feature / on the vine / Ca’del Bosco
Vintage Collection Dosage Zéro 2017 DOCG Franciacorta (75cl) (69% Chardonnay, 18% Pinot Nero, 13% Pinot Bianco; 12.5% ABV; 0.3g/l RS)
Composed of wines from 24 plots. Same annual conditions, harvest and yields as the Satèn above. Charming, toasted-brioche aromas, with elegant fruit and fine mousse on the palate. | 90
Vintage Collection Dosage Zéro 2016 DOCG Franciacorta (Magnum) (65% Chardonnay, 22% Pinot Nero, 13% Pinot Bianco; 12.9% ABV; 0.8g/l RS)
Composed of wines from 28 plots. Harvested in the last third of August, yielding 8,000kg/ha and providing 34hl/ha (43% extraction), this magnum won a gold medal at CSWWC 2021. Lovely, toasty layers on deliciously ripe, flinty fruit. Powerful, but linear, smart, and stylish, with nicely yeast-complexed finish. | 95
Vintage Collection Dosage Zéro 2015 DOCG Franciacorta (Magnum) (65% Chardonnay, 22% Pinot Nero, 13% Pinot Bianco; 12.8% ABV; 1.2g/l RS)
Composed of wines from 24 plots. Harvested in the second third of August, yielding 8,200kg/ha and providing 35hl/ha (43% extraction). Fresh, succulent, zesty-citrus fruit, with a very delicate mousse. This is a very good, elegant wine that has some finesse, but not the completeness, nor the degree of finesse that the Satèn of the same vintage has. | 90
Vintage Collection Dosage Zéro 2014 DOCG Franciacorta (Magnum) (65% Chardonnay, 22% Pinot Nero, 13% Pinot Bianco; 12.5% ABV; 1.8g/l RS)
Composed of wines from 19 plots. Harvested in the last third of August, yielding 8,000kg/ha and providing 34hl/ha (43% extraction). This delicious, toasty, golden-hued beauty has come on leaps and bounds over the past 3 to 4 years. Beautiful acidity drawing a long line in the linear fruit structure, with yeast-complexed, yellow fruit and hints of grapefruit on the finish. Simply vivacious! | 95
Vintage Collection Dosage Zéro 2013 DOCG Franciacorta (Magnum) (65% Chardonnay, 22% Pinot Nero, 12% Pinot Bianco; 12.5% ABV; 1.5g/l RS)
Composed of wines from 25 plots. Harvested in the last third of August, yielding 7,500kg/ha and providing 32hl/ha (43% extraction). Another gorgeous, toasty-rich wine. More power, less elegance, but packed with energy and freshness, therefore not lacking finesse. | 93
Vintage Collection Dosage Zéro 2012 DOCG Franciacorta (Magnum) (65% Chardonnay, 22% Pinot Nero, 13% Pinot Bianco; 12.5% ABV; 1.7g/l RS)
Composed of wines from 25 plots. Harvested in the second third of August, yielding 7,400kg/ha and providing 32hl/ha (43% extraction). This vintage has a similar power to the 2013, but it is more linear, compressed, and intense. The restraint in the toastiness is so impressive. Such a long and lingering finish. Fabulous! | 95
Vintage Collection Dosage Zéro Noir 2013 DOCG Franciacorta (75cl) (100% Pinot Nero; 12.5% ABV; 0.9g/l RS)
Composed of wines from just 3 plots on Ca’del Bosco’s acclaimed Belvedere vineyard at at altitude of 1,500ft (466m) overlooking Lake Iseo. Harvested on September 6, yielding 5,900kg/ha and providing 25hl/ha (43% extraction). Thunderstorms and extremes of temperature reaching almost 104°
F (40° C) were responsible for gray rot, requiring the strictest 148 | THE WORLD OF FINE WINE | ISSUE 79 | 2023
pre-selection in the vineyard and addition sorting in the winery prior to the full “Berry Spa” treatment. What a beautiful, rose-gold hued delight has blossomed from such an awkward start. Pure finesse, from its warm and welcoming toasty aromas, through plush fruit and velvety mousse, to its never-ending finish. | 96
