Manincor Cassiano 2012
Type: Red
Country: Italy
Region: Alto Adige
Grape Variety: Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Tempranillo, Cabernet Sauvignon, Petit Verdot, Syrah
Viticulture: Biodynamic | Certified Organic
Climate: The Alps protect the area from cold air masses from the north filled with precipitation, while warm, moist air currents from Lake Garda and the Mediterranean find their way to Alto Adige
Terroir: The finest sites in the Manincor estate, at the “Seehof” and “Panholzerhof”: south-east facing overlooking the Lake of Kaltern at an altitude of 250 – 280 m above sea level. Rich soils consisting of sand and clay mixed with limestone gravel and morainal debris
Winemaking: Each batch was crushed separately and the spontaneous fermentation with the skins took place in open-top oak vats. Skin contact was limited to ten to twenty days, depending on the variety. In view of the year’s cool weather, the focus was placed on finesse and elegance. The young wine was matured for eighteen months in barriques, one-third of which were new. The individual wines are only blended shortly before filling
Color: Bright, full cherry red
Nose: On the nose, the wine is reminiscent of ripe cherry, liquorice and wild herbs
Palate: The smooth, ripe tannins give the wine an especially harmonious mouth-feel with tangy fresh herbs on the finish
About the Winery:
With 50 hectares of grape growing areas, the Manincor Estate Winery in Caldaro is one of the largest in all of Alto Adige. And also one with some of the richest traditions: grapes have been grown here for more than four hundred years, a tradition which Count Michael Goëss-Enzenberg continues – along new paths that are actuality old.
Count Goëss-Enzenberg, who is himself a trained oenologist, has focused on biodynamic cultivation in his estate winery since 2005, and that means: the revitalization of the soil with compost, special sowing of greenery, allowing chickens, sheep, and bees in the vineyard, and last but not least creating herbal teas with which the grapevines are treated. Chamomile helps the plants to overcome situations of stress, stinging nettle tea gives them energy and horsetail herb supports the healing of injuries.
But as old as the knowledge about cultivation is at the Manincor Estate Winery in Kaltern, that’s how modern the winery is, which was built underground three stories below the vineyards. In the end, the grapes from a half million vines are brought together here, and a total of fifteen different grape varieties are made into wine here. But in spite of the size, the work in the winery is still always worked by hand – with particular attention to small scale: “Also trying and doing our best possible work even down to the smallest detail is our path to the highest natural quality,” says Count Goëss-Enzenberg. Because, “For me, wine is the greatest sensory expression of agricultural culture.”
And at the Manincor Estate Winery in Caldaro, they know their way around with a focus on the senses, with passion, with authenticity, and with heart. For more than four hundred years. After all, a free translation of Manincor is “hand on heart”.
