Vernaccia di Oristano

Styles

Principal grape varieties

Terroir

• The area is sub-flat and extends along both sides of the Tirso river up to its mouth at the Gulf of Oristano, with hilly outcrops to the north and east.
• The alluvial soils closest to the bed of the Tirso are known as Bennaxi — deep, cool, and silt-sandy in texture — while the older soils, called Gregori, have a gravelly matrix mixed with tenacious clay and present drainage problems.
• In the Sinis area, soils rich in carbonates are found, while in the low-lying, hydromorphic zones near the sea, aquents and salorthids are present.
• The climate is Mediterranean, with hot, dry summers and cold, rainy winters; mean temperatures range between 15 and 17 °C, with maxima above 35 °C in July and August and minima of 3–4 °C in January and February.
• Mean annual rainfall is around 650 mm, with minima in July and August and maxima in December and February, while north-westerly and westerly winds predominate.

• Traditional cultivation employed a bush-trained vine (alberello) pruned to a weeping-head form with a fruit cane of 8–15 buds and vegetation supported by a tripod of canes, today replaced by vertical-trellis training systems.
• After fermentation the wine matures in chestnut or oak casks filled to only 75–80% of capacity, a condition that encourages the formation on the surface of the yeast veil known as flor.

• The wine presents an amber golden-yellow colour, with a delicate, alcohol-lifted bouquet enriched by hints of almond blossom.
• The palate is refined, subtle, and warm, with a slight, pleasant bitter-almond finish that defines the aftertaste.

• The microclimate of the lower Tirso valley and the particular geological composition of the alluvial soils allow the grapes to reach optimal ripeness, and their balance and sugar level contribute to giving the wine its ideal structure and harmony among its components.

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-A1170
• Official trade body site — Laore Sardegna