Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon, grape varieties that result in wines that are among the most structured, long-lived and appreciated in the world. Fighting for the title of most important grape variety, they are similar on many points (they prefer warm climates to reach the best maturation, they tend to produce wines of great structure and consistency) but on others they present differences (they belong to different families and their profile polyphenolic is very different). Two heavyweights of viticulture who manage to give their all in our microclimate.
SYRAH
Syrah (or Shiraz as they call it in Australia) is a vine with an exotic and mysterious origin. Hypotheses about its origins have always been one of the main discussions among winelovers. Initially it was not a wine that aroused much interest (it was only cultivated in the Rhone valley), but in recent decades the great potential of this grape variety has been discovered in areas with a warm climate and now it has a large group of winelovers who adore it. One of the secrets to making a Syrah worthy of this name is given by the choice and wise use of the barrique (it is the only wine in which we use also american wood), which requires a lot of attention to give great results. Syrah is usually used in blends (those with Cabernet Sauvignon and in Tuscany with Sangiovese are very common) but with our microclimate we are able to vinify a 100% Syrah. At the moment our winery has 1 hectare of Syrah whose vines date back to 1997 and 1 hectare in which they date back to 1986. These two vineyards have different behaviors (this variety acts very differently based on age), so much so that they are harvested even 10 days later; precisely for this reason, in the 2019 vintage for the first time we made two Syrah: one from the 37-year-old vineyard and one from the 25-year-old vineyard.
CABERNET SAUVIGNON (SASSOFORTE)
Cabernet Sauvignon, the most famous and celebrated grape variety in the world. There is no wine area in which this variety is not present. Born from a casual cross between Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc ( the cross between a red grape variety and a white one is truly anomalous), it is found in many important blends for its well-defined structure. Cabernet Sauvignon is the grape variety linked to the barrique more than any other, from which it manages to give its best. In our winery, thanks to our particular microclimate, we are able to do something that few can afford: a pure Cabernet Sauvignon. Making a 100% Cabernet Sauvignon worthy of the name is one of the dreams of a wine producer because the grape variety is very suitable for blends but in very few places there are the climatic conditions to vinify a great pure Cabernet Sauvignon. The main characteristic of Sassoforte, our Cabernet Sauvignon, is its great structure which, however, harmonizes very well with the other properties of the wine, without being tannic and aggressive: a real “iron fist in a velvet glove”.
For further information you can visit the Syrah and Sassoforte page
