Rarity 1999

"Cantina Terlano has an unusual offering in the form of its Rarities, special editions of mature white wines that have been left to age on the lees in steel pressure tanks for at least ten years. The 1999 Rarity is a Chardonnay with a youthful freshness that belies its maturity. That makes it perfect for a long period of aging in the bottle. Terlano has the terroir to produce great white wines, as its Rarities so convincingly demonstrate."
Rudi Kofler

More vintages available

Wine

  • Doc denomination: Alto Adige Terlano
  • Variety: 100% Chardonnay
  • History of the variety: first vintage 1979
  • Year: 1999
  • Bottles produced: 3,340
  • Yield: 42 hl/ha
  • Quality line: The rarities

Vinification

  • Description:

    Manual harvest and selection of the grapes; gentle whole cluster pressing and clarification of the must by natural sedimentation; slow fermentation at a controlled temperature in stainless steel tanks with partial malolactic fermentation (50%) and aging on the lees in big wooden barrels for 12 months; further aging on the lees in steel pressure tanks without filtering or fining for at least ten years.

  • Bottling date: 2012-09-05

Production area

  • Name: Terlano
  • Municipality: Terlano
  • Altitude: 250 - 500 m a. s. l.
  • Slope: 5 - 35 %
  • Orientation: South - Southwest

Wine character

  • Color: intensive light straw yellow with delicate greenish reflections
  • Smell: Terlano’s 1999 rarity wine has an impressive freshness and a wealth of aromas, with new components revealed at every tasting, including herbal notes of camomile, lemon balm and lovage together with a hint of dried kaki and apricot. The multifaceted bouquet also displays aromas of bread crust and yeast bun paired with flint.
  • Taste: The wine is smooth and creamy on the palate, with a strong acid backbone that leaves a both youthful and delicate impression and strikes a fine balance with the mineral components. The finish is elegant and silky, but also enormously deep and firm.

Simple pairings

The ideal meditation wine.
Excellent with poached lobster and sautéed mussels, also in combination with taglierini with butter and white truffles, and with beef carpaccio with fresh Alba truffles or a veal sirloin steak.

  • Vintage

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  • Soil

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    • Terlano is a wine-growing village located halfway between South Tyrol’s main towns of Merano and Bolzano where the Adige flows through a wide valley in a south-easterly direction. The village and vineyards nestle against the red porphyry rock of Monte Tschöggl on the orographically left side of the valley.

      With sites located at elevations between 250 and 900 meters above sea-level, choosing the right variety is a challenge. The lower sites are better suited to Lagrein, Cabernet and other heavy reds, while Pinot Noir and the white wines are more at home at the higher and therefore cooler levels.

      Soils: sandy-stony, well-drained soils
      Site area: 150 ha
      Vine age: 8-60 years
      Vine density: 3,500-7,000
      Yield: 42-63 hl/ha
      Number of vintners: 130

  • Climate

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    • The high peaks of the main Alpine chain protect South Tyrol from the Atlantic winds and cold northerlies, while the region benefits from the Mediterranean climate from the south. That explains the pronounced differences between day- and night-time temperatures, which are the key to full maturity and elegant wines.

      To the south, a number of mountain massifs like the Adamello also have a protective function. As a result, annual precipitation is only about one third of the average for the southern Alpine foothills, and the number of hours of sunshine is higher. The climatic conditions are not unlike those to be found in wine-growing areas like the Swiss Canton Valais.

      When the sun rises behind the mountains east of Terlano on one of the year’s 300 sunny days, it is already high in the sky as the wine-growing area has a westerly to south westerly exposure. The lower atmospheric density permits more direct solar irradiation with less diffuse sunlight. That increases the difference between the slopes on the sunny and shady sides of the valley.

      Microclimate in Terlano
      Continental climate (Cfa Köppen-Geiger)

      Annual sunshine hours: ø 2135
      Maximum temperatures: 36,7 °C
      Average temperatures: 12,9 °C
      Minimum temperatures: -10,7°C
      Annual percipitation: ø 558 mm
      Average global radiation: 150,1 W/m²
      Winds:
      - North foehn: cool and dry down-slope wind
      - Ora: valley wind system from the south, bringing in air from the Po Valley

Rarity

Prizes

  • falstaff 2012: 94 points
  • Wein-Plus 2012: 94 points
  • Le guide de L'Espresso - I Vini d'Italia 2013: 5 bottles
  • I Vini di Veronelli 2013: 3 stars
  • Gambero Rosso - Vini d'Italia 2013: 2 red glasses
  • Duemilavini/Bibenda 2013: 5 grapes

Technical data

  • Alcohol content: 13.0 % vol
  • Residual sugar: 2.8 g/l
  • Acidity: 5.4 g/l

Aging

  • Storage advice: Cool storage at constant temperatures, high level of humidity, good ventilation and as little light as possible
  • Cellar temperature: 10 - 15 °C
  • Minimum maturity: 8 years
  • Serving temperature: 12 - 14 °C

Suggested glass

Glass for an evolved white wine

Glass for an evolved white wine