Cantina Valle Reale Popoli Pescara

The grapes for Montepulciano d’Abruzzo Valle Reale come from the vineyards of Popoli and from the Convento vineyard in Capestrano. These two areas have different climatic profiles. The Convento vineyard in Capestrano is located in the Piana di Ofena and Capestrano valley, nicknamed the “Oven of Abruzzo” - particularly hot during the summer compared with Popoli. Both vineyards benefit from the wide temperature range between day and night, which promotes high acidity levels. The Capestrano vineyard produces grapes that yield more structured wines, while the Popoli vineyards enhance the complexity of the aromas. Although the two areas have different soils, the stony component, typical of mountain regions, characterizes both vineyards.
Montepulciano d’Abruzzo Valle Reale matures very slowly and maintains good acidity and aromas of small red berries. The spontaneous fermentation applied to the different grape selections has allowed us to obtain a unique wine, one that only a mountain area is able to express.

The Sant'Eusanio vineyard is a small garden of vines surrounded by pine woods. It is located in the highest and coldest area of all Valle Reale at 497 m above sea level.
The north-facing exposure, the stony soil, and the wide temperature swings between day and night are at the limit for ripening Montepulciano, making it a unique wine. It is an uncompromising expression of mountain Montepulciano and speaks the brisk language of acidity and freshness combined with a balanced structure. The vines were planted in the spring of 2002. Montepulciano from the Sant’Eusanio Vineyard was first produced in 2009, with spontaneous fermentation. In the right vintages, in its apparent simplicity, it represents the most elegant wine in our production.
Climate change affecting our area causes damage or benefits depending on the situation it impacts. While it is true that in the past it was almost impossible to think of achieving phenolic ripeness at Sant’Eusanio, today climate change helps us here. This is an extraordinarily powerful vintage for Sant’Eusanio, yet it does not change its fine and elegant nature. The typical and familiar acidity and fragrance that this parcel gives us are combined with a balanced structure thanks to the warm vintage. The Sant’Eusanio Vineyard is a wine that ferments in stainless steel and remains in contact with its lees for one year. It is then aged in bottle for 8 months without being filtered.

The Vigna del Convento is the latest CRU, carved out within the vineyard area planted in the municipality of Capestrano; the land was once cultivated with vines and vegetable gardens, belonging to the ancient Convent of San Francesco, built from the mid-15th century on a hill overlooking the small village of Capestrano.
Poor soil rich in stones, but with a good clay component. In 2003, the vineyard faced the hottest harvest of the last hundred years. The microclimate, very different from that of the Popoli plateau, is warm and windy, balanced by the right amount of humidity thanks to the small lake of Capestrano, which is why the grapes in this vineyard ripen earlier. With the 2018 harvest, in the Vigna del Convento parcel, phenolic ripeness was reached, allowing this wine to be produced for the third time in twenty years. The very concentrated grapes, perfect for the vinification method using only wood, in 50-quintal Garbellotto barrels, gave us a wine of great longevity, body, and structure, combined with excellent verticality and great elegance.
The bouquet is complex, with pronounced herbal notes; the tannin is elegant but present.

It is a refined wine that comes from a true locus amoenus, where the rows stretch out in front of the ruins of a cave cellar dating back to around 1300. Here the Benedictine monks, descending from the convent located in San Benedetto in Perillis, a tiny village clinging to the mountains behind Valle Reale, made and stored their wine.

A wine that comes from grapes of great quality and aromatic intensity. Deep ruby red in color, with aromas of berries, red fruit, and spices. On the palate, it stands out for its structure and persistence, with good savoriness.

The “Vigneto di Popoli” wine is one of Valle Reale’s flagship labels, made from vines that are about 70 years old, grown on calcareous-clay soils. Fermentation takes place in steel tanks with only indigenous yeasts and maceration on the skins for about 10 days. Before bottling, the wine matures in French oak tonneaux for a period of about 12 months.

Vigneto di Popoli is the 1-hectare parcel dedicated to Trebbiano d'Abruzzo; further south, the larger vineyard reserved for Montepulciano d'Abruzzo extends. The Montepulciano from Vigneto di Popoli is the offspring of the estate’s oldest vineyard. All the rows face southeast toward the Majella and the Monti del Morrone and benefit from the presence of a dense oak forest that borders them to the west.

The land, as for the entire plateau near Popoli, lies at 350 meters above sea level. The woods surrounding the vineyard are rich in plant species, tall trees, shrubs, and flowers, which thrive thanks to the healthy air and the purity of the waters from the spring of the Pescara River that flows beneath the vineyard soil. The integrity of this environment favors the development of native yeast strains.

Walking among these vineyards, encounters with the wildlife that inhabits these mountains are not rare, from deer to badgers, foxes, and even the exceptional sighting of some wolves.