Wine Farm: Oseleta red wine :

An indigenous Veronese grape variety.

The earliest available records of Oseleta date back to the late 19th. - early 20th. century. These references exalted the variety’s analytical characteristics (and especially its polyphenolic content) but advised against its use because of its low yields in terms both of grapes and in wine.
It is to be found sparsely planted around the historic vineyards of the Valpolicella area, and it is only in the last 15 years or so that certain vineyards have been devoted specifically to this grape variety. At present there is probably a total area of some 10-12 hectares (25-30 acres) of Oseleta being cultivated in the whole of the Valpolicella zone, but new plantings are foreseen over the next few years. So far, the only wines made from Oseleta that are on the market are blends with other varieties, since this grape is generally thought of as making wines that are fairly rustic in nature, with distinctly coarse and earthy sensations.
As from the 2002 vintage, Oseleta is an authorized and recommended grape for the Valpolicella area.

Notable characteristics:
marked anthocyanins, tannins, total acidity and dry extract.
Yield of grapes in wine: maximum 55%.
Because of its lack of specific and pronounced aromatic characteristics, it blends well with other grape varieties.
It produces wine that is undoubtedly long-lived.

In view of the above, the question naturally arises as to why we should have wished to make a 100% varietal wine from Oseleta. Our motivation was quite simply that of expressing to the full the characteristics and potential of a cultivar that is quite different from (yet in no way inferior to, if not in terms of its yield) other, better-known varieties. Moreover, Oseleta forms an integral part of our historic ampelographic and viticultural heritage, and this is, for us, a factor of no small importance: indeed, it is very much in line with our declared aim of being constantly innovative whilst respecting and celebrating our historical traditions.

Technical and analytical data on the wine:
Grape variety: 100% Oseleta
Vineyard: planted in 1998, with 8,000 Guyot-trained vines per hectare - Zone: Valpolicella
Minimum/Maximum yield: 4,000-6,000 kg. per hectare
Yield of grapes in wine: 50-55%
Vineyard operations: removal of superfluous leaves; thinning of the bunches. Harvest: at the beginning of October, in 15kg.cases.
Vinification/ageing: the grapes are crushed immediately, and the must is then fermented in cement tanks for approximately 15 days without recourse to selected yeasts or enzymes. Ageing is carried out in barriques for around 17 months.

An important factor: the wine needs a great deal of oxygenation during its maturation.
Alcohol level: 13% vol. - Total acidity: 6.60
Dry extract: 33.70 - Ph: 3.47