Italian Red Wine

Abruzzo, east of the Apennines, appears to many to be a remote corner of Italy, perhaps because of its inaccessibility and the rolling mountains that stretch out to the Adriatic. This region comprises of two-thirds mountains, one-third hills and offers highly favourable natural conditions for the growing of grapevines.

Cantine Zaccagnini
Ciccio Zaccagnini has been producing wine for over thirty years and none more famous than the wines we list. Consistent quality and unique presentation are Ciccio's trademark.

Montepulciano d’Abruzzo.
Type: Montepulciano d’Abruzzo DOC.
Alcohol content: 12.5%.
Grape variety: Montepulciano d’Abruzzo 100%.
Average annual production: 95.000 750 ml bottles.
Geographic location of the vineyard: Municipality of Catignano, Varano district - east-facing.
Type of land: medium texture.
Training system: pergola.
Yield (grapes per hectare): 120 quintals.
Harvest: manual, following ripening curves.
Fermentation: gentle grape pressing, submerged-cap maceration with controlled temperature maceration and first racking when set parameters are reached.
Ageing and evolution: before bottling, in steel, then about 4 months in Slavonic oak barrels, followed by bottle evolution.
Sensorial features: intense ruby red colour with violet nuances; intense, characteristic bouquet of the
primary grape aromas; fruity component, full-bodied and robust, well-balanced with tannin and oak features.
Bottle lifespan: on sale 2 years after harvest; bottle evolution for 3 or more years.
Serving temperature: 16/18°C.

Il Bianco di Ciccio
Type: IGT Colline Pescaresi
Alcohol content: 11.5%.
Grape variety: Trebbiano d’Abruzzo 80% - Chardonnay 20%.
Average annual production: 85.000 750ml bottles.
Geographic location of the vineyard: Municipality of Catignano, east-facing.
Type of land: medium texture.
Training system: pergola.
Yield (grapes per hectare): 120 quintals.
Harvest: manual, following ripening curves.
Fermentation: gentle grape pressing, cold skin contact and vacuum pressing, low-temperature maceration.
Ageing and evolution: in steel with subsequent bottleevolution.
Sensorial features: pale yellow with green nuances; very delicate bouquet, fragrant, aromatic, extremely pleasant aroma; fine, elegant flavour, very fresh and well-balanced.
Bottle lifespan: we recommend consumption within a year of harvest.
Serving temperature: 10°C.

Casal Bordino Soc Co-op
The co-operative Madonna del Miracoli of Casalbordino was founded in 1960, thanks to the commitment of 42 small grape producers. The winery now includes 650 other local wine-producers, who cultivate 1400 hectares of vineyards.

Azienda Agricola, Dino Illuminati
In the late 1890's, an impassioned master in the art of wine-making, Nicola Illuninati, began the activity of wine growing. In the province of Teramo an area located between the deep blue of the Adriatic sea and the gorgeous mountains of the Gran Sasso in the Northern Abruzzo, Nicola Illuminati set up the winery called "Fattoria Nico". This passion for winemaking was handed down, to his grandson Dino Illuminati who continues on the cultural tradition of making good wine, employing the same skilled craftmanship of his illustrious grandfather and fusing traditional and modern methods so that every bottle is a "bottle of Reserve".

At last Umbria, like the Tuscan Coast is seething with winemaking ambition. Its isolation and the absence of any large cities or useful ports kept the region and its wines in obscurity for generations, even though its wine traditions are as ancient as any.

Orvieto was an important Etruscan city. The magnificent cellars cut in the volcanic rock of its dramatic hilltop 3,000 years ago are unique examples of prehistoric technology, specifically designed for long, cool fermentation, the object being sweet wine. Classic Orvieto was amabile, as sweet as possible, depending on the season and the amount of botrytis conjured by autumn mists in the vineyards. Alas for Orvieto, the 1960's and 1970's fashion for dry white wines turned it into yet another Central Italian blend of Trebbiano (at times called Procanico here) and Malvasia, and the fortunes of this supposed leader of Umbrian wine foundered.

