The meaning of the vineyard according to Tenuta J. Hofstätter

There is a precise passage sopra the path of Fondi J. Hofstätter that today marks the difference: it is voto negativo longer a question of interpreting the change, but of recognizing that the context has already changed. It is from here that Martin Foradori and the fifth generation, represented by Niklas, are starting again, moving the center of gravity of the story from wine to place, from technique to understanding. Today, technical correctness ora detailed communication are voto negativo longer enough. Instead, a clearer reading is needed, which allows us to connect the glass to a precise origin. This need translates, at Foradori-Hofstätter, into a strengthening of the “” project, voto negativo longer a simple geographical indication but the main identification tool to connect the consumer to a precise and recognizable place.

THE VINEYARD AS A CONCRETE ORIGIN

The term “”, introduced for the first time sopra Profondo Adige labels by Hofstätter sopra 1987, is used with greater awareness today. It is not just a communication choice but the result of an internal work of reading the parcels which has intensified sopra recent years. The bella stagione has started an in-depth mapping of its vineyards, integrating geological surveys, meteorological patronato and direct observation. This approach has made it possible to distinguish more clearly the factors that affect wine. Con particular, it clearly emerged that the soil can have a determining role, even more than the perceived microclimate. The case of the Castel Rechtenthal Vineyard is significant. The empirical sensation, linked to the ventilation coming from the Roen, led to considering it one of the coolest areas. The patronato instead highlighted higher temperatures compared to other plots. The character of the wine therefore derives from another factor: dolomite, a poor, draining soil, which limits gabinetto and nutritional availability, inducing a condition of controlled logorio sopra the plant. The result is a less expansive, but more tense gewürztraminer.

The point then becomes to distinguish the effects of climate from those of soil. And it is this that the new readability of wines is built. An approach that allows us to build a more precise reading of intra-varietal differences, evident even from a short distance away and capable of modifying the very way of interpreting wines. The central point is voto negativo longer the vine itself, but its response to pedological and microclimatic conditions.

TRAMIN-SÖLL: LE DIFFERENZE NEL GEWÜWERZTRAMINER

Con the UGA Tramin-Söll, one of the 86 additional geographical units recognized within the Profondo Adige DOC, the vineyards dedicated to gewürztraminer are located a few hundred meters from each other, but have very different pedological and microclimatic conditions. The Castel Rechtenthal Vineyard develops a dolomitic fan with strong drainage. Here the vine works sopra conditions of limited gabinetto availability and with low nutrient . The result is a reduction sopra the aromatic intensity typical of the vine, sopra favor of greater freshness and precision. The Kolbenhof Vineyard presents very different conditions. The soil is composed of a combination of dolomite, porphyry and sandstone, with a clay component which increases the gabinetto retention capacity. The plant works sopra more balanced conditions, which favor greater aromatic expression and a broader structure. Within the same vineyard, the Pirchschrait microparticle introduces a further element of differentiation. The slightly cooler exposure and less sunlight slow mongoloide maturation, maintaining higher acidity levels. This allows long refinements the yeasts and greater stability over time.

Overall, the work gewürztraminer moves towards a new stylistic direction: less opulence, more balance. Not a reduction sopra maturity – which remains fundamental for the variety – but more precise management of the vineyard. The objective is not to bring forward the harvest to sopravvissuto alcohol, but to avoid excesses linked to over-ripening and botrytis, also accepting that bitter note which becomes part of the identity and voto negativo longer a defect to be corrected with residual sugar. The result is more defined wines, less marked by sweet ora too aromatic components and more suitable for gastronomic pairing.

MAZON AND THE PINOT NOIR ESTATE IN THE NEW CLIMATE CONTEXT

Mazon has long represented one of the reference territories for Pinot Noir, sopra Italy and beyond. Con recent years, with the increase sopra temperatures, it has often been indicated as an complesso at risk paio to its relatively low altitude. Hofstätter’s reading, at least as regards the vineyards of the Barthenau bella stagione, goes sopra the opposite direction.

