Sauro Maule - 'Granselva' - Garganega, Durella, Chardonnay - Veneto, IT - 2023

Notes from the Winery/Importer

GRANSELVA is sapid and mineral; a fresh, fruity wine with high acidity and freshness that can be drunk as an aperitif or at any moment during a meal.

The name GRANSELVA derives from Selva di Montebello, the place where the grapes for this wine are produced. Young 10-year-old vines of the garganega, durella and chardonnay varieties, pressed directly as whole clusters without maceration, which ferment in stainless steel tanks.
The maturation always takes place in stainless steel, for about 7 months before bottling, to create a fresh, fruity wine with high acidity and freshness to be tasted both as an aperitif and accompanied with various foods.

Garganega is the local grape variety on the volcanic hillsides of Gambellara. Our vineyards are located in a small sub-zone called Creari where the soils also have a proportion of limestone, which enables the grape variety to best express itself. On the Gambellara hills, the oldest vines are more than 50 years old.

Durella is a typical and autochthonous variety in the Lessini Hills, characterized by a marked acidity, a characteristic that makes it particularly suitable for sparkling wines. It reaches maturity between the middle and the end of September. Excellent when combined with garganega because one completes the other and becomes even more beguiling, especially in a blend like Granselva.

The small chardonnay vineyard, with young plants about 10 years’ old, is used to produce some of the grapes that complete the Granselva blend, making it delicately more aromatic without distorting the two indigenous varieties (garganega and durella) that characterize it. Harvested approximately at the end of August.

Notes on the Producer

My wine is unfiltered. It comes from a spontaneous fermentation of the grape. Cultivated without the use of herbicides, pesticides or any other synthetic substances all in respect of the environment.The farm “Il Cavallino” started many years ago on the hills of the Colli Berici as a business in cattle breeding. My father Lino Maule, a man with great experience and a love for horses, wisely followed this activity. A few years ago, with the purchase of old family terrains in Selva of Montebello Vicentino, the farm changed its course and started a renovation in the systems and techniques of cultivating vineyards. We started with the removal of older plants that used the “Pergola” system, which had the disadvantage of having had used chemical herbicides. We then replanted them with the current system of “Guyot” and were able to oxyginate into the deep soil, contributing to the microbiological activity and in-depth development of the root system of the plant. We also mix grasses, consequently cut in the spring, into the soil to give the right amount of organic matter and nutrients without the addition of chemical fertilizers and other synthetic substances.In the treatments of the vineyards, we only use copper and sulfur. At the same time I am experimenting new natural solutions with the goal of eliminating even these basic treatments, we do not use herbicides or pesticides.In the winery, as in the vineyard, the basic choice is always the same. We add no synthetic substances. The only exception is for sulfur dioxide, added in small quantities only when necessary (with residues in the final wine that never exceed 35 mg / l).