Located in the green heart of Abruzzi, Valle Reale, marks the geographical border among the Gran Sasso National Park, the Laga Mountains and the Majella National Park. It is the most authentic and representative expression of the highland of Central Italy where the warm climate of this latitude is associated to severe winters and high mountains always covered with snow. It is a green and wild paradise where deep gorges, lashed from icy draughts, welcome various springs of crystal clear water which guarantee survival to the fauna saved from extinction.
After a hundred years the guardian of this paradise is still the Marsicano wolf. Suspicious and severe inhabitant of the Majella Park, symbol of the unrestrainable course of nature, safe from the intervention of man. Valle Reale is one of the few wine-producing realities dedicated to the exploitation of this area which is mostly uncontaminated. Deserted mountains and valleys, but rich of history, that for a hundred years have told us about the economy of the region running across the ways of transhumance.
The history of Montepulciano d'Abruzzo begins exactly in this area. Various historical documents indicate exactly the first traces of the cultivation of this varietal a few steps away from the mountains.
We married these valleys that we call "the other Abruzzi".
The pedoclimatic profile of this area is completely different from the typical one of Abruzzi and of the majority of the wine areas of central-southern Italy. Valle Reale vineyards are on very thin soils, very rich in skeleton with a light base of clay and a slight sandy component. The proximity to the Gran Sasso and Majella massif and the altitude of the estate guarantee wide temperature ranges between day and night and summer and winter (that here is very harsh). Maturations are very slow and require care and attention. The Gorges of Popoli, authentic canyons symbol of the Peligna Valley, indicate the sudden transformation from the warmest Abruzzi area, where Montepulciano cultivation is more common. In this environment, spring and summer are typical of central Italy, because warm and favourable to the vegetive-productive development of the vine.
While during the maturation phase the grapes take advantage of the constant draught of cold air, able to ensure ventilation, scarce humidity to the grapes and synthesis of the fine aromas. The perfect grade of maturity is reached here only at the beginning of November when the first snow whitens the Morrone Mount.
The peculiarities of this area meet again on the wines. They are characterized from a full maturity of all components, combined to a fresh elegance of perfumes with articulate aromatic complexity.
The Valle Reale project starts from a very old vineyard, precious genetic heredity of the nature, adapted during the years to an extreme pedo-climatic situation. We are in the area of origin of Montepulciano d'Abruzzo that begins in the Abruzzi inland and finds in these areas the ideal conditions to express its peculiarities. In cooperation with the agronomic faculty of the University of Milan guided from Prof. Valenti, the Pizzolo family begins selecting clones which are more suitable for the Valle Reale environment and therefore more suitable for obtaining a great wine that expresses the varietal and the land. We planted 54 hectares of vines divided between Popoli and Capestrano, dedicated mostly to Montepulciano d'Abruzzo. Close to the old vines, jealously guarded by a specialized agronomic staff, we developed 46 hectares spurred cordon intentionally planned to induce the wine-producing innovation with the tradition of the territory.