Cavalli Wines from fashion designer Roberto Cavalli's family
PASSION in a BOTTLE
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| Iconic, maverick fashion designer Roberto Cavalli enjoys his reputation as a fashion czar. There is hardly anything about the fashion giant that’s not larger-than-life. No wonder one is naturally excited and curious at the opportunity to delve into the finesse that goes into the making of Cavalli delgi Dei Wine from his son Tommaso Cavalli, who owns the liquor brand known for its fine wines and other products. He also co-owns their winery, Tenuta degli Dei, with father Roberto. |
| There, on the sofa, sits he, in a Cavalli jacket and Just jeans – “not because I am expected to wear these but because they are really nice,” we are told. No paparazzi running around, no dramatic aura and no star tantrums. A little shy and charmingly soft-spoken, that’s how Tommaso comes across. In India to promote Cavalli delgi Dei Wine and Roberto Cavalli Vodka, he says he wishes to visit Rajasthan and Goa. His winery is one thing that Tommaso talks about passionately. “My father and I would visit the place whenever we could when I was a boy, taking long walks. Here, I learned to ride. Here, horses and vineyards are integral parts of the landscape,” he says nostalgically. The estate was bought by Roberto in the seventies, but it was Tommaso who transformed it into a first-rate working farm, fuelled by his two great passions – breeding competitive horses, and since 2000, winemaking. |
 Spread over five hectares in the Tuscan region, carefully spaced rows of French varieties of grapes like Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot and Alicante Bouschet dot the estate. These were planted following a careful analysis of the terrain; the sunniest, highest areas of the estate, with elevations ranging from 400 to 450 metres above sea level, are conducive to healthy breeds. In 2000, Roberto Cavalli’s four-hectare Florentine villa, which is located in the hills just south of Florence, also turned to wine. In both vineyards, the vines – planted in March 2001 – are pruned using the cordon spur system, with a planting density of 6,700 vines per hectare. All 50,000 vines, which when they enter production, will yield about the same number of bottles. |
| Work in the vineyard is continuous throughout the year and entirely by hand – from counting the number of buds, to the tilling of the land, to green harvesting to assure quality at every step. Every operation is aimed at bringing just a few bunches, about a kilo per vine, to perfect ripeness. The harvest extends from the end of August to the beginning of October every year, a long time if one considers the size of the estate, but quite reasonable if one considers that the five varietals ripen at different times, and the Florentine harvest comes about two weeks ahead of the Panzano harvest. The grapes are then taken to the cellar. While Panzano yields are easily transported, the Florentine grapes are transferred in refrigerated trucks that keep fermentation from starting spontaneously, owing to the distance. |
 Once they reach the winery, the grapes, divided by vineyard parcel, are put through two selections by a squad of 10 people. In the first, imperfect berries are removed, and in the second all traces of leaves and stems are eliminated. The grapes thus selected drop by gravity feed into temperature-controlled vertical steel fermentation tanks. The vinification takes about 20 days; to optimise extraction, the cap is delicately pushed down into the Once they reach the winery, the grapes, divided by vineyard parcel, are put through two selections by a squad of 10 people. In the first, imperfect berries are removed, and in the second all traces of leaves and stems are eliminated. The grapes thus selected drop by gravity feed into temperature-controlled vertical steel fermentation tanks. The vinification takes about 20 days; to optimise extraction, the cap is delicately pushed down into the |
| “This is a magical moment, rather like witnessing the birth of a colt. The different characteristics of the individual varietals and vineyards come together, like the pieces of an intricate mosaic, to define the character of the wine,” says Tommaso with sparkling eyes. Once bottled, Cavalli Tenuta degli Dei refines for another 14 to 16 months in bottles, and Le Redini another four to six months. |
| In its first four vintages, Tentua degli Dei was made from grapes from all of the estate’s varietals. However, it is now made from Cabernet Sauvignon (60 per cent), Petit Verdot (25 per cent) and Cabernet Franc (15 per cent) – a blend with considerable character and personality. In 2008, a young, soft red, Le Redini – which was 90 per cent Merlot – also became part of Cavalli’s cellar. The cellars, which were completed in 2004, are adjacent to the Panzano vineyard, and occupy the space under the Pieve di San Leolino, whose foundations date to the ninth century. “In respect to the countryside, we decided to use these historic spaces rather than build something new. We are thus able to work in a place of great beauty, perfectly integrated in the history and setting surrounding it and be almost invisible, for there are no signboards,” smiles Tommaso. |
 The structure of the cellar consists of two superimposed chambers; the upper one, which contains the fermentation tanks, has the ceiling and the exposed entablature typical of Chiantigian architecture. At the entrance is the receiving area for the grapes, with the two selection tables. The chamber is occupied by the fermentation tanks, while there is, in the centre of the floor, a trap door through which the wine is transferred to the underlying ageing cellar. The underlying chamber, almost entirely below ground level, has a barrel vaulted ceiling of exposed stone. “Here the barriques rest, one really can say, in religious silence, protected from the world’s view by a heavy, ancient door,” says Tommaso. |
| It’s not just the second name of the family that sells the wines, it is the content inside the stylish bottles that does, says Sumedh Singh Mandla, CEO (Core Brands), Aspri Spirits, which brings the smooth, full-bodied wine to India, |
| The bottles, which feature Cavalli’s signature animal insignia, are designed by, yes, Roberto himself and change with fashion. According to the son, “I am hardly fashionable. My shopping happens only twice a year, once for winters and then for summers. It’s papa who creates and lives fashion. Sometimes he laughs at me, saying I have so many black pullovers, people will think I wear only one pullover all the time.” |
| While the logo of the winery contains a piece of family history, the details present on all the estate’s bottles is from a painting by Giuseppe Rossi, Roberto Cavalli’s grandfather, who was a famous painter and also directed the Scuola Fiorentina di Pittura for many years. The Roberto Cavalli vodka, which is Italy’s first own, features a chic serpent, reminding one of the forbidden yet tempting fruit of Eden. |
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