What are Calabrian wines all about?

Calabria is one of the regions in Italy that slips under the radar and understandably so for various reasons. It’s one of Italy’s smaller wine regions and produces a small number of wines annually that aren’t largely exported. At one point in time Calabria’s wine scene was very respectable, but after phylloxera hit this region in the 19th century, along with much of Europe, the region never seemed to fully bounce back. Thankfully there are several winemakers looking to revolutionize the wine industry for Calabrian wines to bring quality wines to market that set the identity for what Calabria is capable of.  Unfortunately, due to the expensive infrastructure to put in place for producing wine on a larger scale it limits many of the smaller producers in the region. 

Where is Calabria? 

Calabria is at the southern toe of the boot before the mainland extends into Sicily.  It’s a rural, mountainous region with the Apennines bordering Basilicata to the north.  This area has a Mediterranean climate that is warm and mild with the influence of the surrounding seas.  There is plenty of coastline in Calabria with the Tyrrehnian Sea to the west, the Ionian Sea to the east and the Strait of Messina that separates Calabria from Sicily.  The region receives a low amount of rainfall, so irrigation is of importance.   

Calabria’s economy 

The economy of Calabria is based on citrus fruits, various grains, olive oil and vegetables with vineyards making up a small part of the economy.  Calabria is also known for their red onions from Tropea, chili peppers and nduja, a local salami. Vines were cultivated there by the ancient Greeks and became known as the “enotria” meaning the land of wine due to its rich viticultural past.   

The wine of Calabria 

If you’re a red wine lover, then Calabria is for you to explore.  About 90% of the wine production in Calabria is based on red wine. The red grape, Gaglioppo, is the primary grape with an increasing amount of Magliocco.  You will also find other red grapes including Greco Nero and Nerello Calabrese.  Although white grapes take the back seat in Calabria, Greco Bianco and Mantonico are the most prevalent along with Guarnaccia and Pecorello.  Greco Bianco is the second largest planted grape after Gaglioppo and is a sweeter wine named after the town of Bianco.  

Sourced from Consorzio Vini Cirò e Melissa

Calabria does not have any DOCGs in the region, but has 12 DOC’s that surprisingly only make up about 4-5% of the overall production. By far the oldest and best-known appellation that puts Calabria on the map is the Cirò DOC. This area is in the Crotone province along the Ionian coast in the eastern foothills covering the plains to the inland hillsides. This area was established in 1969 and makes medium to full-bodied reds primarily from the Gaglioppo grape displaying red fruits and spices. Depending on whether you have a Cirò Rosso, Cirò Rosso Classico Superiore or Cirò Rosso Classico Superiore Riserva will determine the quality and characteristics of the wine. Librandi is the trailblazing producer that will be the easiest to seek out for wines that are mostly exported from this region. They’re highly influential for reviving native grapes and experimenting to improve the reputation for quality Calabrian wines. 

Other DOC’s that may be a challenge to locate, but worth noting are the Melissa DOC, Terre di Cosenza DOC and Bivongi DOC. The Melissa DOC is only about 30 minutes south of the Cirò DOC sharing a similar climate, terrain and primarily based on Gaglioppo. The Terre di Cosenzo DOC is a region to keep an eye on with many young winemakers working hard to increase quality. The Bivongi DOC is the newest and smallest, but much of the wine is enjoyed locally so if you’re in the area take this chance to experience these wines as you may not elsewhere. 

If you're interested in taking a look at the Librandi wines or others from the region give them a search on Wine.com. 

*I may receive commissions if any wines are purchased directly from this buyer to support the operations of Vino Travels.

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Late Harvest Greco Bianco of Calabria at Tenuta Iuzzolini

Over the last few months I’ve shared some wines from Calabria, a wine region of Italy that is one of the lesser discovered one that I love to explore and share.  Today is the first day I’m sharing a wine from the Greco Bianco grape and it’s a late harvest one from Tenuta Iuzzolini. 

The Winery ~ Tenuta Iuzzolini 

Four sibilings, Pasquale, Diego, Antonio and Rosa started the winery back in 2004.  They own over 1,200 acres with their parents Fortunato and Giovanna, with 250 acres dedicated to vines.  I actually was not familiar with this winery before today, but they’re no small shop producing 1.2 million bottles annually with 13 different stypes of wines including sparkling, passito and grappa.  Per their site they pride themselves on the “recovery and enhancement of Calabrian native vines” featuring Magliocco, Galioppo and Greco Bianco.  

Tenuta Iuzzolini’s vineyards are located in the province of Crotone in Ciro' Marina, along the Ionian coast.  Most of their wines fall under the Ciro' DOC or Calabria IGT designations.  The climate of the area is Mediterranean with various fertile soils that are calcareous with clay and sand.  

