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Italian Wine
Wine as a product is almost as old as civilisation
and has always been a part of Italy’s farming production:
indeed vine farming dates right back to Egyptian times. But
how did wine come into being?
In prehistoric times it seems that vines grew
wild in forests and very early on, primitive Man was enjoying
fruit produced by the plant until one day by chance, someone
left some grape juice in a container and noticed that it had
undergone a strange transformation: if one drank this beverage
it produced a pleasant effect. But apart from the pleasures
of wine, it was also important for religion and ritual: the
Dionysian rituals of Greece and Bacchan rites held in Ancient
Rome are highly renowned. Here of course, wine was only permitted
for men: women could not come anywhere near this sacrificial
liquid: for them it was impure.
In Medieval times Benedictine monks practised
grape farming in their monasteries, experimenting with new
techniques. But above all, humble peasants hoed the land and
planted the vines and today’s traditions of vineyards
and winemaking owe much to their tireless association with
the earth and the grapevine.
Italy today produces great quantities of wine;
fine and often excellent whites and reds spring like mushrooms
up and down the country. Entire regions aggressively compete
on the quality wine market. A revival of ancient grapevine
species is now under way, and of traditional grape picking
by hand, combined with the use of modern enological techniques
and new winemaking practices. A law of 1963 enabled the Controlled
Denomination of Origin (D.O.C.) mark to be applied to wines
with distinctive characteristics and of superior quality for
their grape species and area of production.
By a law of 1992 wines were classified in a
pyramidal scale: at the bottom are the table wines with no
indication of provenence, year or wine species; further up
wines with Typical Geographic Specifications (IGT) and at
the top, the DOC and DOCG wines (Controlled and Guaranteed
Denomination of Origin). So look at the label before you buy!
And watch out: a good Italian DOC wine should cost about €
8! And if there’s truth in the saying “Good wine
makes for good blood”, confirmation lies in figures that
indicate an average yearly consumption of 70 litres per person.
Cheers!
Wine in Calabria
For centuries olive trees, citrus fruits and
grapevines have been mainstay resources for Calabria, a generous,
fertile land where vines belong to ancient history. It was
the Greeks who brought the precious vines to the area and
the species still grow today, as part of a quest towards technological
innovation, higher quality standards being the key objective.
In Magna Grecia, the term “Enotria” was used for
the lands of Calabria and Lucania overlooking the Ionian Sea,
meaning in Greek “the land of wine”. Nowadays, businesses
are trying to reduce yield and use modern winemaking techniques,
and this has led to a rise in the percentage of DOC wines.
So, thanks to scientific research and the passion
of individual winemakers, the Calabrian wine heritage has
become a formidable strength that is increasingly attracting
consumer interest. Particular attention must be paid to the
extraordinary originality of certain vine species from this
very region, like the Gaglioppo, an extremely ancient vine
that is very common in Calabria, with interesting typical
aromatic characteristics.
Other common vines from this district are the
Tuscan Trebbiano, the Greek, the Pecorello, the Malvasia,
the Mantonico, the Mescalese Nerello, the Cappuccio Nerello,
the Guarnaccia, the Canine Magliocco and the Sangiovese. Red
wines have are dry-tasting and full-bodied, suitable for accompanying
the classic country fare of Calabrian cooking and stewed meats.
White wines have a delicate taste and are ideal for fish dishes
and with fresh cheeses. Rosés are fragrant and go well
with pulses and white meats. Today winemaking is carried out
takes almost naturally: grape harvesting takes place ahead
of time and must temperatures are controlled: as a result
of progress, wines are interesting and fully satisfying, and
take their place alongside Southern Italy’s many world
famous products.
Wine in the Veneto
According to recent figures, the Veneto produces
the largest quantities of wine in the whole of Italy. A host
of whites and reds testify to how grape farming in this area
has long been serving the production of massive quantities
of grapes in very high yields. As in other regions, in recent
years, production policies have focussed on reducing yield
and raising quality standards with the result that a number
of Venetian wines have become famous the world over.
Traditional grapes are the Corvina from Verona,
the Rondinella, the Molinara and the Raboso. One very common
variety is the Garganega as are the Trebbiano of Soave, a
local species, and the Trebbiano of Tuscany. Other vines include
the Tocai, the Cortese, the Tuscan Malvasia and the Verduzzo
(both local from Treviso and another form Friuli); percentages
of other varieties are used for difference. As well, imported
grapevines are grown, such as Chardonnay, Merlot, and Cabernet
(Franc and Sauvignon), Pinot and Riesling. Merlot is very
common in the Bordolese area and was the first French grapevine
to be planted on a large scale in Italy. Numerous wine producers
undertook to make use of its great potential, making the wine
naturally or alongside its longstanding partner, the Cabernet.
Carducci, a great connoisseur of wine from Verona, praised
the wines from this district for the “fervid stimuli
to the heart” and “new images for the imagination”
that they gave him.
But apart from Verona, Padua also is a highly
renowned wine area: the Colli Euganei district is a particularly
beautiful place with rolling hills and luxurious villas where
it isn’t hard to imagine the quality potential of the
land. Besides a group of single species wines and some rare
matured wines, also from the Veneto comes a wonderful sparkling
wine that has conquered a significant slice of the sparkling
wine market in Italy. This wine’s success depends mainly
on it pleasant characteristics: with its light aromatic fragrance,
with occasionally a hint of almonds, its taste is never completely
dry, making it perfect as an apéritif or as a sparkling
wine with a meal. The Prosecco grape comes from the Venezia
Giulia area but is very common in the Veneto too, especially
in the hills of the Province of Treviso where the vine is
very vigorous and productive. Prosecco can be a still wine
but its most acclaimed versions are fizzy, bubbly wines with
exotically embracing notes. Red Venetian wines are velvety
and harmonious and very good with flavourful dishes such as
the traditional “pastissada de caval”. White wines
are full-bodied and remarkably fruity, excellent with lean
hors d’ oevres, freshwater fish and risottos.
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