The new hectares of the Treviso estate will not be used to grow Glera grapes (Prosecco)
San Pietro di Feletto, 19 February 2024_In the hills of Conegliano Valdobbiadene, the “home” of the most consumed Italian wine in the world, the Balbinot family is expanding its production with new references and opening up to wine tourism with experiences in the vineyard and cellar. New views in the land of Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore Docg to meet the demands of the overseas market on the one hand and anticipate consumer choices on the other.
In fact, the company has recently planted about 3 hectares of its property with vines of Incrocio Manzoni or Manzoni Bianco and Merlot. It also signed a long-term lease agreement for 12.5 hectares of Pinot Grigio Doc Delle Venezie.
“Incrocio Manzoni,’ explains Ernesto Balbinot, owner of Società Agricola Le Manzane, ‘is an autochthonous grape to which I am particularly attached and which we already produce in small quantities in the classic version with ageing in steel, but which in my opinion also lends itself well to ageing in wood or other containers. We are, in fact, testing refinement in tonneaux of different types and in egg-shaped cement tanks to understand the evolution of the product over time.
At the end of 2023, we finally presented the first 2,000 bottles of Incrocio Manzoni made from grapes fermented and aged in wood, an unfiltered white wine that we called Sabbiato. This wine will be flanked by a Merlot that is currently resting in wood; here too we are experimenting because I would like to obtain an elegant wine, with character, but not overly robust’.
‘The decision to also cultivate Pinot Grigio,’ Balbinot continues, ‘has several facets. First of all, Pinot Grigio Doc delle Venezie is a very important product in overseas markets such as North America, where the winery is not present, markets that we would like to penetrate; furthermore, the Doc delle Venezie Pinot Grigio, in such difficult years, has managed to maintain a positive trend with almost 5 million more bottles sold in 2023, a growth that bodes well for the future. Another aspect that should not be underestimated is the ripening period of the grape bunches, which allows for vinifications that are not concomitant with the Glera grapes.
Among the vineyards of the Le Manzane estate, wine is a family affair. Ernesto Balbinot with his wife Silvana and their children Marco and Anna have recently started to offer a package of experiences aimed at wine tourists and wine enthusiasts by putting at their disposal the tasting room with a view over the terraces of the cellar carved into the rock and the Glera rows of the vineyard where the ®️Vendemmia Solidale takes place every year in September. The other location is the ‘Le Manzane Hills’ estate just 5 minutes’ drive from the winery where the ‘Garden of Bees’ is located with beehives painted by the children of Casa Adelaide. The proposal is not only an invitation to enjoy a good glass of wine paired with honey, cheeses and local cold cuts, but also to experience a tasting that tells stories, anecdotes, knowledge, identity and territory. A journey to discover the secrets of the world’s most famous bubbly, Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore DOCG also in the Cartizze version, of indigenous grape varieties such as Manzoni Bianco or Verdiso, or of international reds. The winery also offers smart tasting and adrenaline experiences on board the Land Rover Defender.
More info at: https://www.lemanzane.com/esperienze.
