What's the Orange Wine Hype?!

National Orange Wine Day is this weekend!  Annually, on October 6th , this day has been dedicated to these super interesting wines that have drawn the attention of wine consumers and media in recent years.  This may be a completely foreign subject to some so let’s take out the mystery today of what an orange wine really is. 

What are orange wines? 

No, it is not a wine made from oranges themselves.  Orange wines are actually made from white grapes.  These are white grapes that are vinified as red wines.  Just like red grapes are left in contact with the skins during fermentation to abstract color, tannins, and phenols, orange wines are produced in the same manner.   

Orange wines are white grapes that are left in contact with the skins for a period of time.  Some producers may be as number of days where other producers may let the fermentation with the skins go on for months.  This in turn all affects the outcome of what the wine will taste like in a number of ways. 

Where does the name orange wine come from? 

Orange wines, although not completely orange in color, get their color from the length of time that the skins come in contact with the grapes.  There is a wide array of colors that you will see in orange wines from a pale orangish color to deeper amber.  These amber colored wines in Italy are called ramato, translating to copper, as some of them will have a coppery hue.   

How did orange wines first begin? 

Even though orange wines seem to be more of the hot topic in recent years, they are actually ancient wines that have been around for thousands of years originating in the country of Georgia.  The Georgians used to ferment these white grapes with the skin contact in what some of the Italians still use today, amphorae, or known as qvevri in Georgia.   

In Italy orange wines really began with the famous wine producer, Josko Gravner, in the late 90’s.  Gravner producers some of Italy’s most interesting and high-quality orange wines in the Friuli Venezia Giulia wine region of northeastern Italy.  He may have started the trend within Italy, but other producers have begun their own production and experimentation with orange wines as well.   

What grapes are used to make an orange wine? 

There are a number of white grape varieties that are used to make orange wines.  In Gravner’s region of Friuli Venezia Giulia the most common would be Ribolla Gialla and Pinot Grigio. Around the world you will also see Gewurztraminer, Muscat, Chardonnay and Rkatsiteli being used.  One of my favorite producers of the Upstate New York Finger Lakes wine region, Dr. Konstantin Frank, makes an orange style wine with their “Amber Rkatsiteli”.  

An array of Collio Pinot Grigio ending with the Primosic "Skin" orange wine on the right.

What do orange wines taste like? 

With orange wines it seems it’s a love them or hate them deal.  Personally, I tried orange wines many years ago and would agree with the “funk” of these wines that personally turned me off.  It wasn’t until I decided to try and give them a second chance on my visit to the Collio wine region last summer when I changed my mind.  The producer for me that changed my mind was Primosic, as you’ll see in my prior blog post.   

These wines may or may not be oxidized, but if so that changes the style of the wine from being a fresh and fruity style to more dried fruit, honeyed or nutty characteristics.  These wines tend to be bold and more complex on the aromas and flavor profile along with texture.  They may be herbal, yeasty or have a slight sour taste. It all depends on the grapes used and how the wine was made.  They are quite ageable too. 

Where can you find orange wines? 

You may find orange wines produced in many wine regions of the world, but your most popular wine regions that specialize in these wines would be the originator, the country of Georgia, along with Friuli Venezia Giulia mentioned previous in northeastern Italy.  Also, Slovenia, which sits side by side bordering Friuli Venezia Giulia also makes many orange wines to try as well.

Have you tried orange wines? What are your favorites?

Check on some orange wines on Wine.com.  Vino Travels may receive compensation for any purchases made to support the operations of Vino Travels.

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A Visit to the Tuscan Harvest with Silvia Badii of Il Colle

It’s hard to believe we are already in September and across many regions in the world that means harvest time!  I was contacted by the owner of Il Colle, Silvia Badii, to sample some of her wines and was fortunate to also get to facetime with her during the harvest season and get a one-on-one look into what the harvest season looks like at Il Colle. 

Silvia Badii

Meet & Greet with Silvia Badii 

Unfortunately our video and audio didn't line up on the interview to share, but Silvia shared some great pictures of her winery.  

Il Colle is located in the province of Florence within Tuscany in one of the communes of Chianti Classico known as San Casciano in Val di Pesa.  San Casciano is the northern most commune within the Chianti Classico territory and is the largest UGA, unita geografiche aggiuntive, or site designation within Chianti Classico.  

Sourced from San Casciano Classico

The Il Colle estate was originally owned by the Corsini family until it was purchased in 1983 by Silvia's father.  The house is a 16th century farm house built from stones located within the vineyard.  It's located on Via Cassia, the ancient famous road that connects Florence to Rome.  You can see the farm house on Il Colle's labels.