Enter, Dr Giorgio Lungarotti who, on his estate at Torgiano near Perugia was the first in modern times to prove that Umbria could make great red wine. His Rubesco Riserva 1975, 1979 and 1983 broke new ground for the reputation of Central Italy's only landlocked region. His daughter continues to keep Torgiano on the map.

Umbria's climate varies enormously from cooler-than-Chianti-highland weather in the north around Lake Trasimeno to a Mediterranean climate at Montefalco and Terni in the south.

It was in the southwest at Antinori's Castello della Sala estate that the next significant development in Umbrian wine history was to take place. The estate was initially designed to make Orvieto but from the mid-1980's on, winemaker Renzo Cotarella continued to produce a stunning range of non-traditional white wines. A barrel-fermented Chardonnay was perhaps only to be expected, but Cervaro della Sala has almost from the start had a purity and singularity to establish it as one of Italy's greatest white wines. A botrytized Muffato from a range of international varieties plus Grechetto showed other possibilities, while an unusually refined, if highly variable, Pinot Nero (Noir) indicated others.

The next breakthrough established an entirely new DOCG, Sagrantino di Mentefalco inspired by the thrilling 1991 and 1993 reds made from the local, dazzlingly fruity (and also mightily tannic) Sagrantino grape around the town of Montefalco by Arnaldo Caprai, Colpetrone was soon to follow.

Umbria was well on its way and today makes a truly Italian farrago of reds and whites from grapes both local and imported, including Orvieto of some real interest once more. No pattern matching grapes and places have yet emerged, but the role of consultant oenologists, the demigods of the modern Italian wine scene, will continue to be vital. The Cotarella brothers have been making particularly successful raids into Umbria from their Falesco winemaking base at Montefiascone over the b order in Latium and, like other producers, are more likely to label their wines IGT Umbria than with a local DOC such as Colli Perugini, Colli del Trasimeno, Colli Martani (especially good for Grechetto) or Colli Amerini. Umbria has arrived!

Located in the very heart of Italy, Umbria is a delight of green hills and fertile valleys. Its ancient towns include Perugia and Assisi, and the Etruscans are known to have produced wine there over two thousand years ago, but until recently the only well known wine was Orvieto and that area stretches into Latium.

Barberani - Azienda Agricola
The vineyards of the estate are a few kilometres away from Orvieto. they are situated on the hills above Lake Corbara in the most ancient and highly regarded wine producing area of Orvieto, known as the "classic" zone. The estate covers a total of 80 hectares, 50 of which have been cultivated with specialised vineyards. The hilly location of the vines combined with the chalky clay soil, the micro-climate from the lake below contribute to the making of such high quality premium wines.

The name Piemonte means "the land at the foot of the mountain" and is spectacularly beautiful and hilly region at the foot of the Alps around Turin in the North West of Italy. The region is renowned for the production of a great number of fine and prestigious wines, with vines growing everywhere, producing 15% of all Italian wines. there are more designated DOC and DOCG wine production areas in Piemonte than in any other region of Italy and the quality of its wines is matched only by the excellence of its cuisine.

Piemontest food and wine are as inseparable as those of Burgundy. They are strong, rich, individual, mature, somehow autumnal. Truffles play an important part. One feels it must be more than coincidence that this is the Italian province nearest to France. Piemonte means "At the foot of the mountains" - the Alps. The Alps almost encircle the region, so that from its heart the Monferrato hills around Asti, they form a continuous dark, or in winter and spring sparkling white, horizon. Piemonte has a climate of its own, with a very hot growing season followed by a misty autumn and a cold, often foggy winter.

At vintage time in Barolo the hills are half hidden. Ramps of copper and gold vines, dotted with hazel and peach trees, lead down to the valley of the Tanaro, lost in the fot. It is a magical experience to visit Serralunga or La Morra and see the dark grapes coming in.

