interview

<p><em><strong>This interview with Andrea Zanfei took place in his cellar during a visit in November 2011. It was conducted by Kevin Mckenna and translated to English by Pietro Straccia.</strong></em></p> <p><strong>Tell us about&nbsp;Cerreto Libri.</strong><br /> <br /> We are located in the region of&nbsp;<glossary term="Chianti Ruffina" title="1168">Chianti Ruffina</glossary>&nbsp;in&nbsp;<span class="zalup"><span><glossary title="1055">Tuscany</glossary><span>,</span></span></span> which differs from the rest of <glossary title="285">Chianti</glossary> because of its unique climate. This is mostly due to the merging of the&nbsp;<glossary title="953">Sieve River</glossary>&nbsp;with the larger&nbsp;<glossary title="119">Arno River</glossary>; this results in a particular <glossary title="656">micro-climate</glossary> with noticeable temperature differences between day and night. We also get a lot of humidity in the early morning and at dusk.&nbsp;<br /> <br /> We cultivate the area&#39;s traditional grapes. For white we adamantly defend our <glossary title="1169">strains</glossary> of old&nbsp;<glossary title="1043">Trebbiano</glossary>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<span class="zalup"><span><glossary title="623">Malvasia</glossary><span>,</span></span></span> not just for&nbsp;<glossary title="1098">Vin Santo</glossary>&nbsp;but also to make a fresh, typical <glossary title="405">dry</glossary> white from the area. In red, we work with&nbsp;<span class="zalup"><span><glossary title="320">Colorino</glossary><span>,</span></span></span>&nbsp;<span class="zalup"><span><glossary title="229">Canaiolo</glossary><span>,</span></span></span> and&nbsp;<glossary title="911">Sangiovese</glossary>&nbsp;(which was the &quot;least important&quot; <glossary title="1071">varietal</glossary> when we first started). Our passion is&nbsp;<span class="zalup"><span><glossary title="229">Canaiolo</glossary><span>,</span></span></span> and we are lucky enough to be making wines from older <glossary title="1169">strains</glossary> of it, which are 35 years old on average.<br /> <br /> <strong>Can you explain how this winery exists?</strong><br /> <br /> The property is ancient: the villa dates back to 1796! The great historian Paganello established its&#39; origins, and it turns out the edifice is of considerable importance from an architectural point of view, because the foundations most likely sit on abandoned&nbsp;Etruscan&nbsp;towers that have been reconfigured to build the current shape of the building.&nbsp;<br /> <br /> The villa was bought from the Baldini family by the Del Rosso family. The Del Rosso&#39;s daughter eventually married a man from the Libri family. Both were established, affluent families, and at the time marrying a woman came with a considerable dowry. This is how the property got much bigger.&nbsp;<br /> <br /> The subsequent generations have kept busy to this very day. The owners have never changed. I&rsquo;m not the owner. The owner is my wife. So I just follow orders and collaborate (laughs)! That&rsquo;s the idea.<br /> <br /> <br /> <strong>When did you personally get involved?</strong><br /> <br /> My wife Valentina and I started to work together in 1997. The big leap was deciding to switch from farming <glossary title="331">conventionally</glossary> (which had not been very invasive, even until that point), and immediately <glossary term="Conversion" title="332">converting</glossary> everything to&nbsp;<span class="zalup"><span><glossary title="160">biodynamics</glossary><span>.</span></span></span> It was a decision made in conjunction with the generational shift happening in the vineyard; the older farmers were all leaving, so the need to change and rebuild was obvious. We rebuilt with this new system.<br /> <br /> 1997 was the year we took <glossary term="Agriculture" title="78">agriculture</glossary> back into our own hands. It was necessary to renovate the farm, and in this idea of renewal we also decided to change our work methods. We had already spoken to many friends and other people about the importance and richness of <glossary title="160">biodynamic</glossary> <span class="zalup"><span><glossary term="Agriculture" title="78">agriculture</glossary><span>,</span></span></span> so we wanted to implement it immediately. I must say that we did not have any difficulties. We had a consultant, Leonello Anello, who gave us a hand during the first few years so things were fairly straightforward, with no major hurdles.<br /> <br /> <strong>You&#39;ve been working the farm since 1997, but up until very recently, you had a whole other career on top of running the<font color="#7b143e">&nbsp;azienda</font>. Can you tell us about that?