Silvia’s father, whom I had the chance to meet on our chat, had been making Chianti Classico for 40 years with Sangiovese grapes and other local Tuscan grape varietals.  He had always produced wine and sold it in bulk until 2018 when Silvia took over the estate and started to bottle on her own since her father was aging.  She had originally come from a background in fashion, but had always assisted her father with the grape and olive harvest since she was a child.  Today she is currently on the board of the San Casciano Classico Association that consists of about 31 winemakers that are part of the association with other producers within the commune of San Casciano.  

Silvia walked me through the vineyards consisting of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Sangiovese grapes.  Her biggest vineyard is 4.5 acres with her Gran Selezione single vineyard of Sangiovese covering 6,000 square meters.  She also has 5 hectares of olive groves and 3 hectares of forests totaling 13 hectares of land.  The soil is predominantly made up of albarese, which provides great drainage for the vines that are guyot trained.

Sangiovese grapes at Il Colle

Silvia's first bottlings were released in 2019, the Il Colle Annata DOCG and the 2019 Gran Selezione.  In 2020, after harvest, she decided to uproot some of the vineyards with new plantings except the Sangiovese vines that were planted in 2006 that are used for her single vineyard Chianti Classico Gran Selezione wines. 

Silvia was in hopes to harvest her Merlot grapes this weekend with Sangiovese to follow in the next 7-10 days followed by her Cabernet Sauvignon grapes last.  Typically she will harvest the Gran Selezione Sangiovese grapes first, but it depends on the ripening.  Last year was the first year she produced a Super Tuscan made of 100% Cabernet Sauvignon that she hopes to release in the next year or two as it's currently aging in oak.   

Il Colle vineyards

The Wines

The 2021 Il Colle Chianti Classico DOCG is made from 100% Sangiovese grapes. Silvia ages this wine for 1 year in concrete and 1 year in oak plus at least 6 months in the bottle.  For a Chianti Classico the regulations mandated by the consorzio is to age these wines for a minimum of 12 months, but Silvia ages hers more like a Chianti Classico Riserva with over 24 months of aging.  

Concrete tanks

This wine was ruby red in color with medium translucency.  Dried cherry aromas on the nose with some black licorice and herbal notes.  Medium-bodied with bright acidity and moderate tannin with tobacco and cedar notes leading towards the finish.  ABV 13.5% SRP 23 euro

The 2019 Il Colle Chianti Classico Gran Selezione DOCG 36 Filari is also made from 100% Sangiovese from a single vineyard on Silvia's property that are 17 year old vines.  The wine is named 36 Filari because this single vineyard contain 36 rows of vines.  The wine is aged 18 months in oak and 1 year in concrete with at least 6 months.  She only produced 800 bottles of this wine since it was her 1st vintage of producing wine and therefore her 1st year of making a Gran Selezione.  A typical wine production for her is 5,000 bottles with 2,000 bottles making up the Gran Selezione and 3,000 bottles of the Chianti Classico annata, or vintage, wine.   

This wine was ruby in color with some crimson with a medium translucency.  Beautiful aromas of dried cherry and spice.  Dry and medium-bodied on the palate with good acidity and notes of cherry, olive and tobacco.  Rather silky tannin with a lengthy finish.  ABV 14% 39 Euro.

Wine Pairing with Chianti Classico

I paired both of Silvia's wines with some grilled broccoli rabe and cheese sausage along with some mixed in grilled zucchini alongside a creamy polenta.  Polenta is definitely one of those dishes that I forget about, but that is so easy to make.  

What is polenta?  If you're aren't familiar with polenta, it is an Italian dish made from cornmeal that is prepared by boiling it, but it can be served in a variety of styles.  Here I made it as a creamy version drizzled with Silvia's Il Colle extra virgin olive oil and topped with shredded pecorino.  You can also serve it fried, grilled or baked.  

I find that grilled meats always pair well with Chianti Classico and this particular sausage didn't have too much of a kick or else those nuances can sometimes intensify the heat on the wine. 

Silvia's father mentioned during our conversation "siamo pronti per la vendemmia", we are ready for the harvest!  Best of luck for a great harvest to Silvia and her team and the rest of the wineries during this harvest season.

Silvia currently works with one importer in Georgia, but is looking for other importers.  She does sell direct to consumer though along with her Chianti Classico DOP Tuscan olive oil, which she will be harvesting that green goodness mid to late October.  Silvia has future aspirations to open agritourism and possibly a restaurant.  I look forward to following Silvia on her journey for years to come.

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*These wines were provided as samples, but opinions are always my own.  

"Stone of the Fairy" with Tenuta Licinia's Sasso di Fata wines

Earlier this year I attended a virtual tasting hosted by Studio Cru and Tenuta Licinia led by owner and winemaker, James Marshall Lockyer.  Tenuta Licinia sits at about 1,180 feet above sea level and  is located at the foothills of the Apennines on the deep fertile hills bordering the Valdichiana near the town of Lucignano in the Arezzo province.

