Wrapped up in the vines in Montalcino.

When you are standing in the middle of 20 acres of vines, in solace and silence, it gives you a chance to think and focus on the things we have before us and our future.  It also makes you think about what you are doing in the middle of 20 acres of vines and what, if anything your little bit of trimming will do to help form next years harvest.

"We are all mortal, until the first kiss, and second glass of wine." - Eduardo Galeano

Now let's backtrack a bit, well quite a bit.  We'll start with Teodolinda Banfi, the maternal Aunt of Giovanni F. Mariani Sr.  He was the founder of Banfi Vintners and she was the inspiration for the firm's name.  She great up alongside Cardinal Archbishop Achille Ratti, whom was elected Pope Pius XL in 1922.  She was the Governess for the Archbishop and followed him to the Vatican, becoming the first lay woman to live within the walls of the Sistine Palace.  She was recorded to have great knowledge in the kitchen, as well as known for her knowledge of great wine.  And so the story begins, where she passed this passion on to her nephew Giovanni Mariani Sr.

The Banfi family crest.

Giovanni Mariani Sr. was born in America, in Connecticut to be exact, and at the age of 9, moved to Italy after his father was killed in a work related accident.  I should probably mention that Mr. Mariani was born in 1895, so that the story comes together properly.  With the passion and love for great wine, that was demonstrated by his zia Teodolinda, Banfi Vintners was established in New York City, and became America's leading wine importer.

It doesn't end there, because Giovanni's son, John, in 1978, made his contribution to the family with the birth of Castello Banfi - http://castellobanfi.com/en/home/ Then his fratello, Harry collaborated with John and they acquired the historic Bruzzone cellars in Strevi, giving way to Banfi Piedmont.

We had the pleasure of visiting Castello Banfi, the largest vineyard in Italy.  With roughly 7,100 acres of land, one third is under specialized vine.  The other is shared between olive groves, wheat fields, plum trees, truffle stands, forest, and scrub.  Photos do not do justice to this scenic local.

I could go on and on about Banfi, but I suggest that you see it yourself.  Immerse yourself in the viti and smell the uva, have a prugna, or have pranzo in the Taverna, taste the local tartufo.  Seriously, even if you are not a wine drinker, one visit to this region may change your mind.

And we did enjoy a fantastic meal there, with perfect pairings.

Primo - Tagliatelle del Castello con gamberi e broccoletti.  The tagliatelle was great.  Typical tagliatelle resting on top of a bed of squid ink tagliatelle, with perfectly sautéed prawns and broccoli. Paired with Fontanelle Chardonnay 2013.  Sounds stereotypical to pair pasta and seafood with a white, but there is a reason.  I understand, we are told by people that think outside of the box to drink whatever you want, with whatever you want, however you want.  But this Chardonnay truly complimented and carried the prawns and light sauce on the tagliatelle.

Secondo - Tagliata di manzo con funghi porcini e patate arrosto.  Perfectly cooked beef with a flavorful porcini sauce and crispy roasted potatoes.  The aroma that wafted up from the plate seriously made me weep.  And paired with the infamous Castello Banfi Brunello di Montalcino 2009.

The meal didn't follow the typical Italian meal structure, which is just fine with me, because after eating what we had, the Dolce was well received.

Dolce - Crostata di ricotta con gelato al cioccolato.  I am one that of course the food must have the best flavor possible, obviously.  But I do enjoy a magnificent presentation, and we were fortunate to have both with this.  Paired with the Florus 2011.

And of course, for digestive purposes, we had caffe corretto.  Espresso with Grappa del Castello.

We slowly made our way outside for our tour of the winery, and then departed for our journey back to Orvieto.  But the story doesn't end here.  No, remember what I had posted at the beginning of this blog?  Now it's time to move ahead to the last few days here.  Where we had the great fortune to travel to the countryside, to Casa Segreta - http://www.casasegreta.com/#!, to help Chef Lorenzo trim the viti.  This is the official introduction of Chef Lorenzo, because he is an integral part of this trip.  I'm not going to give his entire bio, right now, because I want to focus on the uva(grapes).