</strong><br /> <br /> I was a professor in high school. I taught history and philosophy, and this year, after a full career, I retired. So yes, up until very recently, you could say I had a double engagement.<br /> <br /> But I never struggled too much doing both. School would keep me busy mostly in the morning, so aside from reunions and preparing my lectures, there was enough free time to take care of the farm and the vines. Not much though! There were many times when I had to be at school when all I could think about was the work that needed to get done on the farm!<br /> <br /> <strong>Besides the climate, can you elaborate on the differences between&nbsp;Chianti Ruffina&nbsp;and Chianti Classico?&nbsp;</strong><br /> <br /> Because there are so few of us in&nbsp;<glossary term="Chianti Ruffina" title="1168">Ruffina</glossary>&nbsp;(around 20 producers), our <glossary title="1156">D.O.C</glossary> regulations are less exposed to the flexibility of an area like&nbsp;<em><glossary title="1157">Classico</glossary></em>, where there are so many more growers. It&#39;s therefore a place more rooted in tradition than what&nbsp;<em><glossary title="1157">Classico</glossary></em>&nbsp;has become.<br /> <br /> I believe that the fundamental difference is that we are allowed to make <glossary title="285">Chianti</glossary> that is 100%&nbsp;<span class="zalup"><span><glossary title="911">Sangiovese</glossary><span>.</span></span></span> I don&#39;t believe this is the case anymore in&nbsp;<em><glossary title="1157">Classico</glossary></em>.<br /> <br /> <strong>There are many conversations and debates about &ldquo;<font color="#7b143e">natural wines</font>&rdquo; these days. What do you think of this way of classifying the wine?</strong><br /> <br /> It&rsquo;s a great question and a very complex problem. I always try to solve it with a simple solution: we should be able to ask other producers to <glossary term="Organic Certification" title="260">certify</glossary> the wine for us instead of individually claiming it is natural ourselves. Those who work <glossary title="160">biodynamically</glossary> or <glossary title="746">organically</glossary> have already made a certain type of choice, they have a certain frame of mind and attitude. Not only that, but they actually pay a panel to be controlled!<br /> <br /> This is one side of the equation, and unfortunately there are those who work &quot;<glossary title="708">naturally</glossary>&quot; only to obtain a profit. When you make wine to make profit, you will always treat wine production like an industry, which often leads to less than honest decisions.<br /> <br /> If you begin an agricultural process thinking: &ldquo;<em>My investment must bring in a lot of money to make it worth my while</em>&rdquo; you are steering away from what <glossary term="Agriculture" title="78">agriculture</glossary> means in the first place! <glossary term="Agriculture" title="78">Agriculture</glossary> is something else. <glossary term="Agriculture" title="78">Agriculture</glossary> is a necessary and indispensable production that feeds us and protects our land. If there is no&nbsp;<span class="zalup"><span><glossary term="Agriculture" title="78">agriculture</glossary><span>,</span></span></span> there is no land.<br /> <br /> In our modern society, part of the land has to be used for industry. But to try and submit all of our land to industry is foolish. There are so many recent examples of this backfiring: the unbalance of using (or exploiting) a territory creates a serious potential for total disaster.<br /> <br /> We believe that a natural product is simply a product that confronts these issues.&nbsp;<br /> <br /> <strong>Which wines do you like from other areas of Europe?</strong><br /> <br /> Ah, I like almost all wine. Us producers start from just that. Clearly a passion for the product. We&rsquo;re all motivated for one reason or another but I personally find French wines very interesting. None of us can deny their quality. I also very much enjoy, for example <glossary title="552">Istrian</glossary> wines. Wines that come from certain areas of the world who are now experimenting with new techniques. The <glossary title="1171">Georgian</glossary> concept with the use of <glossary title="103">amphora</glossary> is beautiful. After all, I work with <glossary title="325">cement</glossary> which is a modern day&nbsp;<span class="zalup"><span><glossary title="103">amphora</glossary><span>!</span></span></span>&nbsp;<br /> <br /> I like wines where there is a degree of research. Where there is a willingness to extract the environment. I notice that, for example, when you drink certain <glossary title="951">Sicilian</glossary> wines you are capable of envisioning&nbsp;<span class="zalup"><span><glossary title="951">Sicily</glossary><span>.</span></span></span> This is a quality I value.</p>