Lucignano - sourced from Wikipedia

Tenuta Licinia came about in an unplanned manner.  James’s grandfathers had made friends with Italians that were living in Brussels where he resided in the 1960s.  In the 70’s his Italian friends invited him to Tuscany and during his trip was asked if he would be interested in restoring one of their old farms.  His grandfather at that time was a lawyer and was tempted so decided to purchase the 3 hectare parcel of land.  The neighbors had informed him that the land that he purchased used to make good wine.  He was doubtful, but his interest in wine, vineyards and subsoils grew throughout his travels in Italy and he saw similarities in what he was discovering in comparison to the land that he had acquired. 

He decided to replant the land with Cabernet Sauvignon because he was Belgium and French so it what he was brought on, plus he was a fan of Burgundian wines.  The soils he was planting on were a yellow galestro soil, that was a type of chalky slate soil.  This particular soil was known for producing fantastic wines in other areas of southern Tuscany. 

James's grandfather eventually acquired another 1.5 hectares next door.  The environment surrounding these vineyards were encompassed by forests and rather isolated without any nearby neighbors.  It's a wild, green environment with much wildlife to include wolves and wild boars.  Even at one point they had some kangaroos that had escaped a nearby farm James shared with us.

Overview of Tenuta Licinia's estate

For the last 15 years James and his grandfather had worked on reinvigorating forgotten vineyards with specific subsoils.  Their first vintage was produced in 2013.  The entire production was destroyed from a freak hailstorm where fish even flew into the vineyard from a nearby lake so they lost everything but 40 bottles that year.  A tough start!

James took over from his grandfather and replanted the vineyards of Sasso di Fata in 2006.  The vines have been certified organic since they were planted and the winery also follows biodynamics in their vineyards.   The style of wine that Tenuta Licinia aims for is what they describe as a “clos style: strong aromatic definitions and intensity as well as strong vineyard-centric mineral properties”.  Their aim is for less extraction and to keep the fruit fresh showing the aromatics and minerals.  

The Wines

We tasted the following wines with James:

·         2019 Sasso di Fata Toscana Rosso IGT

·         2021 Sasso di Fata Toscana Rosso IGT

Let’s take a further look at them.  

Where does the name Sasso di Fata come from?

The field where Sasso di Fata is located is called Meleto, which is a famous name of a winery in Chianti Classico, Castello di Meleto.  Since they couldn't use that name that was being utilized James called the local village historian to see what information he could dig up to help in naming these wines.  The historian had informed him that in the Middle of the Ages there was a sand stone called Sasso di Fata from the area that vaguely has the face of a fairy in it.  Hence the name Sasso di Fata, which translates to stone of the fairies.

The Sasso di Fata wines were the first cru wines for Tenuta Licinia that took 15 years to make in order for them to find the perfect harmony that they were seeking.  That there is a labor of love! Three things for James that identify the Sasso di Fata wines are the floral aromas of rose, the minerality showing saline and graphite notes, and a velvety finish and texture. 

The 2019 Sasso di Fata Toscana Rosso IGT was the first wine labeled and released to the market.  James made this with his grandfather.  His grandfather made 90% of the wine before he became ill with James finishing off the rest.  This wine was considered their “prototype” that showed elements from the various vineyards and the characteristics they were looking for, but without the maximum expressions of the grapes.  They extracted less since they picked early or as James called it "al dente".

The 2019 Sasso di Fata is made from 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Cabernet Franc and 5% Petit Verdot.  A deeper ruby color, this wine has floral aromas of blackberries and cherries with notes of balsamic. A little tight upon opening with some moderate tannins that become more silky on the palate. Black fruits are shown on the palate with a touch of slate. A small production of only 3,000 bottles grown on about 2.5 hectares.

In 2020 James’s grandfather became ill so the next vintage they made was the 2021 Sasso di Fata Toscana Rosso IGT.  James stated that this wine “ is closer to the finished product they are looking for with all the bones” in a harmonious way.  This is considered their flagship wine and comes from about 6-7 acres.  A different blend than the prior, this wine is made up of 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Cabernet Franc and 35% Merlot.  James called this an “alternative to the Super Tuscan” wines.  

James expressed that his ideal blend of the Sasso di Fata wines would be 50-55% Cabernet Sauvignon and 30-35% Cabernet Franc for the aromatics, with the remaining blend consisting of Merlot.  Unfortunately with the 2021 vintage they lost a lot of their Cabernet Franc grapes.

The 2021 Sasso di Fata was a deep ruby color with highlights of purple.  I loved the floral aromatics on this one as I found it more intense than the 2019 vintage full of juicy blackberries.  Full-bodied with great savory notes on the palate. Firm tannins with a good acid backbone.  

Both wines run about $72-74 SRP.

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*These wines were provided as samples, but opinions are always my own.  Importer: Vera Wines