Orvieto Classico Superiore Castagnolo, Barberani 2023

Barberani is one of Umbria’s most respected producers, famous for its clean, pure-tasting wines. The vineyards lie on hills overlooking Lake Corbara, close to the city of Orvieto in the south-west of the province, which lies south of Tuscany in Italy’s centre. Of the estate’s 80-odd hectares, 50 are dedicated to vineyards and olive groves. The rest is given over to cereals and holiday cottages, making this an authentic place to visit for a spot of agriturismo. The close proximity of the lake below helps regulate the microclimate here by preventing extreme variations in temperature.

History
Advised by consultant oenologist Maurizio Castelli, the estate, which is organically farmed and certified, is renowned for its clean, pure-tasting wines. By law, Orvieto is made from a combination of five grape varieties, of which the finest is grechetto, a Barberani speciality. Around 20,000 bottles of it are produced in every vintage under the designation of Grechetto Umbria IGT, which, in our view tastes not unlike a decent white Burgundy.

The wines
Barberani also produce a fragrant dessert wine called Calcaia, from trebbiano di Toscana and grechetto grapes concentrated by noble rot (muffa nobile). It is similar to Sauternes in style but with a characteristic lightness of touch. More recently high class barrel-aged reds have been introduced, using sangiovese, merlot and cabernet. These can rival Tuscany’s best in quality, but not in price.

Sustainability
Soil health is a key priority for Barberani, where they use controlled growth of grass to increase the organic content of the soil. This creates healthy, natural competition with the vines, thus naturally governing the strength of the plants. Each year, they also sow a mixture of seeds to further enrich the soil. Only 55 of the total 100 hectares of the estate is under vine, which encourages biodiversity. 30 hectares are given over to forest, which are managed with the same dedication shown to the vines. The company estimates that this area sequesters 240 tonnes of CO2 a year.

This attention to sustainability is also carried on in the winery, which makes use of ‘Aliant’ technology. This means that the roof structure amplifies the natural sunlight from outdoors, giving outstanding diffused lighting during the day that allows them to make huge savings on the electricity used for illumination. Approximately 95% of the lighting in the winery comes exclusively from naturally amplified sunlight.