Cartizze: A little gem in the heart of Valdobbiadene

Preserved in the DOCG territory, you can find 108 hectares of land where the Glera grapevine meets the ideal environment to grow to its best. It’s called Cartizze area and it’s located among three suburbs of Valdobbiadene: Santo Stefano, Saccol and San Pietro di Barbozza.

At 200 – 320 metres above the sea level, the perfect combination between the mild microclimate and a soil rich in minerals defines a wine product unique of its kind.

Sun, water, soil and a constant ventilation are the key elements of this place. A tiny “golden pentagon”, whose the very delimited extent doesn’t mean territorial homogeneity. All these factors affect the grapevine’s growth in different ways, so much so that the area can be divided into East Cartizze, West Cartizze and North Cartizze, the most common zone of the Valdobbiadene DOCG district.

 

Therefore, we move from very high slopes and particularly shallow soils in the upper part, to deep soils and gentle slopes in the areas below, where flows a light breeze coming from the mountain. These diversities imply distinctly different water availability and climate conditions, which, in their turn, determine the various aromatic composition too.

Such a small, but flourish land, an historical and sought-after rural reality, fragmented among its 140 growers, where the production has been limited to 120 quintals/hectare in order to assure a really high quality of the grapes.

 


East Cartizze

180 – 230 m above s.l.

Area: you can admire it from the well-known Osteria senz’Oste, looking towards East

Despite the extreme proximity to the upper part, East Cartizze has a completely different climate, mainly characterised by the modest temperature variation at night. Here too, the soil is well structure and marly, with moderate slopes though.

Organoleptic characteristics: the typical aromas of ripe apple and pear prevail over citrus and white flowers notes.


West Cartizze

180 – 230 m above s.l.

Area: it is the specular part of its sibling East Cartizze

The main difference between these two areas is the sun exposure, in addition to a greater water availability, peculiar of West Cartizze. The gentle slopes and the kind of soil let the roots grow deep-down, constantly providing the proper water supply to the plant.

Organoleptic characteristics: wine with distinct flowery notes and light hints of tropical fruit, rose and green apple.


North Cartizze

230 – 320 m above s.l.

Area: it extends along the Saccol-Santo Stefano’s road (taken as reference to divide the upper part from the lower one)

The hills in this area are particularly steep and completely exposed to the South. Such a steepness helps the water to be well drained, eased also by particularly thin and eroded soils, mostly made of limestone and marlstone.

Organoleptic characteristics: wine characterised by aromatic richness and completeness, partly attributed to the limestone content of the soil, that usually results in finesse, complexity and aromatic intensity. The bouquet has pear, peach and apricot flavours, with a hint of tropical fruit.