Mandrolisai

Styles

Principal grape varieties

Terroir

• The production zone is located in west-central Sardinia, with vineyards distributed across plateaus and gently rolling hills well suited to vine cultivation.
• The soils consist of brown earths and lithosols derived from granites and porphyries, as well as crystalline schists and quartzites, with a reaction that is almost always acid or sub-acid.
• Soils derived from granitic weathering generally have an excellent supply of exchangeable potassium, while nitrogen and phosphorus levels tend to be low.
• The climate of the zone is characterised by a mean annual temperature very close to 10 °C and mean annual rainfall of between 700 and 900 mm.
• The natural vegetation of the zone consists mainly of Mediterranean maquis, with cistus, strawberry tree, lentisk, broom, myrtle, and holm oak, alternating with pasture and arable land.

• The wine is produced mainly from Bovale sardo, Cannonau, and Monica grapes, with Bovale sardo accounting for no less than 35% and Cannonau and Monica each between 20% and 35%, with other dark-berried varieties permitted to contribute up to 10%.
• Vines are traditionally trained in the low bush-vine (alberello) system, sometimes adapted with the use of stakes, or in low-spread trellis forms, maintaining low yields per vine and per hectare.
• In 1950, the winegrowers of the zone joined together to establish the Cantina del Mandrolisai, fostering the development of the local wine industry.
• The Muristellu variety (Bovale sardo), which forms the ampelographic backbone of Mandrolisai alongside Monica and Cannonau, is thought to have been introduced into Sardinia from the Iberian Peninsula during the Aragonese domination, deriving from the Spanish Morastel according to Prof. Sante Cettolini.

• Mandrolisai shows an intense ruby to garnet colour, with a palate character described as strength combined with soft, elegant harmony.

Facts drawn from the specification's terroir-link section by automatic interpretation — see the source.

All appellations in Italy

Sources

• eAmbrosia register (EU) — File number PDO-IT-A1171
• Official trade body site — Laore Sardegna