Rosso dei Ronchi 2021
DOC Ticino, Cantina Monti, 750 ml
| Grape variety: | Merlot, Diolinoir, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Carminoir |
| Producer: | Cantina Monti |
| Origin: | Switzerland / Tessin / Sottoceneri |
Description
All the potential of the Malcantone terroir in a single bottle! This wine is made from a blend of five grape varieties, with Merlot predominating. All grape varieties are grown in Ronchi di Cademario. This Ticino red wine shows a great structure, with beautifully integrated, ripe tannins, plus elegant, fruity aromas, as well as balsamic and subtle toasted notes.
Attributes
| Origin: | Switzerland / Tessin / Sottoceneri |
| Grape variety: | Merlot, Diolinoir, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Carminoir |
| Ripening potential: | 5 to 10 years after harvest |
| Drinking temperature: | 16 to 18 °C |
| Food Pairing: | Brasato di manzo al Barolo, Châteaubriand, Filet Wellington, Rabbit ragout with olives, Saddle of lamb fillet with herb jus, Roast saddle of venison, Spicy hard cheese |
| Vinification: | long must fermentation, fermentation in steel tank, fining |
| Harvest: | hand-picking |
| Maturation: | in large wooden barrel/foudre, long cultivation |
| Bottling: | filtration |
| Maturation duration: | 16 months |
| Volume: | 14.0 % |
| Note: | Contains sulphites |
Cantina Monti
Located at 550 meters above sea level, with extreme slopes, the Cantina Monti covers 4.7 hectares. The sloping soil does not allow mechanization in the vines, which includes nine different grape varieties. Every season, the Monti family immediately focuses on the production of superior quality wines, a quality also given by the very low yield in the vineyard.
For Cantina Monti, discipline and respect for the harvest are the keys to the success of the vintage. This means protecting nature and embracing the methods of Integrated Production in order to minimize interventions in the vineyard. The time of harvesting is essential, and must take place at the right time. For this reason, at the Cantina Monti several harvests are carried out, depending on the vine in question. Even in the cellar there are rules: the less the product is scrambled, the more the integrity of the wine itself is guaranteed insuring a taste created by nature.
Merlot
Everybody’s darling
Merlot is the most charming member of the Bordeaux family. It shines with rich colour, fragrant fullness, velvety tannins and sweet, plummy fruit. It even makes itself easy for the vintner, as it matures without issue in cool years as well. This is in contrast to the stricter Cabernet Sauvignon, which it complements as a blending partner. Its good qualities have made the Merlot famous worldwide. At over 100,000 hectares, it is the most-planted grape in France. It also covers large areas in California, Italy, Australia and recently in Eastern Europe. The only catch is that pure Merlot varieties rarely turn out well. Its charm is often associated with a lack of substance. Only the best specimens improve with maturity. They then develop complex notes of leather and truffles. This succeeds in the top wines from the Bordeaux appellation of Pomerol and those from Ticino, among others.
Cabernet Sauvignon
The backbone of Bordeaux
The Cabernet Sauvignon gives the Bordeaux its backbone, yielding deep violet wines with powerful tannins and endless ripening potential. It is the top dog in Médoc, and is placed in all five premier crus of Bordelais. When young, it often appears strict and unapproachable, but with advancing years, its tannins round off. It is wonderfully velvety, and yet always maintains its freshness. Typical flavours include cassis, graphite and cedar. Wherever Cabernet Sauvignon is found, Merlot is not far away. It complements the robust structure of Cabernet with softness, fruit and richness. The Cabernet Sauvignon is the most-exported vine in the world. It delivers persuasive qualities in Italy as an ingredient of the Super Tuscan, or as the flagship variety from California. There, it is lovingly titled “Cab Sauv”. Meat fans should be aware that it fantastically accompanies a grilled entrecôte. The family tree of Cabernet Sauvignon is surprising: its parents are Cabernet Franc and the white Sauvignon blanc.
Cabernet Franc
Forefather of the Bordeaux varieties
The Cabernet Franc is one of the oldest varieties of Bordelais and a parent of three other red grapes in the Bordeaux assortment: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Carmenère. It is distinguished by its complex, flavourful bouquet of raspberry, graphite, violet, liquorice and white pepper. In addition, it presents round, crisp tannins which turn out less strongly than those of Cabernet Sauvignon. While the Cabernet Franc always appears as part of a blend in Bordeaux, it is pressed alone on the Loire. The most renowned appellations are Chinon and Bourgueil. Incidentally, the Cabernet originates not in Bordeaux but in the Spanish Basque Country. Cabernet owes its name to the Latin “carbon”, meaning black.
Carminoir
The lovely breed from the Zürichsee
The Carminoir variety was created at the Swiss Federal agricultural research institute Agroscope in Wädenswil.
Its mother is the Pinot Noir variety; the father, Cabernet Sauvignon. Like its father, Carminoir is late-maturing, and thus suits only the best locations. In return, the grape – much like its mother – can be very productive. It seems most comfortable in Valais and Ticino. The blue-black grapes can be pressed into color-rich, powerful, and tannic wines, with very complex aromas.
This still nascent vine is one of the few varieties which has no synonym
Diolinoir
Unanticipated qualities
Many new varieties are initially underestimated. So it proved with Diolinoir, a cross between Pinot noir and an old French grape by the name of Robin noir. The latter was found in the 1920s in a vine collection in Diolly, in Valais. As it was not known where it had been cultivated, the red immigrants were simply called Rouge de Diolly. When it was crossed in 1970, the name Diolinor came from “Diolly” and “noir”. Not much was expected of these grapes: they were only grown to lend a hand colour-wise to other Swiss varieties. In recent years, however, vintners have discovered that they are capable of much more. When produced in wooden casks, they mature into well-grounded wines with aromas of blackberries and black cherries, as well as solid, round tannins. Definitely try Diolinoir with lamb.
Tessin
Ticino: the Merlot Mecca of Switzerland
Ticino winegrowing is thought to date from Roman times, as early as 2000 years ago. But the foundation for today’s viticulture was laid just over 100 years ago, in 1907. It was then that the first Merlot vines were planted at Castelrotto in Malcantone. Since then, the variety has emerged triumphant here. Top selections matured in barriques more than measure up to those from Bordeaux’s Saint-Émilion or Pomerol regions.
Switzerland
Switzerland – A small country with enormous diversity
Switzerland is famous for its banks, watches, and cheese, but not necessarily for its wine. The Swiss didn't invent wine, but they have been extremely open and curious to it. Wine culture arrived in what is now modern Switzerland via several routes: from Marseilles to Lake Geneva and the Lower Valais region; from the Aosta Valley through the Great St. Bernard Pass to the rest of Valais; from the Rhone through Burgundy, across the Jura Mountains to Lake Constance; and from Lombardy to Ticino, and then on to Grisons.
