Leone De Castris Villa Santera Primitivo Di Manduria 2022 (750ml)

 

 Leone De Castris Villa Santera 

 

       Primitivo Di Manduria 2022            

 

The production area for Primitivo di Manduria wines stretches eastwards from Taranto, along the Gulf of Taranto coast for about 25 miles (40km).  This area, which was awarded DOC status in 1974, is one of the oldest DOC appellations of the South of Italy.  The name Villa Santera refers to an ancient farm owned by the Leone De Castris family.

 

Tasting Notes

 

Intense deep red color with purple hues.  The nose reveals rich aromas of plum, black cherry and spices such as ginger and vanilla.  On the palate it is full-bodied, velvety and well balanced.

 

Food Pairings

 

Ideal with grilled meats, baked pasta or pasta with hearty sauces, and cheese.

 

Winemaking & Aging

 

Varietal Composition:  100% Primitivo

 

Fermentation Container:  Stainless Steel Vats (8-10 days at 20 - 22°C)

 

Maceration Technique:  On the skins for a minimum of 10 days.

 

Type of aging container:  French oak barriques

 

Length of aging:  6 Months

 

Length of bottle aging:  3 Months

 

Vineyard & Production Information

 

Vineyard Name:  Santera

 

Vineyard Size:  36 hectares

 

Soil Composition:  Clay, Loam

 

Training Method:  Apulian head training

 

Elevation:  60 meters a.s.l.

 

Vines/hectare:  7,000/hectare

 

Exposure:  East-West

 

Age:  40 Years

 

Harvest Time:  First ten days of September

 

First Vintage:  1997

 

Production:  290,000 Bottles

 

Puglia Region, Italy

 

Most Puglia wine is red, full-bodied, and will pair well with a wide variety of foods.  Producers in Puglia have focused on making great red wines, and local grapes like Negroamaro, Primitivo, and Bombino Nero make for delicious drinking.  Some of the best values in Italian wine come from this sunny, dry region.

 

 

Leone de Castris

 

        Producer Profile

 

Estate owned by:  Leone De Castris Family

 

Winemaker:  Matteo Esposito; Consultant Riccardo Cotarella

 

Total acreage of vine:  990 (400 Ha)

 

Winery Production:  2,500,000 Bottles

 

Region:  Puglia

 

The Leone de Castris family has been making wines in Salice Salentino for over three centuries, a small village in the region of Puglia, rich in vineyards and olive trees.  In 1665 Duke Oronzo, Earl of Lemos, started the company on the very spot where today’s cellar stands.  He became enchanted by this landscape and decided to sell all his properties in Spain in order to draw the best from the Salentine-rich terroir.  At the beginning of the 19th century, the winery had become to export bulk wine to the United States, Germany, and France until, with Piero and Lisetta Leone de Castris at the helm, the company started bottling its own wines.  Soon after, in 1943, they were the first to bottle Rosé wine from Italy, called Five Roses, rightfully becoming a legend in the history of the Italian winemaking tradition.

 

The production of Five Roses began during the end of the Second World War, thanks to the initiative and boldness of Don Piero, the current family’s grandfather.  He had his wine tasted by the American General Charles Poletti, Supply Officer of the Allied Forces.  It was a success, and from then on, Five Roses has been their most important wine, traditionally speaking, and the first one to make both the company and Salento more well-known.  The name “Five Roses” derives from a family crest, so-called because for several generations, each de Castris had five children.  Their Red Salice Salentino was launched in 1954 and, mainly thanks to the efforts of the company, got the DOC denomination in the early ’70s.  In the ‘60s, the winery direction passed to Cavaliere del Lavoro Salvatore Leone de Castris and in the ‘90s to his son Piernicola Leone de Castris.

 

Along with their famous Rosé, the winery produces a wide range of red and white DOC wines (Salice Salentino, Primitivo di Manduria) and interesting IGT Salento and Puglia wines.  Leone de Castris wines have won awards and received prestigious international recognition.  Their products are today exported all over the world, from the USA to Canada, Brazil, Australia, Singapore, Japan, Hong Kong, and more.

 

www.leonedecastris.com