Creator of one of Italy’s best Bordeaux-style blends, the southern Trentino winery Tenuta San Leonardo has won more awards than it can keep track of. But few are as significant as the recognition it received in early fall of 2007, when Italy’s most respected wine guides revealed their selections for the country’s top wines. One of only five Italian wines to receive the highest scores in all publications was the San Leonardo 2003, the flagship wine of Tenuta San Leonardo. Still, the achievement is merely another feather in the cap of this prestigious and highly regarded winery. Founded in 1770, Tenuta San Leonardo sits on a sprawling and gorgeous estate near Avio. Grapes may have been grown here as early as 900 AD, when monks from a monastery on the site made wine for mass. Part of the ancient monastery survives today and has been incorporated into the winery; its old hospice is now used as a cellar. The aristocratic Guerrieri Gonzaga family inherited the property in the 18th century and has been running it ever since. The 300-hectare estate lies in the heart of Vallagarina, between the villages of Masi and Borghetto on the banks of the Adige River. The fairly dry and loose gravelly soils of the 20 hectares of vineyards here are ideal for producing grapes with concentrated aromas and flavours. Particularly notable is the Cabernet Franc, which, due to the unique terroir of the area, is much less green than usual, giving the San Leonardo blend its tell-tale elegance and longevity.
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Fermentation in cement tanks and maceration with the skins for a long period of time. After that, the wine begins to mature in small new 225-liter barrels,...
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