Castello Bonomi Tenute in Franciacorta hosted the experimental fermentation of white wines deriving from Chardonnay and glera grapes. Following the evaluation of the organoleptic characteristics of the base wines produced in the harvest in 2018, the definition of the methods of refining sur lie was followed. The 26 wines from the grapes harvested in each parcel of the 3 test sites involved in the project will begin a long bâtonnage process that will last throughout the autumn of 2018. Post-fermentation technological processes will be standardized for all the theses involved so as not to influence the effects deriving from the different land managements. Subsequently, the wines will be bottled and will be submitted to the tasting of a panel of experts to collect and process objective data on the differences between the different products.

In spite of the first summer forecasts, according to which the 2018 harvest appeared precocious for all the areas, the red berry varieties had to wait until mid-October to reach full phenolic maturity. The red vinification protocol involved an inoculation with tolerant yeast alcohol and subsequent management of maceration with two daily punching down to keep the marc cap wet. In both cases, after a week in contact with the skins, it was decided to devolve and inoculate with bacteria from the Oenococcus Oeni family to encourage the initiation of a controlled malolactic fermentation.