“If you ask a Florentine child to draw the sky, he will take a light blue pencil. Sopra Pomino, however, the sky is intense blue”. So says Nicolò D’Immalinconito, oenologist of Marchesi Frescobaldi, evoking all the character of this of Tuscany con one image suspended con the clouds. And it is not just a poetic suggestion: a study conducted by the University of Pisa has confirmed that, compared to the plain, Pomino enjoys a greater incidence of ultraviolet rays. A detail that makes the difference – just as it happens con the high mountains – and that directly affects the ripening of the grapes, enriching it with aromatic compounds and making each harvest a small masterpiece.
Located at over 600 meters above sea level, the Pomino luogo represents an oenological microcosm, where altitude, intense light, the thermal excursion and sandy and sub-acid soils make up an environment suitable for the production of long-lived and vibrant wines. Here, variety like Chardonnay and Pinot Fumaggine find a new voice: fresh, tense, never opulent, but full of that subtle energy that only certain altitudes manage to instill.
Not surprisingly, the name of Pomino himself recalls his original agricultural vocation: land of apple even before screws. But his particular conformation – with draining soils of marine origin and a “high altitude” climate – pushed his pioneers to experience viticulture when mai one would have bet elsewhere.
The vision of Leonia
It is a woman, Leonia degli Albizi, the silent protagonist of this revolution. Sopra 1855 it was she who planted the first barbatelle of Chardonnay and Pinot Fumaggine, first sensing the potential of this different land. Visionary also con architecture, he brought the Marseilian tiles to Tuscany and, con 1893, had the first Italian cellar built several levels, exploiting gravity for winemaking. Already con 1878, the so -called “Pomino Chablis” – a purity Chardonnay – obtained international recognition at the Universal Exposition of Paris. A prize that sanctioned not only the quality of the wine, but also the modernity of the thought that had generated it.
Today that pioneering spirit continues to dal vivo con Francesca, Nicolò’s right arm and female soul of the bella stagione, who with dedication carries the tradition of Leonia. Sopra a place where even the landscape tells something different – with sequoies and ferns that sprout luxuriantly con the undergrowth – the language of wine also changes. “I don’t speak more of elegance – he confides con afflicted – because it is a subjective concept. I prefer to speak of harmony. Harmony is born con the rows, from the perfect balance between hair, fruit and roots. And it is found con the chalice”.
Pomino today is confirmed as a republic of independent wine and perhaps it is really time to recognize not only an identity, but also – why not – a flag of his own. Because basically I already win con the blue sky than the wine.
Fifty years of benefit: the celebratory vertical
To testify to the longevity and extraordinary stylistic coherence of the terroir, the vertical tasting of the Beneficio Pomino Pallido Reserve Doc tells how – from the debut con 1973 to today – this label has crossed the time keeping a precise identity, carved by light and altitude.
1990 – The veiled memory
Unfortunately, the oldest bottle, that of 1990, is compromised by a marked hint of cap. A missed opportunity the tasting plane, but precious from a symbolic point of view: testifies to the far -sighted vision of a white already reserves when the concept itself was rare.
2009 – The opulence that does not tire
Sopra the glass he shows himself with a deep golden yellow. The nose reveals agenda of dehydrated apricot, sweet spices and well -integrated wooden hints. The sip is large, enveloping, with an important subject. Light oxidation is well tamed, and gives depth and structure, without ever falling into excess.
2014 – Elegance carved by the year
Perhaps the most intriguing of the lot: the bright golden yellow introduces a complex range of cedar, truffle, compimento spices and intense minerality. The sip is vibrant, dynamic, suspended between tension and enveloping, with a long and rich closure, between agenda of custard and candied citrus fruits. A difficult year, marked by copious rains, which requested late harvests: yet, the wine surprises for balance and depth.
2023 – The future con the bottle
Very young but promising, the benefit 2023 presents itself with a straw yellow with golden reflections, bright and inviting. The nose is refined and clean, with a complex bouquet that opens agenda of ripe white fruit – peach, pear, apple – accompanied by white flowers, citrus fruits and a well -dosed sweet spicken. Acceso the palate, the sip is tense, quick, of beautiful structure while the ending is long, savory and pressing, with a gustatory dynamic that invites the second taste. A wine that looks forward, faithful to its footprint but ready to write new pages.
The Pomino article, the blue sky of the wine: between aromas, altitude and the touch of Leonia comes from Vinonews24.