Do.t.e sYR.Up 2.0 Syrah 2018

Do.t.e is Filippo Calabresi's one-man project in Cortona, eastern Tuscany, where he took over a vineyard in 2014 and began farming its Syrah vines, planted in 2002, without systemic pesticides, fungicides, herbicides, or insecticides. The wine is bottled without added sulfites and without fining or filtration. Fermentation is spontaneous using native yeasts, and aging takes place in a combination of old oak and cement egg. The result is labeled Vino da Tavola rather than Cortona DOC, reflecting Calabresi's preference for working outside formal production rules.

Cortona sits in the Val di Chiana in southeastern Tuscany, perched at roughly 600 meters above sea level. The soils are clay-dominant with deposits of silt, sand, and limestone, a profile that suits Syrah well and keeps acidity lively through cool overnight temperatures. The Cortona DOC, established in 1999, recognizes Syrah as its principal red grape, and the appellation has drawn comparisons to the Northern Rhone for the savory, pepper-edged character its wines can achieve.

sYR.Up 2.0 is the second iteration of Calabresi's carbonic-style Syrah. The approach pulls the grape toward a fresher, more immediate register than a conventionally vinified Cortona red: lower extraction, brighter red fruit, and a crunchy texture. Residual sugar sits below 1 gram per liter, making it fully dry. Sulfites at bottling measure less than 10 mg/L, placing it well within any practical definition of zero-added-sulfite wine.

Calabresi describes do.t.e (an acronym for 'down to earth') as an experimental entity seeking alternative answers in contemporary viticulture, grounded in the principles of health, ethics, and everyday drinking. Bottle variation is expected and acknowledged as part of the project's self-determined path.