Vigna:
Kastelaz has the prestigious additional denomination of VIGNA. It is an additional mention of a smaller geographical origin and designs the smallest historical / geographical unit of a vineyard. Every single Vigna must be officially admitted and registered within the regional government. It expresses the ultimate thought of terroir philosophy with the idea of a parcel wine from an exact plot and hence having a historical or traditional name. Elena Walch’s two VIGNA are the vineyards of Vigna Kastelaz and Vigna Castel Ringberg: Both recognized for generations for their unique terroir and for decades produced and commercialized by using the name of the same single vineyard they derive from.
The imposing location above the wine village of Tramin is one of the rarest, exclusive Southern exposures in Alto Adige – since most of the vineyards in the region follow the valley, facing East or West. The vineyard terraces at around 360m above sea level are planted with Gewürztraminer and Merlot. Here, close rows of medium planting density and extremely low yield produce the finest wines. In concert, the light chalky soils together with the special climatic and microclimatic conditions of the warm Southern exposure bring forth terroir wines which continually deserve the predicate of “uniqueness”.
Soil:
Vigna Kastelaz is a post-glacial alluvial cone which has formed below the summit of the dolomite Mendola ridge. Resting on the reddish sediment of the Werfener strata, the vineyard is a layered aggregation of various soils and rock carried along by the rivers coming from the mountain: Vigna Kastelaz largely consists of scree which has been deposited over centuries and which is pervaded by raw rock such as granite and porphyry as well as by several humus layers.
Locality: Tramin
Altitude: 340 – 380m (1115-1240 ft.)
Soil: Chalky soil with raw rock (granite, porphyry)
Grape varieties: Gewürztraminer and Merlot
Planting density: 7.500 vines / ha
Yield: 38 hl / ha
