Loam Red Wine Cuvée – 2021

Discover Cantina Tramin Loam - Red Wine Cuvée from South Tyrol

The Cantina Tramin Loam 2021 is an impressive, powerful red wine cuvée from the Tramin winery in South Tyrol. It skillfully combines the advantages of its grape varieties: Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc. The red wine smells of red and black berries, spicy wood and black pepper. The Cantina Tramin Loam is dense and complex and presents itself wonderfully full-bodied on the palate with aromas of wild cherry, blackcurrant and dried fruit, notes of dark chocolate meet cedar wood and leathery tobacco pouch. With its soft tannin structure and noticeable wood, the enjoyment of this exceptionally elegant Bordeaux blend ends in a very long finish. This spicy-fruity red wine cuvée accompanies hearty Tyrolean dishes, especially game dishes and roasts, dark grilled meat with roasted aromas and also goes well with matured mountain cheeses.

Cantina Tramin – Winemaking

The long winter of 2021 delayed the awakening of spring and the budding of the vines until the beginning of April. But first it got cool again, which delayed full bloom, before a warm June and a humid July were followed by an August with picture-perfect weather: dry, warm during the day and already quite cool at night. Overall, it was a sunny autumn, and although there were a few rainy days, the warm days were in the majority. The 2021 harvest began about 10 days later than the annual average. The harvest volume was quite small, but the profound white wines showed an impressive freshness and delicate fruit aromas, while the red wines, like this Loam, shone with concentration, a ripe tannin structure and juicy fruit notes.

In the alpine region of South Tyrol, sites with a microclimate where late-ripening red grape varieties also reach full ripeness are rare. The Loam, made from Cabernet and Merlot, owes its expressive character to just such a weather-protected location: the hamlet of Rungg. The special nature and heat storage capacity of the clay and lime-rich soils of this vineyard also give it its name Loam, which means clay in the South Tyrolean dialect.

The 15-25 year old vines for this Cantina Tramin red wine cuvée are located in a prime location at 250-350m above sea level. The grapes were harvested by hand at the time of their optimal physiological ripeness and brought in small containers to the winery building where they were destemmed. Fermentation on the skins in large wooden vats took place at a controlled temperature (28°C) with regular pump-overs. This brings out the typical aromas more strongly and leads to an intense ruby red color. The grape varieties are vinified separately and then aged for 16 months in barrels (12 months in barriques and 6 months in large wooden vats), before the grape varieties are blended and the wine enjoys further bottle aging of at least 6 more months.

Loam – a South Tyrolean red wine and its values

• Origin Italy
• Growing region South Tyrol - Alto Adige DOC
• Winery Cantina Tramin
• Grape varieties Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc
• 14% vol. Alcohol
• 5.6 g/l Acidity
• 1.5 g/l Residual sugar
• 45 Hl/Hectare Yield