The two best red wines of Piemonte, Barolo and Barbaresco, take their names from villages. The rest have the names of their grapes - Barbera, Dolcetto, Grignolino, Freisa, Favorita. If to the grape they add a district name (for example Barbera d'Asti) it mans they come from a limited and theoretically superior area. The map shows the most important zones of central Piemonte - including that of the famous Moscaro d'Asti frizz ante the quintessence of sweet Muscat grapes in its most celebratory form. Asti (it dropped its Spumante suffix some years ago) is often scorned by wine snobs for the very cheerful simplicity that is its raison d'etre. It also has the considerable merit of containing less alcohol than virtually any other wine.

Light skinned Cortese grapes are grown south of Alessandria to the east to produce Gavi, one of Italy's more fashionable dry white wines in the 1980's. Demand for whites then also led to the promotion of an old local grape, Arneis, from a mere Nebbiolo-stretcher to make soft, light but perfumed wines not unlike Pinot Blanc - especially in the Roero hills northwest of Alba pm the sandy soils of the west bank of the Tanaro. More market-minded growers have successfully added Chardonnay (and Cabernet and Sauvignon Blanc) to their portfolios. Langhe Chardonnay is particularly popular.

The Nebbiolo has no ribal as the finest red grape of northern Italy. It does not have to meet Barolo or Barbaresco specifications to make mellow fragrant wine - indeed some seriously worthwhile Nebbiolo d'Alba, Langhe Nebbiolo and red Roero is made nowadays.

At the level just below noble, Barbera is the most important regional grape. Like Nebbiolo Barbera is dark and naturally high in acidity but it is often rather plumy and is approachable much earlier than Nebbiolo. The grapes have traditionally been picked earlier than Nebbiolo but they need relatively warm sites and later picking to bring the acidity down to palatable levels, as growers in Asti and Alba have shown. One of the most exciting and popular developments in Piemonte during the 1990's was the emergence of a host of Barberas aged in small oak casks, this grape apparently showing much more affinity for new oak than Nebbiolo.

Barbera's one possible rival is Dolcetto, which will still ripen in the coolest, highest sites; soft, where Barbera often bites, but capable of a marvellous balance between fleshy, dust-dense, and dry with a touch of bitter. The best Dolcetto comes from Alba, Diano d'Alba, Dogliani, and Ovada (for its most potent style)

Grignolino is consistently a lightweight cherry red but can be a fine and piquant one; at its best (from Asti or Monferrato Casalese) extremely clean and stimulating. All these are wines to drink relatively young.

Other specialities of this prolific region, the spaghetti-junction of denominaziones, include another frothy, sweet red wine, Brachetto d'Acqui; light red Verduno from Pelaverga grapes; sweet pink or red Malvasia di Casorzo d'Asti; the interesting yellow passito (made from semi-sweet grapes) with the DOC Erbaluce di Caluso; Loazzolo sweet white from dried Moscato grapes; and the agreeable blend of Barbera and Grignolino sold as Rubino di Cantavenna. One of the favourites of Turin itself is Freisa, often from Asti, a fizzy and frequently sweet red wine not unlike a tarter, fruity form of Lambrusco. You either love it or loathe it.

A forgiving Piemonte DOC has been invented for Barbera, Bonarda, Brachetto, Chardonnay, Cortese, Grignolino, Moscato, and Spumante sourced anywhere within the region to ensure that no IGT's sully Piemonte's reputation. Monferrato, between the River Po and the Apennines, encompasses grapes such as Cortese, Dolcetto and Freisa. No-one has ever accused Piemonte of a paucity of grapes, flavours and names.

Barbaresco is a great example of Nebbiolo, but Barolo is the greatest. The Barolo zone starts just two miles southwest of Barbaresco with the Dolcetto vineyards of Diano d'Alba lying between. Two little tributaries of the Tanaro, the Talloria dell'Annunziata and Talloria di Castiglione, split Barolo into three main though highly convoluted hill ranges , rising nearly 165 ft (50 m) higher than the Barbaresco zone.

There are more than 2,950 acres (1,200 ha) of Barolo vineyard,s concentrated in this zone, just big enough for five villages in the relatively populous Langhe hills. So many expositions, altitudes and mesoclimates, and two main soil types, have provided endless fodder for the discussion of possible sub-zones.

