Case Basse di Gianfranco Soldera Brunello Intistieti Riserva
About Case Basse di Gianfranco Soldera
Brunello di Montalcino Intistieti Riserva
[kah-zeh bahs-seh jahn-f(l)rahn-ko sol-deh-(l)rah]
"Striving for quality: that’s the point.
There was a time when great care was taken in the
search for beauty and excellence. Then the masses
came to prefer the façade to what lies behind
it. "
—Gianfranco Soldera, Betwixt
Nature and Passion
In the highly contained, semi-mystical realm that
constitutes Soldera’s world, that search is
never over, but continually in progress—an arduous,
uncompromising process of discovery that finds its
ideal conduit in the harmony that Soldera has created,
a state wherein all of the elements—landscape,
vineyard, wine cellar, and the magnificent rose garden
of his wife, Graziella Soldera—are wholly integrated.
It’s a paradoxical place, to be sure, as Soldera
effectually facilitates the ideal operation of his
natural world, particularly in a grotto-like cellar
that allows his wines to mature at a constant temperature.
Perhaps architect Stefano Lambardi (who led the cellar’s
construction) put it best in his reflections on the
cellar’s nature: “Case Basse is ‘dimension’
and ‘reason’, in the classical meaning
of the term. It is the dimension [that] allows us
to come to know Nature, to be able to understand Her
and copy Her perfection.”
This deep understanding began with Soldera’s
planting of the estate’s eponymous cru, Case
Basse, in 1972, followed a year later by the cultivation
of Intistieti. The latter, which comprises approximately
four and a half hectares, possesses the poorer soil,
which constitutes the main point of distinction between
the crus: Wines sourced from Intistieti offer a greater
degree of complexity than those derived from Case
Basse, whose soils are slightly more conducive to
growth and thus, the production of more forward wines.
While many are familiar with Case Basse, Intistieti
seems to inhabit the lexicon exclusively of the fanatical
collector (one who, perhaps, takes after Soldera himself,
to a degree). The search for Intistieti isn’t
an easy one, however, as Soldera’s labeling
methodology doesn’t reflect the meticulous precision
defining his viticultural operations; in fact, it’s
the only element of his world that’s rather
undisciplined. In order to make your way to Intistieti,
you have to temporarily suspend logic—but then
again, the world of Case Basse is a separate universe,
parallel to no other and effectually an entity unto
itself, where Intistieti isn’t always Intistieti.
To explain: Things got off to a fairly simple start—Beginning
with the 1977 vintage, Soldera crafted all Brunellos
from Intistieti. At that early stage in its career,
Case Basse, in the opinion of Soldera, wasn’t
mature enough to deliver a wine of Brunello’s
magnitude. Thus, from 1977 to 1988, Soldera used Case
Basse for a Vino da Tavola Rosso bottling, which is
effectually the equivalent of a present-day Rosso
di Montalcino. In the 1990 vintage, Case Basse made
its debut Brunello showing, while Intistieti served
as the source of Soldera’s Riserva. Intistieti,
however, was also used as the source of a Vino da
Tavola bottling: When a wine failed to merit Soldera’s
exacting qualitative specifications for the Brunello
di Montalcino designation, it was classified as Vino
da Tavola Intistieti. The first of these was made
in 1985, and while its early successors did indeed
represent their source, Soldera changed things up—to
great confusion—in the 1987 vintage, as the
wine released under the Intistieti label was sourced
from Case Basse. The rationale behind the somewhat
misleading label? Nothing more profound than the fact
that Soldera liked the Intistieti name, a personal
preference that he chose to exercise again in both
1988 and 1991. He followed the last of these with
a Vino da Tavola Intistieti that comprised both vineyards.
Sufficiently dazed and confused? It gets worse: In
some years, the normale Brunello is wholly a Case
Basse production, while in others, like 1996, it is
a blend of the best from both crus. Also, in 1995,
Soldera produced the first Riserva from Casse Basse;
in 2001, both crus delivered riservas. Particularly
exceptional renderings of Intistieti under the Brunello
classification include 1982 and 1983. With respect
to the Intistieti Riserva, 1990 constitutes what is
widely regarded as an estate benchmark.
Labeling idiosyncracies aside, there remain several
undisputed facts in Soldera’s domain: The soil
comprising Soldera’s vineyards—predominantly
clay and rock— forces the roots to penetrate
deep into the earth, thereby passing through significant
mineral deposits that find prominent expression in
the wines. His efforts at yield restriction are intensive,
resulting in a minute average production level of
about 1,250 cases, a figure that is far below the
6,000-case production level permitted by his present
holdings. The ’02 vintage provides a particularly
dramatic illustration of Soldera’s approach
to quality control, as he endeavored to ensure excellence
by handpicking the grapes on an individual basis.
This fanatical quest to produce an exceptional wine
invariably transcends whatever challenges the vintage
presents, reflecting the year’s negative elements
almost exclusively in the quantity produced. While
his wines routinely deliver massive concentration—a
complex panoply of red and black fruits, spices, meat,
soy, and tobacco—that depth of expression is
complemented by formidable structure, a signature
element of which is an almost vituperative degree
of acidity. Soldera employs only Slavonian oak, aging
his Brunellos over the course of a five-year period
(with the riservas receiving an additional year’s
aging) sans temperature control. Another absolute
in his unyielding Brunello aesthetic is the wine’s
color. Like many of Montalcino’s remaining,
yet ever-diminishing Old School adherents, Soldera
believes that one’s fingernail should be discernable
through a glass of Brunello.
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Wine: Brunello di Montalcino Producer: Case Basse di Gianfranco Soldera
Varietal(s): Sangiovese Grosso
Region: Toscana
Province: Siena
Commune: Montalcino
Vineyard(s): Intistieti
Altitude: 300 meters
Classification: Brunello di Montalcino DOCG
Case Production: varies with respect
to vintage; approx. 665
More Landmark Wines:
Biondi-Santi Brunello Ris.
Il Poggione Brunello
Cerbaiola Brunello
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