58 Act II / Poggio al Tesoro, Nature and the Elements 59 Act II / Poggio al Tesoro, Nature and the Elements What these two indexes tell us is that there is nothing extraordinary about Bolgheri. There is the same heat that we find in the Barolo appellation, which is one degree in latitude more to the north, or at Montpellier, which is more degree more to the south. But it is significantly warmer than in Bordeaux, and this is a figure which is very interesting and which we will cite further on. As far as the rest of the world is concerned, Bolgheri has the same temperature sums as Stellenbosch in South Africa, an area which is also near the sea, and accordingly we will discuss this as well. The temperatures of Bolgheri interest us above all because they help us to better understand what happened towards the end of the 20th century and what is now happening in these first years of the new millennium. During the last half of the previous century it became clear that the climate, warm but not excessively so, led to excellent ripening for the Bordeaux varieties planted during that period, Cabernet Sauvignon and, more marginally, Cabernet Franc and Merlot, due to the higher temperatures which Bolgheri enjoyed compared to Bordeaux. With the progressive rise in temperatures due to the well known problems of worldwide pollution of the environment, the cultivators of Bolgheri realized that it would be possible, at that point, to give a larger importance to other varieties than the classic ones. They turned with greater conviction to Cabernet Franc, which ripens better at these temperatures, losing a bit of its herbaceous or even vegetal character, and even Petit Verdot, another Bordeaux grape which ripens with some difficulty in its home territory but which is now giving surprising results. And, in addition, to two grapes of the Rhône river valley, Syrah, a red grape, and Viognier, a white which requires warm temperatures, comparable to those of their native Côte Rôtie. But if the temperatures of Bolgheri are shared with many other places, what is that allows this zone to produce unique and inimitable wines if not its extraordinary light? When you are at Bolgheri you can see the line of shadows delineated in the air and on the ground as though we were situated in one of metaphysical painting of Giorgio De Chirico with his piazzas in place of vineyards, the monuments instead of the lines of trees, the walls replaced by the rows of vines. The colors stand out clearly and maintain a clean and sharp outline, without smudges or halos. Just like the light of On the left: Row-end training posts in the Via Bolgherese vineyard Next pages: The cork-oak at Le Sondraie: detail
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