Rosso del Palazzone: out with the DT and in with the R

From 1 January 2011 the category of Vino Da Tavola ceased to exist.

From now on wines that used to be VDT must be labelled simply as “Vino Rosso” as per the OCM (Organizzazione Comune di Mercato). This is part of a series of new laws aimed at simplifying the current appellation system, set out by the WTO.

So the question is, what to do with our Rosso del Palazzone which used to be a VDT? Or alternatively, just how many acronyms can Laura fit into one paragraph?

The Rosso del Palazzone, our VR, is a wine that we release periodically. It is made from 100% Sangiovese grapes from our own vineyards which have spent varying times in wood. Often the wines in question would/could have been Brunello or Rosso di Montalcino (since the vineyards are authorised for the production of these wines) but we declass them in order to make our Rosso. This wine is always a blend of different vintages which means that there is no vintage on the label. The clue to its composition is the lotto number which appears in the bottom right hand corner of the label. It is loved by many and was voted wine of the week for Jancis Robinson.

Recently our Rosso was described as “amazing wine.. the least informative label I've ever seen” by John Lanchester in The Guardian which has had me tweak the label while mulling over the idea of a complete re-haul.

We are bottling lotto 01/11 this week and are poised to distribute it in our usual markets for this wine; Great Britain, Vancouver and USA. Until I get the QR codes on the label, here is the composition of our most recent bottlings. Our winemaker, Paolo Vagaggini, continues to consider this wine “troppo buono” – too good to be true!

01/10 – bottled in September 2009 from a blend of 2005 and 2008.

02/10 - bottled in December 2010 from a blend of 2007, 2008 and 2009.

01/11 - bottled in February 2011 from a blend of 2007, 2008, 2009.