To the west of the Alba road around La Morra, soils are very similar to those in Barbaresco, calcareous marls from the epoch geologists known as Tortonian. These westernn hills of the zone I n the communes of Barolo and La Morra tend to offer slightly less tense, more openly fragrant wines. The great vineyards here include Brunate, Cerequio, Rocche di La Morra, and La Serra in La Morra and Barolo's most famous site, Cannibu, on slightly lower ground.

To the east, however in the vineyards of Castiglione Falletto, Serralunga d'Alba, and those to the north of Monforte d'Alba, soils are Helvetian, much less fertile, with more sandstone. They tend to produce even more concentrated wines, Barolo's beefiest, which demand extremely long ageing, and with the years acquire a distinctive orange rim to their inky black depths. Prime examples include Bussia and Ginestra in Monforte and, in Castiglione Falletto, Vietti's Villero and the wine Scavino calls in Piemontese dialect Bric del Fiasc (Bricco Fiasco in Italian). Such examples of linguistic variation/flexibility abound. The only exception to the sterness of Castiglione Falletto's Barolos might be Bricco Rocche which, with its relatively sandy soil, can produce rather perfumed wines.

To the east lies Serralunga d'Alba with its enormous former royal estate of Fotanafredda, an association that helped developed Barolo's status as "the wine of kings, the king of wines". Serralunga d'Alba has some of Barolo's highest vineyards, but the warmth that builds up in the narrow valley that separates it from Monforte d'Alba to the west compensates for the altitude and even Nebbiolo can be ripened on the most suitable sites most years. It was in Serralunga that Gaja expanded from Barbaresco into the Barolo zone in the late 1980's, both wines having been awarded DOCG status in 1980.

Even before this, however, Barolo could boast dozens of dedicated grower-bottlers (domaines seems a better word than estates for this most Burgundian of Italy's wine regions). Traditions here are, as in Burgundy, that the same family who tends the vines makes the wine - even if there has been considerable evolution in the way that vivacious, expressive, almost Burgundian wine is made over the last two or three decades. Barolo is arguably the world's most uncompromising wine, depending on decades of bottle age to show its true allure, its ethereal bouquet. A few traditionalists have such a faithful and knowledgeable following that they can afford to continue to make such a wine. Others have adapted Barolo to modern times to a greater or lesser degree, by reducing fermantation and barrel ageing times so that the wines can be broached earlier. No-one is right, and only those who decided to ignore the unique qualities of this grape and this place would be wrong.

Marchesi di Barolo
Marchesi di Barolo is located in the heart of Barolo with its red roofed houses overlooking lush vineyards stretched out over the hills of this prestigious wine producing area. In the town of Barolo there is a yellow painted house that proudly faces the Castle of Falletti and the rich and fascinating history of Marchesi di Barolo has been playing out in that building. It is a history of people dedicated to the vineyard, winery and cellars, of a constant quest for the finest quality, of personalities who contribute enterprise and imagination to that effort and above all of exceptional Barolo wines.

Tenute Neirano, Casalotto di Mombaruzzo
The Mombaruzzo area's ability to produce excellent wines is recorded in documents dating back as far as 1014. Giacome Sperone and his sons, Paulo and Antonio set up their estate and winery on the sunny hills of Mombaruzzo, with the aim of producing superb quality sparkling white wines and DCC classical wines. They have cetainly achieved this high standard and we have an excellent selection of their finest wines on offer.

The triangular island of Sicily, just off the toe of Italy is the Country's largest region. Eighty percent of the island is hills or mountains which are covered in olive trees, vines and dominated by volcanic Mount Etna. Sicily has been invaded by many countries in the past and has become a museum of European culture and since Greek times it has been a land of vines. A tremendous amount of wine is produced and recent years have seena marked improvement in quality.

Pasqua Fazio
In view of growing international demand, a joint venture was formed between two "families of wine". Pasqua and Fazio, with the objective of revealing the richness and generosity of the wines of Sicily, the unique quality of its grapes and the creativity of its young producers.

Casa Vinicola Firriato
A modern winery established in the 1980's, Firriato embrace technological advances while maintaining a healthy respect for traditional methods. Based in the heart of Sicily, the Firriato vineyards cover a total of 300 hectares.