Vintage Collection Dosage Zéro Noir 2011, 2009, 2007, and 2006 DOCG Franciacorta (75cl) (100% Pinot Nero; 12.5% ABV; 0.9g/l RS)
Although I am used to tasting à la volée, I found the potential of these four vintages difficult to predict, particularly in context with the awesome quality of the commercially disgorged 2013. Sometimes it is better to disgorge à la volée the day before and allow the disgorgement aromas to settle. These aromas, which should not show in the commercially disgorged wine and seldom do, can include excessively aldehydic. Maybe a future à la volée vertical could be disgorged one day ahead, but for now, I shall reserve judgment. | NS
Annamaria Clementi 2013 DOCG Franciacorta (75cl) (75% Chardonnay, 15% Pinot Nero, 10% Pinot Bianco; 13% ABV; 0.7g/l RS)
Composed of wines from 24 plots. Harvested in the last third of August, yielding 7,500kg/ha and providing 29hl/ha (39% extraction). Same weather and harvesting conditions as the Vintage Collection Dosage Zéro Noir 2013 above and, well, goodness gracious me, what a mesmerizing wine it is! Another glorious 2013, this extraordinarily fresh and vibrant Franciacorta has a refined and toasty nose with complex notes of brioche, biscuit, and bread, exquisite linear structure, and intensely rich fruit beautifully balanced by bright acidity. Full of life and vitality. | 96
Annamaria Clementi 2013 DOCG Franciacorta (Magnum) (64% Chardonnay, 26% Pinot Nero, 10% Pinot Bianco; 13% ABV; 0.7g/l RS)
Same as the 75cl above, but disgorged à la volée and super-charged by the magnum effect to make it even more mesmerizing. Wonderfully toasty aromas cross seamlessly from nose to palate, where the fruit is silky-smooth and buoyant on a creamy mousse. Beautifully balanced. Opulence meets class! Extraordinary length. Extraordinary quality. This has to be one of the greatest Franciacortas I have ever tasted. | 98
Annamaria Clementi 2011 DOCG Franciacorta (Magnum) (65% Chardonnay, 15% Pinot Nero, 20% Pinot Bianco; 12.9% ABV; 1.4g/l RS)
Composed of wines from 15 plots. Harvested in the middle third of August, yielding 7,700kg/ha and providing 30hl/ha (39% extraction). Poured à la volée, all these magnums of Annamaria Clementi are fabulous sparkling wines by any yardstick. Thank goodness for scores, which enable me to provide a distinction between the degrees of greatness that mere words cannot do. This is just so lovely and satisfying. It has a super-fresh, deliciously toasty nose, with fleeting notes of coffee and charred oak, followed by glacially evolved, yeast-complexed fruit over a sumptuous mousse on a classic lean structure, tapering endlessly to a finish of great finesse. | 97
Annamaria Clementi 2010 DOCG Franciacorta (Magnum) (55% Chardonnay, 20% Pinot Nero, 25% Pinot Bianco; 12.8% ABV; 1.2g/l RS)
Composed of wines from 18 plots. Harvested in the first third of September, yielding 7,600kg/ha and providing 30hl/ha (39% extraction). What a stunning wine! Words fail me. It is just so complete and satisfying in every respect. How can a wine have so much intensity and yet practically no weight? This is masterclass in and of itself. Annamaria Clementi 2010 in magnum demonstrates that if complexity builds up slowly enough, it will not just retain fruit and freshness, but can do so in perfect harmony. Is this the greatest Franciacorta ever produced? I cannot even answer my own rhetorical question because the commercially disgorged version of this magnum was not very impressive at all in 2020. As there is no danger of clear glass involved, and Ca’del Bosco is
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