Copyright of Tenuta Iuzzolini

I connected with one of the sons, Pasquele, to dig a little deeper into the winery, their practices and learn more about these indigenous grapes of Calabria. 

1) Why did you and your brothers and sister decide to begin the winery in 2004? 

The Iuzzolini family has always for generations worked in viticulture.  However, until 2004 it was limited to selling grapes or bulk wine to local consumers.  In 2004 my siblings and myself wanted to innovate our business with a mission to export the Calabria brand all over the world.  We thought to produce wines of the highest quality exclusively for the hotel, restaurant and café sector around the world utilizing the principal indigeous grapes from our land (Gaglioppo, Greco Bianco e Magliocco). We have had exponential growth and today we export our wine in all the principal markets of the world receiving awards, in particular our Donna Giovanna wine achieved a score of 98 from Luca Maroni. 

2) Tell me about the grape greco bianco.  It seems the focus is on native varietals.  Why did you choose to make a late harvest greco bianco with Donna Giovanna?   

The greco bianco vine is an indigenous vine of Ciro'.  As mentioned in the preceeding question our mission at the winery is to export the Calabrian brand and Ciro’ all over the world.  For this reason we utilize the indigenous vines like Greco Bianco.  We chose Greco Bianco for a late harvest because it is the most appropriate for this type of wine.   

3) Does the winery participate in any particular practices, biodynamic, organic, etc?   

In our vineyards we only use natural fertilizers. 

4) What is the future for Tenuta Iuzzolini? Do you find it difficult to promote the wines of Calabria and unknown grapes?   

Our future goal is to always make known Calabria and Ciro' through our wines.  The wines of Calabria and southern Italy are only being discovered in recent years, finally it is our moment and we want to contribute to discovering Calabria in the world.  Unfortunately not everyone knows the wines and the grapes of Calabria, but as soon as you taste our wines you will be in love immediately.   

5) What is unique about the land and climate where the winery is situated?    

The climate of Calabria is unique in the world.  The summers are dry and very hot with winter short and mild  This climate naturally is ideal for the cultivation of the vines since it causes them to become very mature and reach a very high sugar level.  It is very important to consider the vicinity of the vines to the sea.  This gives the grapes a level of very high sapidity. 

The Wine 

2018 Tenuta Iuzzolini Donna Giovanna Calabria IGT (Greco Bianco late harvest) - The Greco Bianco grapes are manually harvested and picked in late October.  This wine spends 6 months in new French barrique with an additional 2 months in the bottle.  More golden colored in the glass.  This wine showed ripe, tropical fruit on the nose.  A sharp acidity up front upon opening, but smoothed right out in the glass.  Ripe fruit with a textured mouthfeel and a hint of toastiness and herbs.  Quite unique and not what I expected for a late harvest.  

Pairing: I chose to pair this wine with some grilled lemon pepper chicken and a caprese salad.  I wish I did a little research before or had tasted the wine sooner because I think I would've tried seafood instead.  Lots of spice with the chicken and the residual sugars of the wine I would've tried a different route.  If you think about where Calabria is located along the sea you'll find seafood in many of the dishes.  A great rule to always follow, what grows together goes together.  

How familiar are you with the wines of Calabria and have any of my readers visited this region?

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*This wine and oil were provided as samples, but opinions are all my own.  Importer: IVDC Wines.

A Look into Marrelli Wines and the Indigenous Grapes of Calabria

During these difficult times that the world is facing it is an important time to continue to educate and support businesses around the world.  Recently I’ve had the opportunity to sample some Calabrian wines and love highlighting regions or sub-regions that don’t get enough attention.  

 

I connected with Francesco Carvelli, Project Manager of Le Verdi Praterie, one of the brands under Marrelli Wines, to gain a deeper understanding regarding the wines of Marrelli in Calabria. 

Tell me the story  of the Marrelli family in the wine industry and how the winery started.   

Ten years ago Francesco met the owner of Marrelli wines, Dr. Massimo Marrelli.  They agreed to build a wine cellar inside the vineyeards that he had already planted in 2005 and to save that DOP, Sant’Anna di Isola Capo Rizzuto, from extinction.  Today they are the only ones to produce wines under that denomination.  

The winery, Le Verdi Praterie, was created in Calabria by Dr. Massimo Marrelli, whom is a dentist and entrepreneur whom since 1978 had concentrated on the field of dentistry and the technology of dentistry.   

Since 1999, his entrepreneurial effort has been concentrated in the agricultural and breeding sector.  He directed his investments towards the Lakinios headland within the Crotone province in the territory of Isola Capo Rizzuto.  Since the times of Magna Grecia this area has been an area most suitable for quality food and wine. 

