Marani Kondoli Vineyards Sami

Selected blocks of Saperavi, Alexandreuli and Merlot of Kondoli vineyards have been green harvested during the first days of véraison (August) in order to artificially reduce the grape yield down to 7 tons per hectare and thus increase the overall quality and concentration of remaining fruit. All three (three means Sami in Georgian) grapes Alexandreuli, Saperavi and Merlot were hand harvested in small boxes, hand sorted in our winery and then gently de-stemmed and crushed for farther fermentation, which took place in open lid 225 l barriques fermented. During the whole process of fermentation cap management was performed only by hand punching, thus overall mechanical impact on grape skins has been minimized and ensured soft extraction of tannin and coloring elements. After the 20 day long maceration, wine was transferred to closed oak barriques for malolactic fermentation and aging for 12 month. Coarse filtration complemented by bottling and farther maturation in our cellar before the release.