First step: only high quality selected clays for the Dryland handmade cotto

Dryland extract the clay from valuable mines in the Central Italy, the so-called Green Heart of Italy.
To extract such a pure clay, you have to dig at least 5 meters below the ground; the laborious undertaking ends with a careful covering of the trench, leaving the work area in the best possible conditions.

Refining

Dryland demands perfection and that is why, in addition to the initial selection, clay is subject to refinement, a technique that literally pulverizes the clay itself, making the impure debris almost near to zero and harmless; in this way the powder is characterized by a very fine grain size and is as uniform as possible. Then water is added to form a easily moldable dough.

Seasoned as a good wine: here is a “Vintage Cotto “

A handmade terracotta must be “trained” to be a long-lasting one.
So, like a good wine, the clay extracted is left outdoors for seasoning for 15 months, exposed to the elements such as water, heat, wind, ice and moisture; this is the way it “temper” before sending it to its destination.