Banfi - Ratings & Reviews - News
Banfi for a better wine world
Scroll down
2001 8 October

2001 HARVEST AT CASTELLO BANFI BENEFITS FROM EARLY FROST, FINE WEATHER

As harvest 2001 wraps up in Montalcino, winemakers at Castello Banfi are happily comparing the vintage to the stellar 1997 growing season.

 

Despite a severe spring frost, ideal weather conditions throughout the summer allowed for perfect maturation of the grapes. The clusters relished the hot days and cool, breezy nights. The white grapes in particular developed excellent fruit character with optimal balance between the sugar content and prospective alcohol levels. A cool September with little rainfall helped produce excellent results for the red varieties as well.

 

Harvest of white grapes at Castello Banfi started on August 14th this year, the earliest in the estate's history, and lasted into the beginning of September. Picking of the red grapes proceeded gradually throughout the month of September until early October. Harvest workers began as early as four o'clock in the morning to preserve the freshness and fruit character of the grapes.

 

A severe frost on the eve of Easter Sunday threatened to decimate vineyards throughout the entire Montalcino wine region and much of Tuscany, but within three weeks Castello Banfi reported that the damage was not as drastic as originally thought. "The low lying vineyards planted with early budding varietals such as Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Grigio suffered more frost than the hillside vineyards planted with mostly red grapes, including the area's prestigious Brunello," said Castello Banfi family proprietor Cristina Mariani. "As it turned out, the frost actually functioned as a natural pruning device lowering the yield yet ultimately contributing to grape quality at harvest time."

 

According to Ms. Mariani, good results are also due to responsive techniques for the weather conditions. Vineyard managers train the vines so that leaf coverage protects the grapes from strong sunshine, while in the winery, low-temperature fermentation helps preserve fruit character. "These techniques," she said, "along with strategic choices in blending and aging contribute to the consistent elegance of the estate's wines in outstanding vintage years as well as in the more challenging ones."

PRIVACY POLICY

Banfi S.r.l. places fundamental importance on your personal privacy. Banfi S.r.l. takes all steps to protect the personal information of the users. Optimal service is possible when we can assure that the user is aware of and understands the norms and criteria adopted for our privacy policy. The criteria used by Banfi S.r.l. regarding personal information are as follows:
 
Why personal information is collected?
Banfi S.r.l. gathers and uses personal information of the users to guarantee optimal service and to facilitate access to a broad range of products and services. Furthermore, the personal information is used to keep every user updated on new offerings and other information that Banfi S.r.l. believe may be useful to the user. Furthermore, personal information could be used to contact the user to invite the user to participate in eventual market research that allows us to both evaluate the level of user satisfaction and to develop superior products.
 
How personal information is collected
Information about our users is collected in different ways. For example, information that can be used to contact the user can be requested when that person writes to Banfi S.r.l., telephones to ask about a service, or participates in an online poll. Furthermore, when a person subscribes to the internet service of Banfi S.r.l. or to the mailing list, they provide information that is then collected and filed within a secure database.
 
When personal information is revealed
It can become necessary to reveal personal data of the client by law or in the course of legal proceedings or other situations in the public interest.
 
How personal information is protected
Banfi S.r.l. protects the security of information sent by people using physical, electronic and managerial methods. Banfi S.r.l. invites its users to take the necessary steps to protect their personal data on the Internet. Banfi S.r.l. suggests that users often change their password, using a combination of letters and numbers, and relying solely on secure browsers.

Access to personal information
The user can, at any time, access information regarding themselves. To review and update personal information that Banfi S.r.l. has gathered, please contact banfi@banfi.it.
 
Collection of personal information
It is possible to navigate the websites of Banfi S.r.l. anonymously. In any case, the browser automatically comunicates the type of computer and operating system used.

Like many other websites, Banfi S.r.l. uses "cookie" technology. The first time a user connects to the site, their cookies identify the browser with a random and unique number. The cookies used do not reveal any information of a personal nature to the user, including first names that could be used to welcome the user on their next visit. The cookies help us understand what part of the website the users visit more frequently, which are the paths used by the clients, and how long they remain connected. The cookies are used to study the traffic patterns of the Banfi S.r.l. websites in order to improve their functionality.