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2017 Alto Adige Merlot-Cabernet Sauvignon “Iugum”

Peter Dipoli
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While this red consists of grape varieties originating outside of Alto Adige, it tastes as local as can be. Peter Dipoli chose to plant Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon in the mountains of northern Italy after extensively surveying the land, accounting for every nuance of soil and climate with the lofty ambition to make an age-worthy wine defined by its place of origin. Over thirty years later, his gamble has paid off. Pour it in a lineup of great Bordeaux growths and Napa’s finest to see how a similar blend behaves in a radically different environment. In its prime now, the 2017 can still be cellared for many more years.

Anthony Lynch

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Technical Information
Wine Type: red
Vintage: 2017
Bottle Size: 750mL
Blend: 80% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon
Appellation: Alto Adige
Country: Italy
Region: Alto Adige
Producer: Peter Dipoli
Winemaker: Peter Dipoli
Vineyard: Planted in 1992, 1.1 ha
Soil: Clay, Limestone
Aging: Wine ages in bottle until 4 years after harvest
Farming: Sustainable
Alcohol: 14%

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About The Region

Alto Adige

map of Alto Adige

In the heart of the Dolomites, Alto Adige is Italy’s northernmost wine region. Having changed hands multiples times in its history between Italy and the Austro-Hungarian Empire (it shares a border with Austria), it boasts strong Germanic influence on its culture, language, cuisine, as well as its wines.

The mountainous geography is the principal determinant of local winemaking styles, with the high-altitude vineyards and cool Alpine climate favoring primarily crisp, racy, aromatic whites from varieties like Kerner, Sauvignon, Müller Thurgau, and Grüner Veltliner. A Mediterranean influence on climate is channeled north up the valley until Bolzano, permitting the cultivation of certain reds as well, among which Schiava, Lagrein, Pinot Nero, and Merlot fare best.

Small growers who once sold fruit to the area’s multiple co-ops are now increasingly bottling their own wines. The arrival of many quality-oriented artisans on the scene caught our eye years ago, and we now count three estates from Südtirol, as it is also known, in our portfolio. These high-acid mountain wines make for a beautifully invigorating aperitivo with thinly sliced speck, a local specialty.

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Terroirs

Great winemakers, great terroirs, there is never any hurry. And I no longer buy into this idea of “peak” maturity. Great winemakers, great terroirs, their wines offer different pleasures at different ages.

Inspiring Thirst, page 312

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