Passion. Respect. Quality. People. Tradition. Patience. Since 1960 Cantina Toblino brings all these elements into its wines. More than fifty years ago, in the beautiful region of Valle dei Laghi in Trentino, a small group of local wine growers joined together in a cooperative, at the time devoted to the production of Schiava and Nosiola based wines. Soon after, the wine growers noticed the ageing potential of Nosiola grape variety, especially for the production of a traditional sweet wine called Vino Santo Trentino. In the early 70s, Cantina Toblino bottled its first vintage of Vino Santo Trentino 1965. And since then the tradition has never change.
Over the time the production techniques for the Vino Santo Trentino have changed leading to great improvements in terms of quality. A wine that’s a product of waiting, suspended between tradition and sustainability. Vino Santo Trentino is a wine that requires time, foresight, a wine that looks to the past but it’s projected towards the future. In the past, the Vino Santo Trentino was considered an elixir, a corroborant, a tonic for everyone. Nowadays, it has been awarded the prestigious awards of 3 Bicchieri and Best Italian Sweet Wine by Gambero Rosso.
Vino Santo is made with Nosiola, a native grape variety from Trentino, expressed at its highest levels of excellence in Valle dei Laghi, a unique terroir devoted to its production. Ripe, dry bunches of Nosiola harvested in mid-October are carefully spread on racks called Arèle, thus favoring the slow natural withering that lasts by tradition until Holy Week, thanks to the constant ventilation by the wind Ora del Garda from the south and Pelèr from the north. The drying process is completed by the noble rot (Botrytis Cinerea) that develops inside the berry accentuating dehydration, favoring the concentration of sugars and producing a unique bouquet.
After the longest natural drying in the world (6-7 months) the pressing is carried out, which takes place by centuries of tradition during Holy Week, from which the precious must of Vino Santo is obtained, just over 15 liters of 100 Kg of selected grapes. Once the pressing is complete, fermentation begins, which can last up to 2 or 3 years due to the high concentration of sugars. Vino Santo continues its refinement for over 10 years in French oak barrels.
A bright amber color with golden reflections. On the nose, Vino Santo offers a bouquet of incredible complexity and elegance, with clear flavors of overripe fruit, jam, honey and yeasts. The taste is pleasantly sweet, round and of long persistence, with the freshness that goes to balance the important residual sugar making it harmonious and not cloying.
Vino Santo is a never ending story. It can further refine in the bottle for decades, thus proving to be one of the most long-lived wines ever, capable of giving emotions even 50 years after the harvest.
As Carlo De Biasi said when he received the award of Best Sweet Wine of Italy by Gambero Rosso in Rome on October 26th: “Vino Santo is the true heritage of this valley. Made from nosiola grapes, although in recent years this grape has grown less and less, preferring Chardonnay and Pinot Noir for the production of outstanding Trento DOCs. Our winery has continued focusing on the native Trentino grape and, perhaps also for this reason, for some some time now, our winemakers have resumed cultivating nosiola, allowing us to reach outstanding results that reward them for their commitment and efforts.”
