ItalyTraveller experience.
Barone Pizzini's organic bubbles
Eco-friendly wine making in the hills of Franciacorta.
Franciacorta, a name which conjures up a series of images and sensations, of rolling green hills, of welcoming country inns, and of bubbles which caress the palate. Franciacorta is the name of a territory, that of the morainic basin south of Lake Iseo, but also of a production method (with classic refermentation in the bottle) and of a wine, Franciacorta DOCG (Denomination of Origin Controlled and Guaranteed).
In 1870 Baron Giulio Pizzini founded the winery which was to play a fundamental role in the development of wine-making in the area. In the late 1980's, the company was purchased by a group of local entrepreneurs and eco-friendly wine makers, responsible for Barone Pizzini becoming the first company in Franciacorta to produce Franciacorta DOCG using organically grown grapes. According to the strong belief that only a respected and integral nature can produce wines of superior quality, the grapes grown in Barone Pizzini's vineyards are cultivated without the use of OGM, pesticides, synthetic fungicides or chemical fertilizers.
Borgo Barone Pizzini in Timoline di Corte Francia is an attractive little hamlet and the stunning location of the historical head quarters of the company and the Winemaking Museum, which successfully illustrates the area's centuries-old farming traditions. The Borgo is also home to the Santa Giulia Restaurant, situated in the oldest part of the hamlet, a conference center, and the Licenza osteria, once a stopping place for travelers and now a wine bar and shop.
Having paid a visit to the Borgo, wine enthusiasts will want to make a tour of Barone Pizzini's new cellars, situated just a few hundred meters from the Borgo and constructed according to the latest in eco-compatible criteria. Great part of the cellar has been built underground, so as to guarantee the cool, dark and silent conditions necessary for the production of quality Franciacorta. A purpose-built walkway enables the visitor to follow the various phases of vinification: from the delivery of the grapes to the transferral of the wine in maturing vats.
A visit to what is both one of the oldest and most innovative wineries in the district provides the perfect demonstration of how each and every glass of the elegant, mellow Franciacorta Barone Pizzini wine is the delectable end result of a deep and sincere love for the territory in which it was produced.
Borgo Barone Pizzini
via Brescia 3/a
25040 Corte Franca (BS)
Guided tours of the cellars are available, by reservation only
Tel: +39 030 98 48 400
www.baronepizzini.it
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