As a novice wine drinker, myself included, don't really consider the amount of care that goes into the product contained in the bottle.  It's something I've never considered, until now.

A little background on the vineyard.  Chef has been certified as a farmer since 2012, however has been assisting with this process since he was a child.  And his Grandfather has owned the land since the 20's, where he raised cattle, sheep, and grew wheat.

There are currently 20 acres of grapes - trebbiano, grechetto, vermintino, viongier, moscato, and merlot.  There are two more varieties that he has as well, and for the life of me, I thought I had written them down, but can't find them.  Regardless, it is quite a variety.  These grapes help produce the wine for Ristorante Zeppelin - Matile, the house/table wine.  But don't think that because it's table wine that the labor that goes into the process is any less intense or the love shown for the grapes is any less than those wines that are high priced, and highly prized.  I suppose I'm biased, having actually had my hands in the process, but then again, look at the popularity of three buck chuck.  And remember, just because you pay $50 for a bottle of wine, doesn't mean that the quality will reflect in the flavor.

After you start your initial growing process, you have time, typically your second year you will begin to see fruit, however your third year should produce a good harvest.  The average lifespan of your vines will be 25 years, depending on weather or disease.

In Chef's vineyard, he uses a combination of American and Italian vines.  This is a common process around Italy.  The Portennesto, Rootstock, is the bottom, the American vine.  The top, Marza, is the Italian vine.  Obviously, over the years, this process has become easier, however none the less laborious.  I searched for a video of the Italian process, but had no luck, but this video is along the same lines.

At this time, you don't just sit and wait and magically fruit appears.  No, you must fertilize, manure is obviously the method of choice.  You are also once or twice a week tilling the soil.  Keeping a close eye on your crop, checking the growth to know when the vines need to be tied to be sure that they do not fall and to help guide them.

On your second year, in March, the vines need to really be watched and tied, and as long as all goes well, by the end of April you will see your first buds.  And in order for all of this to come together, there is something that the farmers call the Rule of three 10's.  You need 10 cm of bud sprouting, 10 mm of rain, and 10 degrees celsius.  For example, if the night goes above 10 celsius, you could have an attack of fungus-Downy Mildew.  There are other funguses that can also affect your crop, such as Noble Rot, which can destroy your crop for up to 2 years.

As the year progresses, you continue to watch and guide the vines.  Then come Sept./Oct, you are ready to harvest.  Currently at Casa Segreta, it is now 80% mechanical harvesting and 20% manual.  There are pros and cons to both, such as cost efficiency and the amount being harvested.  You still need someone to lead the mechanical, because depending on the height of the vine, someone needs to loosen up the upper fruit.  There is also a matter of time efficiency.  On chef's farm, 12 people to harvest 20 acres, would take a few weeks, but mechanically it takes 2 days.  And a good harvest produces 4 tons of grapes per acre.

In November/December, you begin the process of trimming the vines, to help for next season's crop, which is all manual.  And that is where I found myself, the other day.  Not a sound, except the wind blowing through the valley, well, and an occasional helicopter.  But besides that, it was just me, the vines, and my clippers.  And with that, my entire thinking of what some consider to be cheap, flavorless table wine changed.

Chef/Farmer Lorenzo Polegri demonstrating the proper way to trim and clean the vine. 

Our helper, Chef's pup-Clara

Grapes on the left, Olives on the right.

My work.

There is hard work put into almost every wine we drink.  Is it all palatable?  Is it all easy to drink?  No, of course not, but there is a reason people come into Ristorante Zeppelin - http://www.ristorantezeppelin.it/eng/restaurant.html and finish multiple bottles of his wine.  If they only knew that it was more than just table wine.  If they only knew the long days and nights that go into cultivating and caring for the vines.  I encourage you to visit a vineyard, and get your hands dirty.  You'll never look at a bottle of wine the same way again.

And the day is over.

The perfect way to end a night.  A fire in the hearth and a well deserved dinner.  I think everyone should have one in their kitchen.