One of the greatest and most well known wine regions of Italy. Tuscany is famous for its beautiful Tuscan hills, the cultural history of its major cities including Florence, Pisa and Sienna and the wonderful paintings of its sons Leonardo Da Vinci, Boticelli and Michelangelo. The wines from the region are no less famous and include a wide range of Chianti as well as Brunello di Montalcino. The controlled production of Chianti, Tuscany's world renowned wine, dates back to 1716 when the Grand Duke of Tuscany established the boundaries of the production area, (the70,000 hectares between Florence and Sienna) in a legal document. Chianti has a DOCG rating - the highest distinction achievable for an Italian wine.

Castelli del Grevepesa
Situated due south of Florence, in the Chianti Classico zone, Castelli del Grevepesa is a strictly run co-operative of over 160 growers, using the latest techniques to produce a range of Chianti Classico from the most popular brand in Florence 'Castlegreve'. We have selected a range of Chiantis', Super Tuscans and other wines to demonstrate different styles within the area. Most are made from the following grapes, Sangiovese for body, Canaiolo for bouquet and Malvasia and Trebbiano to lighten the colour.

Fratelli Sensi, Lamporecchio - Montalcino
The Sensi Company, vineyards and wines were founded at the beginning of the 20th century in Lamporecchio, a small village on the Montalcino hills, situated near to the birthplace of Leonardo da Vinci. The comapny has two agricultural farms, which provide about 30% of the grape requirements: Tenuta del Poggio, about 30 hectares and Fattoria di Calappiano, the old hunting residence of the Medici family in 1500 AD. The remaining proportions of grapes are sourced from the neighbouring farms on the Montalcino hills. The company has built up a deserved reputation for its premium quality, elegantly packaged yet competitively priced wines.

One of Italy's largest wine producing regions, and is situated in North-East Italy. The region extends from the Austrian border to the Venetian Alps down to the River Po and from Lake garda in the West to Venice and The Adriatic. Wide ranges of wines are produced but the most famous are still the red Bardolino and Valpolicella and the white Soave. Although most wines of Veneto have found their way to the UK quite a few are still to be discovered, but there is little doubt that their style makes them ideal partners to not only typicalethnic cuisine, but traditional British foods too.

