Le Strie
지역: 이탈리아 롬바르디 Lombardy, Italy
1년 총 생산량: 약 10.000
We are in Valtellina. This is a valley nestled in the Alps located in the most northern part Lombardy just on the border with Switzerland. For centuries People living in this valley stole from the mountains tiny pieces of land building dry stone walls on the steep mountainsides. Winemaking on steep terraces has been ranked among UNESCO human heritage. Even today any mechanization of work is impossible. Everything is carried out as it used to be decades ago.
The soil of the terraces is just the soil of the below valley brought manually by the people to fill the terraces they built. It is sandy and very acidic, gravel-rich soils. The main if not the sole cultivated vine is Nebbiolo locally also called Chiavennasca.
Microclimate, soil, and vine characteristics create some special Nebbiolo. Very elegant, with etheric and powerful nose. Never more here is correct the Italian expression “you drink the wine with the nose”. If you like Nebbiolo from Langhe then this is the new Mecca for you.
All over the area there is no mechanization, everything is conducted manually in the vineyards. It is just impossible given the morphology of the area.
Le Strie covers an area of just 2 hectares between the sub-zones of Valgella and Sassella, at an altitude ranging from 400 to 700 meters and with a southern exposure.
Why I love Valtellina?
This is a magical place for 3 main reasons: 1) It represents one of the most monumental engineering achievements of mankind when we talk about wine, 2) the surrounding nature and environment is just stunning 3) it is an area with true wines and true winemakers not yet bastardized by mass tourism such as Tuscany Chianti or Bolgheri area and Langhe in Piemonte.
While gazing at the mountainside with hundreds of vine terraces scattered all over the mountainside anyone can understand the determination and the effort of human beings to survive even is the nature conditions are harsh.
Le Strie.
Why is it called like that?
The winery's name is associated with this area: Le Strie ("the witches" in the local dialect) in fact refers to the various legends and traditions surrounding witches in the Valtellina area during the 16th century. An extraordinary English painting, which has been reinterpreted by the winery, depicts a witch and is printed on the label of each bottle.
Counter-reformation from the Catholic church against heretics. Especially in the border with Switzerland there were lots of protestant and Calvinist which at the time were considered heretic due to their peculiar beliefs. Therefore, there are several records of witch hunt and burn in the area.
Their cellar is an old small prison with the purpose of detaining people before trial. You can still read carved in the wall the stories or the day counts of some people who used to be there. In an old archaic Italian language, I remember the complaint of a prisoner being detained 30 days for stealing a chicken.