producers visit

<p><strong><em>This visit at Cerreto Libri took place in November, 2011.</em></strong></p> <p><strong><em>Words by Jules Dressner, photos by Alex Finberg.</em></strong></p> <p>After a &quot;light&quot; lunch at&nbsp;Montesecondo, we were off to visit <glossary title="1168">Ruffina</glossary> and<strong>&nbsp;</strong>Fattoria Cerreto Libri.&nbsp;</p> <p><br /> <img src="http://louisdressner.com/uploads/images/article/2019_Jul_17//b2/ba/b2bae0796228a03d4da6537df091aba8.jpg" /><br /> <br /> The 80 <glossary title="523">hectare</glossary> farm is headed by Andrea Zanfei and is run&nbsp;<span class="zalup"><span><glossary title="160">biodynamically</glossary><span>.</span></span></span><br /> <br /> <img src="http://louisdressner.com/uploads/images/article/2019_Jul_17//56/64/56641165096fb613828b69436391c48f.jpg" /><br /> <br /> Andrea explained that the farm dates back to the 19th century around the time of Leopold the 2nd. It used to be organized by separate houses: many small houses were spread across the land for&nbsp;<span class="zalup"><span><glossary title="1170">share-croppers</glossary><span>,</span></span></span> one house was for workers and animals (usually filled with two families or one big family of as many as 20 people), another was reserved for the land manager, and finally the main residence belonged to the owner, who naturally had servants. All in all, about 50 people lived on and actively worked the land.&nbsp;</p> <p><img src="http://louisdressner.com/uploads/images/article/2019_Jul_17//e0/cc/e0ccaca0b4b1c81877ad8aee1e4156da.jpg" /></p> <p><img src="http://louisdressner.com/uploads/images/article/2019_Jul_17//4f/db/4fdbeb622ff1fb6ade6c5b6a893f5db9.jpg" /></p> <p><img src="http://louisdressner.com/uploads/images/article/2019_Jul_17//25/86/25862d61737f005ce77abd12a207f2ce.jpg" /></p> <p>The vines had never been a priority up until the last ten years, and Andrea jokingly explained that the <glossary title="760">parcels</glossary> are spread across the farm like &quot;leopard spots&quot;.&nbsp;<br /> <br /> Before entering the&nbsp;<span class="zalup"><span><glossary title="254">cellar</glossary><span>,</span></span></span> Andrea showed us his&nbsp;<span class="zalup"><span><glossary title="378">destemmer</glossary><span>,</span></span></span> which Kevin thinks is probably one of the earliest models ever made.&nbsp;</p> <p><img src="http://louisdressner.com/uploads/images/article/2019_Jul_17//df/00/df0011b9fb8ddd9ffca887dc1ae2b713.jpg" /><br /> <br /> He also showed us a huge pile of&nbsp;<span class="zalup"><span><glossary title="515">gross lees</glossary><span>.</span></span></span>&nbsp;</p> <p><img src="http://louisdressner.com/uploads/images/article/2019_Jul_17//05/ea/05ea92c8b0810247d509793408da0e58.jpg" /><br /> <br /> Then it was off to the&nbsp;<span class="zalup"><span><glossary title="254">cellar</glossary><span>.</span></span></span></p> <p><img src="http://louisdressner.com/uploads/images/article/2019_Jul_17//91/21/91218cc84900917fb115af3ec805d7b2.jpg" /><br /> <br /> Everything is <glossary title="441">fermented</glossary> in these beautiful <glossary title="325">concrete</glossary> <span class="zalup"><span><glossary title="1140">tanks</glossary><span>.</span></span></span>&nbsp;</p> <p><img src="http://louisdressner.com/uploads/images/article/2019_Jul_17//11/41/1141fa1c90617b132cab379b57019d23.jpg" /><br /> <br /> Andrea only fills them up to about 75% and never <glossary title="827">presses</glossary> the grapes. The fermentation is therefore a pseudo<font color="#7b143e"><b>&nbsp;<glossary term="Semi-Carbonic Maceration" title="942">semi-carbonic maceration</glossary></b></font>&nbsp;but with&nbsp;numerous <glossary title="850">remontages</glossary> and in&nbsp;<span class="zalup"><span><glossary title="325">concrete</glossary><span>.</span></span></span> No <glossary title="717">new oak</glossary> is ever used for&nbsp;<span class="zalup"><span><glossary title="74">aging</glossary><span>.</span></span></span> <glossary title="993">Sulfur</glossary> is never used during <glossary title="1104">vinification</glossary> or&nbsp;<span class="zalup"><span><glossary title="185">bottling</glossary><span>.</span></span></span>&nbsp;<br /> <br /> From <glossary title="325">concrete</glossary> we tasted a tank of 2011, and a 2007 <glossary title="1168">Chianti Ruffina</glossary>&nbsp;re<span class="zalup"><span><span>-</span><glossary title="843">racked</glossary> </span></span>from <glossary title="142">barrel</glossary> which Andrea plans to <glossary title="185">bottle</glossary> in a month or two. It was light and easy with bright fruit and the <glossary title="1126">wood</glossary> wasn&#39;t overbearing but rather well integrated.&nbsp;</p> <p><img src="http://louisdressner.com/uploads/images/article/2019_Jul_17//bd/3c/bd3ca78e27e870847d95ae53f08f2af8.jpg" /><br /> <br /> We also tasted some 2010 in <glossary title="1140">tank</glossary> without&nbsp;<span class="zalup"><span><glossary title="1126">wood</glossary><span>,</span></span></span> some 2009&nbsp;<glossary title="229">Canaiolo</glossary> in <glossary title="142">barrel</glossary> and a standout 2009&nbsp;<glossary title="911">Sangiovese</glossary>&nbsp;in <glossary title="142">barrel</glossary> that had ripe, young fruit and strong vibrant acidity. Looks like it&#39;ll be a keeper.<br /> <br /> Here&#39;s my &quot;Wine Spectator Editorial&quot; pic.</p> <p><img src="http://louisdressner.com/uploads/images/article/2019_Jul_17//74/90/74904af7d28b028e50ca6b3028cb4422.jpg" /><br /> &nbsp;</p>

interview

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