Sassella Prevostini, Valtellina at your fingertips (1)

As we wrote some time ago regarding another great wine from the area, Valtellina Inferno from the Rainoldi estate, Valtellina wines have an innate aromatic purity. Here, in the middle of the Alps and the extreme northern tip of Lombardy, Nebbiolo is called Chiavennasca and it has adapted to growing on steep mountainsides on terraces held up by stone walls. Valtellina, in fact, has the most terraced vineyards in all Italy and has one of the most important terroir in the country.

The vineyards are naturally positioned to have a southern exposure, while the mountain valley runs east-west, and the Chiavennasca grapes seem to transfer to the wines it makes the light and the rocks the vines grow in.

Sassella is the Valtellina cru situated to the west of the provincial capital Sondrio and it gives its name to wines that are often the most complete and elegant. The Enogea study Alessandro Masnaghetti dedicated to this territory (Enogea Cru – Valtellina) stated “the slope that almost everyone considers to be the historic one, if not the true Sassella one in regard to winemaking, is the eastern slope situated between Triasso and San Lorenzo”. And it is here that the Mamete Prevostini estate has some of its land. The others are near Triasso, an area “that has a similar gentle and delicate style, without the fruit of the western side of the cru nor the distinct minerality of the eastern one”. This is an area that hosts both small producers and bigger ones.

Among the latter is Mamete Prevostini, a leading figure in the Valtellina wine scene. He is both the head of the Consorzio Vini di Valtellina (Valtellina Wine Producers Association) and that of the regional agency for the international promotion of Lombardy wines, Ascovilo. Mamete inherited the estate (and his name) from his grandfather who created it at the start of the 20th century. In other words, his family was among those that created Valtellina wine. This region is not only wine and mountains but it is also a hub for communication, being a crossroads since ancient times between Italy, Switzerland and Northern Europe.

A few years ago Mamete built a new winery in order to use the natural fall method to extract wine from the must using gravity. The upper floor is used for drying or raisinating the grapes (Valtellina produces the magnificent Sfursat, a kind of Amarone made from Chiavennasca that has the truffle/tobacco notes typical of the area), fermentation takes place in the middle level and aging is done in the lower, underground floor.

The estate also has a CasaClima Wine (House-Climate Wine) certification. This is a very strict protocol centered on three areas of evaluation – Nature, Life and Transparency – to determine the various aspects of sustainability. In short: reduction of energy consumption related to winemaking, measures taken in favor of sustainability and reducing impact on the environment. Aside from this, Mamete’s vineyards are in inconstant conversion, shifting gradually from traditional methods to mechanized ones.

Paolo Prevostini, the agronomist and manager of Mamete Prevostini’s vineyards, explained that “our philosophy is to convert the traditional vineyards to mechanized methods or the “giro poggio” (turn the field) one. This is an innovative technique that involves orientating the vineyard rows east-west in line with the Valtellina terraces, rather than traditional vineyards that are orientated north-south. Every year we expand our vineyards by one, 1 ½ hectares. From 2006 to today, we have mechanized some seven hectares with a production that, compared to the maximum 8,000kg permitted, never surpasses 5-6,00kg. Our philosophy is to strive for the utmost quality, even at the cost of quantity. This is why we are converting our traditional vineyards to mechanized ones”.

The majority of the vineyards for Valtellina Mamete Prevostini wines are situated in the subzone of Sassella and the rest in the other great cru, Inferno.

Tomorrow there will be an interview with Mamete Prevostini and a vertical tasting of his Sassella.

Mamete Prevostini 
Owner : Mamete Prevostini
Via Don Primo Lucchinetti, 69
23020 Mese (SO)
Tel. +39 0343 41522
Fax +39 0343 41521
info@mameteprevostini.com
www.mameteprevostini.com
Facebook:  mameteprevostini
Year of foundation:  1925
Total bottles produced:  180.000
Hectares of vineyards:  22,5