Primitivo di Manduria DOP Riserva 'Anniversario 62' 2019 (750 ml.) San Marzano

THE WINE

Primitivo di Manduria Reserve 'Anniversario 62' by San Marzano celebrates the year of foundation of Cantine San Marzano (1962): it was born in the Seltyanni valley, approximately 40 hectares between San Marzano and Sava (TA) from Primitivo saplings of at least 60 years of age raised on red soil rich in iron oxides. This Reserve ages 18 months in barrique to express all the strength and richness of the grapes harvested in a slightly overripe state. An intense and complex wine, with great body and notable persistence, soft and rich in noble tannins. Fruity with hints of plums, cherry jam and notes of tobacco, slightly spicy, with a finish that gives notes of cocoa, coffee and vanilla. Excellent as an accompaniment to red meats, game and robust first courses.

THE COMPANY

Cantine San Marzano is one of the most important wineries in the Apulian wine scene which in recent decades has contributed significantly to its rebirth and valorisation. It was founded in 1962 by 19 winemakers, to join their forces and face the challenge of a world of wine, which from a peasant dimension was beginning to acquire an important role within the agricultural and economic scenario of the region. Today the cooperative has over 1200 members and a vineyard park of approximately 1500 hectares, cultivated in the hinterland of Taranto, in the heart of the wonderful Salento area.

San Marzano finds its origins in two values: respect and modernity. Respect for a tradition that has ancient roots and lives on today in the gaze, hands and work of the winemakers who are part of it. Modernity for that widespread and convivial idea of wine, always open to new languages and different worlds, which is linked to a clear stylistic figure, made of elegance and clean tasting. The choice to focus above all on the valorisation of old sapling vineyards with Primitivo, used for Primitivo di Manduria, and Negroamaro, fits perfectly into this perspective, without however forgetting minor varieties such as Malvasia Nera del Salento, Verdeca or international grapes which have adapted very well to Puglia, such as Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc and Merlot. The suitable soils and the Mediterranean climate, sunny and very windy, thanks to the sea breezes that surround the Apulian peninsula, create the ideal conditions for a perfect ripening of grapes with particularly rich and intense aromatic complements.

The vineyard is the true center of the project, to the point that all San Marzano wines are born from excellent quality grapes, which in the modern cellar are vinified with extreme attention, in order to preserve the best varietal characteristics and to always bring the authentic flavor of the sunny and generous Apulian land. The range of wines is very wide and divided into different collections. The possibility of being able to count on a vast number of parcels also allows us to select the best vineyards, with the oldest vines, to create labels of particular prestige, which for years have been part of the small circle of the best wines in the region. The Settanni Primitivo di Manduria is the most representative label of the San Marzano way of thinking and working: a red that has completely changed the perception of Apulian wines on international markets. It was born thanks to the intuition of President Cavallo, determined to create a wine capable of enhancing the original authenticity of Primitivo in a new and modern way and thus transforming it into a point of reference for the typology at an international level.