Bibi Graetz Testamatta

Sometimes, the best decisions are the ones you don’t think about. This was true for artist Bibi Graetz when he took the plunge into the world of wine. That was more than 30 years ago, in 1990. At that time, the lease on the vineyards surrounding Castello di Vincigliatta, the family's castle near Fiesole, in Tuscany, were about to expire and he decided to dive right in. Today, thanks to his Bibi Graetz Testamatta red wine, which in Italian means crazy this origin story is not to be forgotten because; why deny it? He really was a bit of a nutcase, wasn’t he?

 

Before being a winemaker, Bibi Graetz was dedicated to art, a world where your work is guided by the senses, creativity and passion. When it comes to making his wines Graetz follows this same path, completely removed from technicalities and theories. And so far he has done pretty well considering that Bibi Graetz Testamatta is considered a great wine, with lots of good scores and reviews. Perhaps the magic lies in the blend of vineyards located in the region’s best terroirs. Bibi Graetz Testamatta is made with five: Lamole and Montefili (in the heart of the Chianti Classico planted at altitudes between 600 and 400 metres above sea level), Vincigliata (near Florence at 280 metres above sea level), Londa (north of Florence) and Siena, in the south (at about 250 metres above sea level). 

 

All these plots are cultivated in a natural way, respecting the San Giovese variety at all times. Again, once again, the senses come into play when it comes to making Bibi Graetz Testamatta when the vineyards are checked over up to eight times during the harvest, always checking for the perfect state of ripeness in the grapes and giving time to the most lagging clusters. When the Bibi Graetz Testamatta grapes reach the winery, they are sorted again and go directly to destemming and pressing. All the plots are worked and vatted separately, and fermentation is also carried out in this way. This step, which is key, happens with native yeasts, in 225 L open barrels, without any temperature control (with six daily pump-overs). Finally the wine macerates with the skins (between 7 and 10 days) and then ages for at least two years in barrels made more than a decade ago. This is the final steps in the production of Bibi Graetz Testamatta. 

 

On both this adventure, and in his artistic work, Graetz had examples to follow. In this case he was inspired by Italy’s greats, like Sassicaia and Pétrus. However, with the passing of time Bibi Graetz has achieved something much better: to become a winery with its own style. He and his wines are now the inspiration that many people dream about.