2017 Le Macchiole Messorio Rosso IGT

First produced in 1994, Messorio started as a personal challenge with one of the most planted varieties not only in Bolgheri, but across the Tuscan coast and throughout the world: Merlot. From the start, the idea was to take the best bunches and transform them into an impactful wine with a big personality, staying as far away as possible from the more soft, predictable style that is often associated with Merlot and instead making a thoroughbred eager to win the race. The name "Messorio" refers to the wheat harvest, one of the most fundamental parts of the agricultural cycle.

2017 was definitely a dry and droughty year, with little rainfall and very low humidity levels. The winter season saw very little, if any, rainfall and above-average temperatures. A dry and variable spring weather followed: in March, the above-normal temperatures led to a fast budbreak and growth of the buds, and in April the temperatures slightly dropped, making us even fear for frost for two consecutive nights on the second week of the month. On the first week of May, we saw the last rain before harvest time. Temperatures rose again over the following months and remained steady throughout the whole pre-harvest period. Because of such unusual weather conditions, we focused on two main vineyard practices: little working of the soil, in order to preserve the soil's moisture, and careful canopy management, including twisting the long shoots on the top wires and removing the secondary shoots, to maintain good foliage density on the vine. During summer 2017, we also had to resort to the use of irrigation systems, both overhead irrigation during the night ( in order to lower the high air temperature around the plants) and surface irrigation during the day. Irrigation operations were repeated non-stop from late June through late August. Harvesting was performed ahead of schedule, as compared with the previous year, giving nonetheless surprising results in terms of freshness and elegance.