Valdarno di Sopra, a young DOC
Valdarno di Sopra is one of the latest DOC among the Denominations of Controlled Origin established with the modern regulations of the 60’s.
And yet the production of high quality wines was so deeply rooted in these territories that Cosimo III de’ Medici in 1716 realized the need of protecting Tuscan wines of Chianti, Pomino, Carmignano and indeed Valdarno di Sopra, from forgeries.
Etruscans were already making wine in the 4th century BC. In the 1st century Plinio the Elder mentions the lands surrounding Arezzo as the best for winegrowing and refers to the numerous grape varietals here cultivated. In middle ages it’s thanks to monks if grape cultivation is protected from theft and devastation. The Florentine cadastre of 1427 mentions, besides the technical cadastral quotes, the value of the products obtained in different areas, ranking in fact by merit and price, the wines of the time.
During the agricultural transformations that took place between the 16th and 18th century the first specialized vineyards are grown and viticulture is developed with a more scientific and entrepreneurial attitude.
During the 19th and 20th century, wines produced in Valdarno di Sopra were progressively grouped under the Chianti name, initially in a generic way and then in the sub-zone Colli Aretini. The same happened with Carmignano, re-born with its proper name only in the 60’s and with Pomino where it was decided to distinguish their wines under thed Chianti Rufina denomination.
For the wines made in Valdarno di Sopra the association with Chianti wasn’t doing justice to the complexity of local productions. Many “Supertuscan”, acquiring a well known reputation among insiders, were made with the grapes grown in this area. We are talking of wines made not only with native grapes varietals, mainly pure Sangiovese and also Pugnitello, Foglia Tonda or white Malvasia, but also from foreign grapes like Merlot, Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon that had little or nothing to share with the Chianti disciplinary.
The need to qualify wines by their place of origin and personal style has required a return to regulations that, as was already understood in the 17th and 18th century, acknowledged the differences and personalities of singular production areas and their high quality significance.
We are located in the Eastern and Western slopes of the valley of river Arno (Val d’Arno) between the Arezzo plain and the Florentine hills. Climate conditions are certainly favorable to grape growing and the area is classified as intermediate in the Rocchi scale. The Appennine area of central Tuscany is under the influence of a temperate cold climate but is affected, especially in the summer, by the Mediterranean climate which positively determines the end of the growing cycle allowing a complete and progressive maturation avoiding harmful extreme conditions.
With the 13th June 2011 Ministerial Decree, this forerunner delimitation of origin is institutionalized with the “Denominazione di Origina Controllata” attribution to the wines of the “Val d’Arno di Sopra” or “Valdarno di Sopra”. Actually already in 2005 the wines of Pietraviva were made into a DOC that has now been included in the new Valdarno di Sopra that recognizes two sub-zones, Pietraviva and Pratomagno. The disciplinary has been then modified and adjusted to the OCM European laws as DOP wine with the 07.03.2014 Ministerial Decree.
In the Valdarno di Sopra DOC the following wine types can be made: White, White Spumante, Rosè, Rosè Spumante, Red. Among grape varietals, the following can be specified: Chardonnay, Sauvignon, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Sangiovese, Syrah. A kind of passito wine can also be made from white grapes. The production area covers the municipalities of Cavriglia, Montevarchi, Bucine, Pergine Valdarno, Civitella in Val di Chiana, Castelfranco-Pian di Scò, Castiglion Fibocchi, Terranuova Bracciolini, Loro Ciuffenna, San Giovanni.
Wines produced are:
Valdarno di Sopra Consortium
