James Suckling awarded it a perfect 100 points, calling it:
“A new reference point for Merlot in Italy... The floral aromas are spellbinding, with notes of violets, lilacs, orange peel, raspberries, rose petals, and some oranges... medium- to full-bodied with crunchy and open-grain tannins that are creamy and caressing... endless in the finish... Such purity... Pure Merlot.
Score: (*) 100 JS 94 VG 110 LG 97 RP 97 FA 93 WS 97 DEC
Galatrona is the “Grand-Cru” of Merlot by Petrolo, only made with the grapes from the vineyard of the same name planted between the end of the 80’s and half of the 90’s with low vigor bordeaux clones. The peculiar soil, rich in clay in combination with schist, marl and sandstones, allows the concentration of all the noble components of the grapes, fundamental for the great structure, elegance, balance and persistence wanted for this wine.
The Vineyard: Galatrona is the “Grand-Cru” of Petrolo, only made with Merlot grapes from the vineyard Galatrona planted between the end of the 80’s and half of the 90’s with low vigor bordeaux clones. The vineyard extends for 10 Ha with almost 50.000 plants grown on spurred cordon trellising.
First Vintage: 1994
The Soil: Loam rich in clay, with shale, marl and sandstone. Altitude 300 m asl. South-eastern exposure. Placed on the south-eastern borders of the Chianti Hills, in the DOC Val d’Arno di Sopra. Clay helps keeping moisture in the soil, of which merlot has higher needs in the hot, dry, Tuscan summers. The combination of stones, shale and clay is among the elements that allow Galatrona to produce elegant and full-bodied wines even in what are considered minor vintages.
Vinegrowing: Since 2004 we have been abandoning traditional farming methods practising natural/sustainable farming: dry farming, no tillage, total grassing with mulch management, no synthetic pesticides or fertilizers. Official Organic Certification was obtained from harvest 2016 (Petrolo olive oil is organic since the 90’s). To achieve natural balance in the vineyard, the plants are managed by hand with targeted intervention. Heavier pruning and grape thinning are almost absent in the mature vineyards already balanced. Today extra management is only needed in the more challenging years.
Vinification: Manual harvest in crates and further grape selection with sorting table. Spontaneous fermentation with native yeasts in glazed concrete vats. Soft and frequent manual pumping over.
Aging: Spontaneous malo-lactic fermentation in wood. Maturation for about 18/20 months in rigorously selected French oak tonneaux and barriques, new for about a third. Constant batonnage of the fine lees for the first 8 months.
Style: Intense elegant wine with great structure and complexity, lovely balance between acidity, fruit and tannins. A great wine, beyond the grape variety it’s made from, which talk of the piece of land it came from, a classic in its own way.
Wine Appellation: DOC Valdarno di Sopra, Merlot (100%), Vigna Galatrona. Estate produced and bottled. ORGANIC
Vintage Report: The 2022 was a very good vintage during which all grapes phenological stages developed regularly.
After the summer drought, the few intense rainfalls of the second half of August boosted moisture and allowed optimal ripening and balanced production which led to excellent wine quality.
Harvest: Started the first week of September.
Yield: This vintage allowed abundant quality production.
Parameters Alcohol: 14 % Acidità: 5.67 g/l pH: 3.54
