Petrolo - Galatrona (BIO-ORGANIC) - Valdarno di Sopra - Toscana 2023
Galatrona, Petrolo's 'Grand Cru' Merlot
Petrolo is located in Val d’Arno di Sopra on the southeastern side of the Chianti mountains, near the Chianti Classico border. The Bazzocchi family acquired Petrolo in the 1940s. In the 1980s, Lucia Bazzocchi Sanjust, recognizing the estate's potential, began upgrading the production with her son Luca to achieve the highest quality. Since 2016, all Petrolo wines have been certified organic by the EU.
Galatrona is Petrolo’s “Grand Cru” Merlot, made exclusively from the vineyard of the same name, planted between the late 1980s and mid-1990s with low-vigor Bordeaux clones. The unique soil, rich in clay with schist, marl, and sandstone, enhances the concentration of the grapes' noble components, contributing to the wine’s structure, elegance, balance, and persistence.
The 2023 Vintage:
The one word to define the 2023 vintage would be “delicate”.
Winter season had a linear trend and budding was the same. Spring conditions instead altered the natural growth of the vines, the frequent rainfalls in June determined a reduction in fruit setting. Fortunately, the warm summer allowed to reach the balance among the phenological phases. Although production was greatly reduced, standard quality was preserved thanks to sparse clustering and a natural selection of the bunches. The harvest began with Merlot on September 6th, perfectly in line with previous vintages.