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Grattamacco is the name of an 86- acre farm, featuring a 34-acre vineyard and a 7,4-acre olive grove in the municipality of Castagneto Carducci, in the province of Livorno.

The farm was established in 1977, and was subsequently taken over by Ernesto Bertarelli, owner of Alinghi syndicate, the winner of the 2003 and 2007 editions of the America’s Cup.
Grattamacco winery is on the top of a hill on the Tyrrhenian Sea and between Castagneto Carducci and Bolgheri – 328 ft above sea level – in an area very famous for great red wines.
From the top of this hill, on a clear day, even the coast of Corsica can be glimpsed over the horizon.
This location, between the sea and the land, offers a dry and mild climate with significant temperature range, especially at the end of summer – wines can thus achieve a remarkable sugar content.

The vineyards, with an average age of 25 years, are all well exposed to the sun but protected from the strong winds coming from the sea – they are cultivated with different forms of training, including Guyot, sapling and spurred cordon.
The soil can be very different: in the “Alberello” vineyard there is a greater percentage of silt and red sands, while the mid-western area is quite calcareous with marlstone; the eastern part mainly features a mix of limestone and marlstone.

The cultivated plots are completely surrounded by woods covering about 3.953 acres; they feature the typical Mediterranean scrub where wild boars live: it is a magical place, whose genius loci manifests itself and can be found in its great wine.

This post is also available in: Italiano (Italian)