Riparbella
The Val di Cecina is an almost secret area along the Cecina river valley in the southern part of the province of Pisa.
Riparbella is part of this precious land, perched on the top of a hill immersed in the Mediterranean forest, just a few kilometres from the Thyrrenian Sea.
Thanks to the special microclimate of the Tuscan coast, it has become the home of excellent wines.
Our current total of 40 hectares of vines comprises three main vineyards: the original Podere Serra all’Olio at Caiarossa, Le Lame which is the most southerly part, and an extensive parcel of vines on the slopes of Monte di Nocola, well-known as Nocolino.
Position Nocolino Mt
Altitude 200-350 m above sea level
Soil seaward-facing, cooler breezes, marl, shale, stones and volcanic soil
Our youngest vineyards are located in Nocolino. The first phase of planting was carried out between 2008 and 2013. The altitude of this area ensures constant ventilation which produces a cool and dry microclimate. Thanks to this quality, in 2020 Caiarossa decided to expand its vineyards in the Nocolino area, which now reach a total of 24 hectares.
Position Caiarossa
Altitude 150-220 m above sea level
Soil mainly clay-rich soil, including gravel, limestone and iron
This is the most historic part of the Caiarossa vineyards, planted in 1998. Proximity to the sea here helps to keep temperatures cool and ventilated, thus ensuring an optimal microclimate.
Position Val di Cecina
Altitude 120-160 m above sea level
Soil inland breezes, mainly sand and limestone soil
Podere le Lame is our easternmost vineyard where 2.5 hectares of our vineyards are located. Its exposure allows the grapes to best express their aromatic quality.
This unusual range of conditions enables Caiarossa to grow an exceptional 10 varieties of grapes, allowing us to create the most distinctive, complex and elegant wines, a different class of wine, the most profound expression of terroir.
The extraordinary fertility of our soil is a rich legacy of powerful natural movements throughout geological time.
In-depth studies of each vineyard’s soil composition, elevation, micro-climate and orientation enable us to establish the best locations for specific grape varieties.
At Nocolino, hillside soil was once at the bottom of the deep sea.
Over millennia, it was pushed upward as the large land masses of Sardinia and Corsica moved eastward.
On the other side of our estate, at the Serra all Olio and Le Lame vineyards, we have a more recent soil created by shallow seas.
Here, amazingly, if you pick up a handful of soil you can sometimes find tiny fossilised seashells.
Finding the perfect balance between high precision and the most natural expression of the grapes, determines every single stage of the winemaking process.
At Caiarossa, we have adopted specific training systems and number of vines per hectare according to each vineyard’s characteristics. These carefully controlled yields per plant, combined with the natural biodynamic growing method, ensure sustainable harvests of the highest possible quality and finest character.
We harvest each of the individual 59 parcels of land separately by hand at peak readiness into 15 kg/33 pound boxes.
These smaller boxes prevent damage to the grapes and uncontrolled fermentation. The white grapes are usually harvested during August, and the red grapes throughout September and October. The grapes from each parcel are vinified separately, enabling us to maintain the maximum flexibility for selecting, blending and refining our wines.
While the white varieties are selected carefully during the harvest and (once in the cellar) gently pressed on arrival to manage the extraction from the must, the red varieties are selected by hand, both before and after destemming. They then flow by gravity into the tanks, where the natural process of alcoholic fermentation begins.
Once the malolactic fermentation is complete, our international technical team tastes all the single varieties from every parcel and creates the blends for our red labels: Caiarossa, Aria di Caiarossa and Pergolaia according to their identity.