VERONA

The lovingly gardened hills of Verona, stretching from Soave, east of the city, westwards to Lake Garda, have such fertile volcanic soil that vegetation grows uncontrollably; the vine runs riot on every terrace and pergola, among villas and cypresses that are the image of Italian grace.
Their Soave is Italy's most famous white wine and comes in two almost unrecognizably different forms. The most common is the bland mouthwash spewed forth b y the powerful Cantina Sociale and the big negociant firms. They are supplied by hundreds of growers with regrettably few incentives to do anything other than maximise yields.
Real Soave, with its insistent combination of almonds and lemons, does exist, thanks to the persistence of small estates such as Pieropan and Anselmi (which, in 1999, after a series of disputes with local authorities, decided to operate outside the DOC system). These stalwarts have been joined by a new band of such conscientious producers as La Cappuccina, Fattori & Graney, Gini, Inama, Pra and Tamellini.
They operate in the original, classical area of Soave, centred on the eastern end of the Lessini Hills northeast of the village of Soave. This is the Classico zone, now surrounded by much flatter, more fertile land also allowed to call its wine Soave, a picture that is all too common in the modern Italian winescape.
The important grapes are Garganega and a local (rather than the Tuscan or pan0Italian) form of Trebbiano which make wines of an intensity and mouth-filling texture that bring the meaning of Soave (suave) into focus. Chardonnay and Pinot Blanc are also allowed, so long as Garganega makes up at least 70% of the wine.
The best producers typically make a range of single-vineyard or cru bottlings, expressing such character local sites as Vigneto La Rocca and Captel Foscarino, as well as experimenting with oak ageing and a wonderfully lively sweet version made from dried grapes, Recioto di Soave.
Soave cohabits with Valpolicella, whose DOC zone has been extended far beyond the original Classico zone until it reaches the boundaries of Soave, with the improving Galantine a permitted sub-zone dominated by the house of Bertani. Plain Valpolicella should have a beautiful cherry colour and flabour, a gentle sweet smell and a trace of bitterness as you swallow. The mass-produced article can often disappoint but there are now many more producers who recognize the need to make truly distinctive as opposed to commercially viable wine in Soave - just as the last decade of the 20th century saw a return to some of the more difficult-to-work but higher quality hillside sites.
Valpolicella Classico, from four fingers of higher altitude vineyard sheltering San Ambrogio Fumane and Negrar, has the same qualities as wine made outside this heartland but in an intensified form (although there are exceptional operators such as Dal Forna and Trabucci outside the Classico zone). The leading estates are extremely ambitious for Valpolicella Classico, seeing it, with justice, as one of Italy's most promo table products in every sense.
Vines are being planted on white-pebbled terraces at much higher densities and Guyot-trained to extract more flavour from every grape, above all late-ripening Corvina, the best of the region. Indeed some producers have even preferred to operate outside the DOC law, which imposed a maximum of 70% on the Corvina component and demanded the inclusion of tart and obviously inferior Molinara grapes as well as the traditional but neutral Rondinella. There is also some experimentation with rarer indigenous grapes such as Oseleta.
The most potent form of Valpolicella is as Recioto or Amarone, respectively the sweet (sometimes fizzy) and dry (also bitter) results of loft-drying selected grapes to make highly concentrated and potent wines, the climax of every Veronese feast. Such wines are the direct descendants of the Greek wines, shipped by the Venetians in the Middle Ages, adapted to the Venetian hinterland. And there is evidence that sweet Veneto wines were admired as early as the 6th century when Cassiodorus mentions Acinatico, revered for its sweetness by the court of the Gothic kings of Italy.
The old practice of ripasso strengthens Valpolicella from the main crop into Valpolicella Superiore by refermenting it on the pressed grape skins, preferably of Corvina, after an Amarone has finished fermentation. The first wine to be marketed as a ripasso Masti's Campofiorini, induced new respect for Valpolicella wine in the 1980's/
Such estates as Dal Forna, Le Ragose, Quintarelli and Tedeschi, and such merchants as Bertani, are also building up a constituency for Valpolicella Classico and its variants as one of Italy's surest things in wine.
Bardolino, from lower ground on the pretty lakeside of Garda, is a paler, more insubstantial wine - almost a rose, or chiaretto, drinkable as soon as fermented. Chiaretto del Garda, from the further shore, is similar.
Bianco di Custoza made to the south can, like Gambellara just east of Soave, be a surer bet than everyday Soave.

Bortolomiol
Bortolomiol's Prosecco grape vines grow on the spectacularly scenic hills of the two furthest points of the DOC zone, Conegliano and Valdobbiadene. The composition of the soil and the exceptional micro-climate help to produce grapes of superiore character and quality and the sparkling wine process brings out the best in those carefully harvested grapes.

Casa Gheller, Valdobbiadene
Vineyards have characterised for centuries the landscape of the Trevisan hills in the classic Valdobbiadene DOC area. This are is well renowned for the production of Prosecco as it benefits from the ideal climate, location and soils for the cultivation and production of the best crus of Prosecco. Casa Gheller devotes the utmost care and attention to the production of these wines and has won many awards for its efforts.

Fratelli Pasqua
Fratelli Pasqua was established in 1925 by four brothers and is today managed by the family's second generation who have retained the traditions of family ownership and management. A large vineyard and cellar in the heart of Verona are complemented by smaller vineyards held by Pasqua throughout the region. They are proud to offer a level of quality and diversity in Veronese wines that is difficult to find elsewhere.

Cantine di Soave
Situated in the heart of Soave, near Verona. Cantine di Soave was established in 1900 by an independent group of wine producers and is among the largest wine co-operatives of Italy. The vineyards are located mainly in the province of Verona and cover an area of 3,500 hectares with a total wine producing capacity of 600,000 quintals. The company's wines have been highly lauded at competitions across the globe and has been certified UNI EN ISO 9002 in the recognition of its quality standards.