I QUATTRO BASTIONI

Organic Romagna Sangiovese Superiore DOC produced in Castrocaro Terme, in the ‘Le Volture’ area, from Sangiovese vineyards (Romagna clones) aged 25 years, with 6,000 vines per hectare, trained using the spurred cordon system and situated at an altitude of 180 metres above sea level. The yield per hectare is 6,000 kg/hectare, or 1.2 kg per vine.

As for the winemaking process, the Sangiovese grapes are fermented as a blend using indigenous yeasts.
Fermentation and the subsequent maceration on the skins take place in temperature-controlled stainless steel vats.
The wine remains in contact with the skins for an average of 18 days, followed by malolactic fermentation.
Ageing takes place for 9 months in concrete tanks and a minimum of 3 months in the bottle, with a total of 7,000 bottles produced each year.

The label features a sketch of a ‘fiera’, a mythological creature symbolising strength that features in the nights of many fairy tales. It is a drawing by Silvio Gordini, one of the best-known artists in Emilia-Romagna and the great-great-grandfather on their mother’s side of Aldo and Paolo Rametta.

‘I Quattro Bastioni’ pays homage to the imposing defensive bastions (Sant’Andrea, S. Martino, Santa Reparata, Santa Maria) commissioned by Cosimo I and situated at the four corners of the approximately 13-metre-high city walls, which enclose the citadel, extending over a rectangular area measuring 2 kilometres and 87 metres

In the Romagna Apennines, amidst the woods and steep slopes of Modigliana, the Ronchi di Castelluccio was born in the 1970s, marking the first quality wine experience from a single vineyard in Romagna. A visionary project conceived in 1974 by intellectual and director Gian Vittorio Baldi, who foresaw the extraordinary potential of these cold, wooded hills, pioneering the concept of zoning in Romagna. Among the first to support him was Luigi Veronelli, who, like Baldi, believed that the true identity of a wine should emerge from the most authentic expression of the territory.

The estate spans between 253 and 411 meters above sea level, on ancient soils formed millions of years ago when the sea receded: marl and sandstone, sands, and calcified clays that still resurface today, telling a submarine past. The vines root in poor, loose, and calcareous soils, with slopes reaching up to 40%, constantly caressed by the Adriatic breeze and surrounded by a rich biodiversity of broom, oaks, chestnuts, and ancient olive trees. When fog envelops the valley, the hills emerge like islands, offering a unique and enchanting spectacle.

Here, the “ronchi” are born: small clearings manually reclaimed from the forest, each with unique characteristics of exposure, soil, and microclimate. From these plots, single-vineyard wines come to life, where Sangiovese, Sauvignon Blanc, and Cabernet Sauvignon express distinct and profound identities. The yields are extremely low, and the work is entirely artisanal: manual pruning, organic fertilization, natural grassing, and measured treatments based on copper and sulfur. In the winery, the grapes are vinified separately with fermentations in steel or large oak vats; aging continues in French barriques with delicate toasting and then in the bottle, in search of balance, tension, and longevity.

Since 2020, the estate has been led by brothers Aldo Rametta and Paolo Rametta, who have chosen to revitalize this historic project by returning to the separate vinification of each ronco, following the original vision. Today, Ronchi di Castelluccio is the meeting point between art, nature, and oenological rigor: a place where wine becomes a narrative of the landscape, memory, and an authentic and vertical Romagna.