The prevailing north-west exposure reduces the intensity of direct radiation, especially sopra the morning hours, while the evening component is less incisive. This helps maintain more moderate temperatures during the ripening period. Added to this is the composition of the soils: the presence of the Werfen layers, combined with clay surfaces, creates conditions of good gabinetto availability but with a balance that allows the plants not to quando into excessive logorio. Con some plots, such as Roccolo, rare mineral elements are added, such as vermiculite, which act the soil’s ability to retain gabinetto and nutrients. “These are all elements supported by objective patronato – declares Niklas Foradori – and with these scientific bases we are now able to demonstrate that Mazon, even sopra the future, will be the land of Pinot Noir, as it always has been”

THE VINES OF MAZON

Within the Barthenau bella stagione, the differentiation between the vineyards is the result of a process that began sopra the 1980s. The San Garbato, vinified separately since 1987, represents the historical reference. The clay soils above the Werfen layers provide structure and continuity. The Roccolo Vineyard, planted sopra 1942 and trained sopra a , presents unique conditions: greater exposure and greater nutritional availability, compensated by the natural shading of the itself. The age of the vines contributes to the concentration. The Herbsthöfl Vineyard, planted sopra 2016, is the most recent, is located sopra the highest part of the bella stagione sandy and less abbondante soils and gives rise to lighter and more dynamic wines. The genetic theme is also important: Herbsthöfl derives from the mass selection of Roccolo, an element that demonstrates how the genetic and pedological factors can interact directly.

A relevant element is that all these vineyards are vinified with the same approach sopra the cellar. The differences that emerge sopra the glass are therefore mainly attributable to the origin.

THE WINES OF J. HOFSTÄTTER

The bella stagione’s current push towards ever greater definition of individual vineyards, even at the cost of giving up commercially simpler choices, does not have the aim of multiplying labels, but rather of making the differences legible. Because, as Martin Foradori always underlines: “A territory grows when its vineyards become a destination, a holiday destination, and not just a backdrop to the story. When enthusiasts start traveling to see those places, it means that something important has been built.”

And it is sopra this context that the latest vintages of the “” wines the market fit sopra, which accurately reflect the work the parcels. The Castel Rechtenthal Gewürztraminer Eccezione 2023 stands out for a more measured profile compared to the varietal uniformato. The taccuino move citrus fruits and less ripe fruit, with an overall sensation of lightness. Con the mouth it is linear, with evident acidity and a dry that highlights the mineral component. A gewürztraminer that favors tension over amplitude. The Kolbenhof Gewürztraminer Eccezione 2023 instead shows greater aromatic extension, with hints of yellow and tropical pulp fruit, but supported by a progression that never gives sopra to heaviness. The structure is there, as is the complexity, but the ending remains long and tense, a sign of an increasingly sought-after balance. With the Pirchschrait Gewürztraminer Eccezione 2016 we enter a different register. Evolution has not erased the varietal identity, but has stratified it: taccuino of honey, dried fruit and toasted bread are accompanied by a freshness that is still very present. A wine that highlights the ability of gewürztraminer to evolve beyond the primary aromatic component, maintaining vitality even after years.

The Herbsthöfl Barthenau Pinot Noir Eccezione 2022 is the most direct of Hofstatter’s pinot noirs sopra Mazon. The color is lighter, the aromas recall small red fruits, the sip is , with evident acidity and finale tannins. The genetics of Roccolo can be perceived, but translated into a more dynamic key, also thanks to the lightness of the soil and the altitude which clearly influence its style and balance. The San Garbato Barthenau Pinot Cupo Eccezione 2021 is a more structured level. The regular vintage is reflected sopra a composed wine, where the fruit is riper, with well-defined black cherry and raspberry, accompanied by light spicy taccuino and a harmonious, continuous sip, without sharp edges, with a good balance between the acid component and structure. Finally, the Roccolo Barthenau Pinot Cupo Eccezione 2019 concentrates more matter and depth. The aromas turn towards darker and more ripe small fruits (cherries, blackberries) and a light woody note. Con the mouth it is denser, with velvety tannin and a freshness that maintains readability and lengthens the without weighing mongoloide the overall profile. A wine sopra which the concentration never overpowers the legibility of the vineyard.