Sauvignon 'Quintessenz' Cantina di Caldaro Kaltern 2023
The Sauvignon 'Quintessenz' from Cantina di Caldaro Kaltern is a classy and luxurious white that maximally enhances the varietal and ranks among the most representative labels of the area. Aged for 10 months in large barrels, it expresses structure and elegance, intensity and creaminess on the palate. Zealous in demonstrating a characterful minerality
The Sauvignon “Quintessenz” from the Caldaro Kaltern winery is an elegant white wine with fragrant aromaticity produced in Pianizza di Sopra in the province of Bolzano, on the hills that surround the nearby Caldaro lake. The “Quintessenz” is made from pure Sauvignon Blanc grapes sourced from vineyards located at about 500 meters above sea level, facing east, benefiting from a significant temperature variation between day and night, and are cultivated using the guyot method on soils characterized by clay-limestone with layers rich in porphyry and granite. The winery, which has its roots in the early years of the last century, is now a large cooperative, owning about 450 hectares of vineyards, having proudly become the spokesperson for the wines that originate in the vicinity of Caldaro lake, one of the most well-known and loved areas of the entire Alto Adige.
The “Quintessenz” Sauvignon is produced with carefully selected grapes that are generally harvested around mid-September. The bunches, brought to the winery, are then destemmed, gently pressed, and separated from the skins. The resulting must undergoes spontaneous alcoholic fermentation, using exclusively indigenous yeasts and without any intervention through filtration or clarification, partly in 500-liter oak barrels and partly in large wooden casks. At the end of fermentation, the wine remains in large cask aging for a minimum period of 10 months, with frequent batonnage, before being bottled and released for sale.
The Sauvignon “Quintessenz” from Kaltern presents itself with a brilliant straw-yellow color with slight greenish hues. On the nose, intense aromas of yellow and white fruit, including peach and apple, aromas of gooseberry and exotic fruit, floral notes of elderflower, and mineral hints appear, finishing with memories of balsamic herbs and a hint of spices. On the palate, it is structured, soft, and fine, endowed with excellent freshness played on a sculpted minerality and a pleasant persistence in the finish.