The winery consists of about 37 acres (15 hectares) of land.  The winery operates with modern and innovative technologies making high-end wines after a period of aging in the beautiful barrel room located in the cellar's underground rooms.  Inside the winery is the Kuta Restaurant where you can taste the wine and all the dairy products with the bufala milk that comes from a local farm of 650 Mediterranean buffalo.   

Marrelli Winery ~ Copyright of Marelli Wines

The grapes grown by Marrelli are on estate vineyards managed organically with native grapes including Gaglioppo, Magliocco, Nerello Mascalese, Greco Bianco, Mantonico Bianco and international grapes such as Chardonnay, Cabernet Franc and Merlot.  The training system used for the vines are low spurred cordon with a density of 5,000 plants per hectare and a yield of about 1.5 kg per plant. 

Why did you choose this particular blend of Gaglioppo and Magliocco and can you explain what they lend to the wine?  

Lakinio is a blend of 50% Gaglioppo and 50% Magliocco.  These particular grapes from chosen due to the two peculiar characteristics that these two grapes possess.  In the case of Gaglioppo we have grapes with few anthocyanins (color) and many polyphenols (tannins) with aromatics characterized by hints of spices, dried tomatoes, cherries and tertiary aromas.  While in Magliocco it is exactly the opposite demonstrating few tannins and a lot of color with aromatics of ripe red berries, plums and raspberries.  This allows us to have a soft wine with a good color tone, a good aromatic complexity and a great elegance, the latter characteristic is of the gaglioppo after several years of aging. 

Copyright of Marrelli Wines

Tell me about your soils and the topography of your land.  

The territory of the Sant'Anna di Isola Capo Rizzuto DOP is located a short distance (half an hour) from the Sila mountains and 10 minutes from the sea.The vineyards are located in an area 190 meters above sea level and the temperature changes at night guaranteeing the grapes to keep their aromas and organoleptic qualities intact.The soils are of medium texture, from medium deep to deep with an abundance of tuff pebbles, weak calcareous with fractions of dark, vegetable soils and traces of white clay. 

How is the Lakinio produced and what is the aging process? 

The vinification of this grape begins with the destemming followed by 10 days of remaining in contact with the skins in 5,000-liter truncated cone vats in French oak.  After racking, fermentation starts at a controlled temperature in the same wooden vats.  From the 2017 vintage onwards, at the end of fermentation, part of the wine (the Magliocco) is placed in stainless steel containers at a controlled temperature.  The other part (the Gaglioppo) is placed in large 3000-liter French oak barrels for 24 months.  Immediately after, the two parts are joined and left in a steel container at a controlled temperature for another 5 months.  It is then bottled to make a further refinement of 2 months before being sold. 

What is the goal and the focus of the winery and what makes the wines unique?  

Marrelli Wines produce a limited amount of wine bottles (50,000 bottles per year) and are oriented towards making long-aging wines with a strong territorial and varietal characteristic.The company's goal is to reach all those niche markets around the world where the most demanding consumers can appreciate the typicality and uniqueness of our wines.In all the processing phases we are attentive and respectful of all those traditional practices, which we have known in our ancient territory for several centuries (5th-6th century BC).  This allows our wines to have a strong personality, a sober character, but above all great austerity.

   

What are your opinions on the future of Calabrian wine? 

The Calabrese wine in the last 20 years has had a great evolution.Many companies have understood that by enhancing the grapes from indigenous vines high quality results can be achieved.  These indigenous vines are certainly more difficult to produce and vinify than international vines.  Suffice it to say that there are over 30 varieties of indigenous grape varieties present in Calabria, many of which are of very ancient origin.Over the years, each region has had its moment of glory, Tuscany with Sangiovese, Piedmont with Nebbiolo, Sicily with Nero d'Avola and now Puglia with Primitivo.

Today many importers look at enological Calabria with a lot of interest because of the continuous qualitative growth of the wines produced, but also because it is a land to visit and know for its archaeological, cultural, food and wine and naturalistic heritage unique in the world. 

  

TheWine

2016 Lakinio Calabria Rosso IGT

Deep ruby in color.  Aromas of cherry with a hint of cocoa.  Dry with a dark profile of currants and blackberries and a tinge of green pepper.  Subtle and elegant tannin.   ABV 14% SRP $32.

 

Food pairing: Marrelli recommends pairing this wine with veal and mushrooms or lasagna 

  

“When we offer a wine in the intimacy of our home or choose it in a restaurant, every time we fill a glass we are intoxicated with a taste, a perfume, a color, an emotion, but in reality we do much more, we begin a journey, a journey into the culture, art, passion and history of a people, to discover its roots, all the riches of its territory, its men, all those "atmospheres" that surround a wine. A journey that tells, a story, the story of the life of a vine. A vine that has been cultivated in our Calabria for over two thousand years” - Francesco Carvelli 

                               

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*This wine was provided as a sample, but opinions are all my own.  Importer: The importer is IVDC Imports.