its full maturity rather than to falsely modify. Today La Stoppa produces a limited number of wines: some derived from the local varieties – Malvasia, Barbera and Bonarda – others from historically introduced varieties of French origin. The objective is to create modern wines without betraying the history and expression of the terroir.
The climate in this region, especially in the lower-lying regions is really warm, hot almost: during the summer, it can be warmer than parts of Sicily. The estate uses organic farming. Only sulphur and copper are used in the vineyard and all work in the vines is carried out manually. Spontaneous grassing is allowed between the vines, no fertilization, weeding or pesticides. There is an average of 4,000-6,000 plants per hectare. In this particular vineyard, the Barbera grape ripens well on these warm and sunny hillsides and lends itself well to becoming a wine that improves over the years, thanks to its fresh, lively acidity. This is why, only in years when quality and quantity permit, a pure Barbera is produced.
Grapes are hand-harvested with maceration on the skins for 40 days in steel and cement vats. Fermentation is spontaneous with indigenous years and ageing takes place on the fine lees in a mix of used French oak. Barriques and Slavonian oak 40-hectolitre wooden vats (called tini) and then for a further time bottle before bottling without filtering or addition of sulphites. Rich, earthy and enveloping this mature Barbera has aromas of leather, roasted meat and balsamic notes. The wine is notable for its low ph and high acidity and finishes on a note of high-toned sweet cherry.
2013 Camporomano IGT Emilia
*
Interested in finding out more about the wines of La Stoppa? Contact us directly:
shop@lescaves.co.uk | sales@lescaves.co.uk | 01483 538820