The terroir of the grapes used to obtain the base spumante wines by Cesarini Sforza is represented by the La Vis Vineyard. The Zonation Project of the Cantina La Vis, with its scientific approach coordinated by the San Michele all¹Adige Agrarian Institute established in the early Nineties and resulting in the publication of the Atlante Viticolo (Viticultural Atlas) in 1998, has provided all partner/producers with the chance of gaining in-depth knowledge of the viticultural-enological potentialities of their own vineyards through evaluations and observations in terms of pedology, agronomy and enology.
The close cooperation between the agronomists of the Cantina La Vis with the Cesarini Sforza enologists, the results of the Zonation Project and the response obtained by the Chardonnay and Pinot Nero grape varieties, have allowed for the accurate selection of the zones and sites most suited for the production of spumante base grapes. To this end, in particular two adjacent areas have been defined:
• The vineyards of the medium-high elevation zones of the Colline Avisiane (Avisio hills) located in the Valle dell¹Adige in the townships of Lavis and Giovo, at an elevation of 250 to 550 m a.s.l., feature a subalpine continental climate with westerly exposure, and relatively deep, structured and well-drained soils with an average content of clay;
• the highest vineyards of the Valle di Cembra that reach up to 700 m a.s.l., feature an almost Mediterranean climate positively affected by Lake Garda¹s Ora wind that guarantees in a natural way a temperature gradient between night and day, in the period that precedes harvest, ranging between 18° and 27°C. The soils, that are mostly exposed to the south in a semicircular layout and stand on a vast porphyry platform, have a medium structure, are not too deep, not too fertile and are well drained.
The grapes come from terraced vineyards, grown over simple Trentino pergolas although in the last few years these have been upgraded to an arrangement in rows, so as to pass from 4500 vinestocks/ha to 5000-6000 vinestocks/ha.
Output per plant range on average between 2.5 to 2 kg, with an average grape cluster weight lower than average due to the effect the elevation has on the number of grapes and the average weight of each grape.
The result is scanty clusters with nicely ripened, healthy grapes of correct acidity, ideal for the production of especially elegant spumante base wines.