
I make a tiny amount of Rosato wine for my wife Daniela.
The first experiment was in 2017, when I bled off about 200 liters of Nebbiolo must after about 28 hours of skin contact. It is a deeply-colored rosato, with a hint of sweetness balanced by bracing freshness. It goes into a stainless-steel “barrique” of 165 liters for 12 months or so and is then gravity-bottled with a crown cap closure. Best consumed very chilled. For Dani first, then for family and friends only. Not for sale. Not produced in 2018, but made again in 2019, and bottled in November 2020.
In 2020, I again bled off about 200 liters after 36 hours of skin contact. There is less color this year, it looks more like a traditional rosé. In contrast to the excruciatingly slow ferment of 2019, when the wine took almost 3 weeks to reach dryness, this year the yeasts were from Team Ferrari and had finished their work in 6 days. It will gravity-clarify for another few weeks and then go into the steel barrique.