Armin Kobler, winegrover, talks about his chardonnay Ogeaner 2014 Alto Adige DOC answering our questions about the human identity of the most representative of his wines: “It’s masculine because it’s not so hard to understand! He’s uncomplicated and gives immediate pleasure. He has a blunt character, he always tells the truth and he’d like to go to Burgundy to learn about the land of his ancestors”.
Ogeaner is blunt even when we smell it: it’s evident the typical aroma of banana, supported by pineapple and green apple, while in the mouth freshness prevails – due to a fair acid backbone – followed by a tasty vein of great length. Ogeaner, happy in the hands of Armin, speaks of his homeland, Magrè on the Wine Route, autonomous province of Bolzano, Trentino -Alto Adige, about 1,300 inhabitants.
Ogeaner is produced with chardonnay grapes from a vineyard planted in around 1940, simple pergola (about 3,300 plants per hectare), on sandy soils located 208 meters above sea level in the plain of the valley part of the first parcel of the farm bought in 1958. Since then the farm has been expanding: in 1972 the Klausner was implanted with vine shoots of pinot grigio, merlot and carmenère; in 1993 the Kotzner vineyard was implemented with schiava varieties grafted with merlot; in 2001the site Puit was implanted with cabernet franc; in 2002 the Oberfeld with pinot gris; in 2004 screws of Gewürztraminer were planted in the Feld vineyard. Different soils to the most suitable grape varieties.
The vineyards in fact are distinguished between them for the composition of the soil and the water balance: the alluvial cone of the country Magrè is calcareous land very warm and loose, while in the east and south zones sandy- loam soils of considerable depth prevail.
The vines are grown with great care by reducing treatments thanks to a system of integrated control and a rational management of the crown to an adequate yield to qualitative potential. The selection of grapes is in the vineyard and the harvest is often late and manual. The safe approach winemaking and modern techniques are used in order to obtain high quality wines with a distinctive style that reflects the variety and quality gained in the vineyard, the area, and of course, the vintage.
The farm, which includes the Magrè vineyards (located at the southern end of South Tyrol 200/220 metres above the sea level) and the orchards of Cortaccia, has been established in fifties by Erich (Armin’s father), and until the 2006 harvest the grapes produced have always been transferred and processed outside. At that time Armin and Monika Kobler though they were not completely satisfied thus in that year they decided to start winemaking. Currently they’re working grapes from two hectares that correspond to an annual production of about 14,000 bottles. The grapes not intended for production are conferred to Kurtatsch winery
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