What you need to know about the Wines of the Orvieto DOC

I was invited to a virtual tasting, led by Jo-Ann Ross, on the wines of Orvieto sponsored by the Consorzio Tutela Vini di Orvieto and the Commonwealth Wine School located in Cambridge, MA.  I visited Orvieto about 7 years ago days before I got married in Tuscany.  I was thrilled to really dig into this wine region that I just don’t think gets the attention it deserves.  I’m featuring a 2 part series this week.  This week  I’ll focus on Orvieto and the Umbria region along with the grapes that make up Orvieto and the regulations that producers must follow to be part of the Orvieto DOC.  Next week I’ll share some of the wines I tasted and tell you a little about the varied Orvieto producers.   

The Orvieto wine region 

Orvieto is town set up high on a hillside made of tufo in the landlocked region of Umbria in central Italy.  The wines of the Orvieto DOC span both Umbria and the northern part of the Lazio region.  The vineyards are influenced by nearby Lake Corbara and Lake Bolsena as well as the Paglia and Tevere Rivers.  This area was once covered by an ancient lake, Tiberino, that left behind a variety of soils including sedimentary soils made up on sandstone, clay and sand, alluvial soils and even porous, volcanic soils.  When we think of Italian wines made from volcanic soils you’re probably not thinking of Central Italy, nevermind Orvieto.  This is just one of the many reasons these wines must be explored. 

Winemaking in Orvieto dates back to the Etruscan times when the vines were planted off of trees.  Around the 3rd century BC the area was taken over by the Romans.  After barbarian invasions and other takeovers, viticulture took a hit.  It wasn’t until the Middle Ages when viticulture was restablished into daily living by medieval monks.  It declined again for centuries until 1860 when it unified under the Kingdom of Italy.   

View from Orvieto

The grapes of Orvieto 

Orvieto wines are historically made in an off dry style, but today are most commonly produced in a dry style.  Although, late harvest, known as vendemmia tardiva, and wines that face noble rot, known as muffo nobile or muffato, are produced in the area as well.   

The Orvieto DOC was established in 1971.  The primary grapes that make up the Orvieto DOC wines are Grechetto di Orvieto, Grechetto di Todi and Procanico.  The Orvieto DOC does not make a distinction between the two Grechetto grapes and therefore wine producers can leave a general labeling as Grechetto without deciphering between the two.  Grechetto di Orvieto is a native grape to Umbria that has mildew resistent skins and is a great selection for producing the Muffa Nobile wines.  Grechetto di Todi is the parent grape to Grechetto di Orvieto and is genetically identical to Pignoletto of the Emilia Romagna region in northern Italy.   Procanico is a biotype of the Trebbiano Toscano grape and this grape along with the Grechetto grapes all produce wines with high acidity, which is what I found most refreshing about these wines and is typically the style I gravitate towards.   

There are also secondary grapes that producers can add including Verdello, Malvasia and Drupeggio at lesser percentages.  You may also see some international grapes used like Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc or Vermentino.   In order to be labeled as an Orvieto DOC wine the blend must be comprised of a minimum of 60% Grechetto and/or Procanico and a maximum of 40% of other authorized grapes previously mentioned.    The wines labeled Orvieto DOC Classico must come entirely from within the Umbria region and the historical area of Orvieto.  Those labeled as Orvieto DOC Classico Superiore have a higher alcohol level, lower yields and have at least 5 months of aging.  

Visiting Orvieto 

I loved my visit to Orvieto, known as the “green heart of Italy”.  It seems so untouched and serene in comparison to its neighbors.  I drove there and seeing it in the distance set high up on the hill it looked like quite the journey to get to the top.  Even from where I parked it was a little hike up the street, but I took a nice little break strolling into one of the local churches to light a few candles as I always love to do in Italy for my deceased grandparents.  It’s easily accessible also via the train system and they even have a funicular that can take you right to the top of the town.   

I'm always fascinated with Duomos when visiting Italy and the one in Orvieto is beautifully made of limestone and tufo.  I had a great time roaming the alleys, checking out the artisan shops and even taking an underground tour of some of the tufo caves.  These caves were dug out by Etruscans in search of water and discovered to be great areas to make and preserve wine, which some of the producers still use today. 

The views looking over the rolling hills lined with cypress trees and medieval towns and villages wasn’t all too shabby either!  If the views weren’t enough to entice you this is a region known for their black truffles, lentils and my favorite, chocolate! 

So don’t let the marketing and hype of some of the other regions overshadow places like Umbria and Orvieto.  Take a trip and find out for yourself and discover some of these lesser visited hidden gems.  

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Frascati: The White Wine of Lazio

Whether you may have heard the name Lazio or not, if you’ve been to Italy most likely you visited Rome, which is actually in the central region of Italy called Lazio.  Not a region I’ve written about too much on here and mostly because I don’t see wines from Lazio all too often.  Katarina, our host from Grapevine Adventures chose to feature the region of Lazio for Italian Food, Wine and Travel (#ItalianFWT) this month.  With such limited time lately I actually stopped at a couple stores and couldn’t find a bottle.  Regardless, when learning about Italian wine it’s best to learn about all the wine regions, especially some of the best known from those regions and those that are the least discovered gems.  I decided to share with you today one of Lazio’s featured wines known as Frascati.  This will probably be one of the wines you’d most likely come across if you were to seek out wines in the market from this region. 

Lazio is a region dominated by white wines by about 70% over reds that are primarily based on the Malvasia and Trebbiano white grapes.  In Lazio you’ll find a couple different types of Malvasia including Malvasia Bianca di Candia and Malvasia del Lazio.  In the Lazio wine region they have the most planted Malvasia Bianca di Candia in all of Italy.  The same goes for Trebbiano where you will discover Trebbiano Giallo and Trebbiano Toscano. 

Malvasia di Lazio - Copyright of Consorzio Vini Frascati

You’ll find the appellation of Frascati up in the southeastern hills outside of Rome in an area known as Castelli Romani.  The Frascati appellations take their name from the actual town of Frascati located there.  When we’ve spoken about volcanic wines in the past throughout Italy Lazio may not come first to mind, but the soils located in and around Frascati consist of volcanic matter. 

Lazio hosts a very large number of DOCs with limited DOCGs and Frascati occupies 2 of the 3 DOCGs of Lazio: Frascati Superiore DOCG and Cannellino di Frascati DOCG.  What makes up the difference between the Frascati DOC, Frascati Superior DOCG and Cannnellino di Frascati DOCG?  Since the wines are all produced within this area there are some differences in what classifies the wines produced in this area into each appellation. 

Both the Frascati DOC and Frascati Superiore DOCG are made from the same requirements of grape composition at 70%+ Malvasia Bianca di Candia and/or Malvasia del Lazio and up to 30% blending grapes.  The Superiore though has lower yields, higher alcohol levels and can produce a Riserva style with a year plus of aging.  Typically, Frascati is a light-bodied, dry wine showing apple, florals and citrus.  As with many Italian wines the Superiore will tend to produce wines with more complexity and depth over the regular Frascati DOC. 

Cannellino di Frascati DOCG on the other hand is more of dessert style wine produced from the same variety and percentages of grapes, but the grapes are produced in a sweeter style opposed to the dry versions we previously discussed.  It’s mandatory that the grapes be harvested late, but it’s optional whether the grapes reach the favorable disease known as botrytis, also known as noble rot, or whether or not they go through an appassimento process where the grapes are partially dried.

Cannellino di Frascati DOCG - Copyright of Consorzio Vini Frascati

What’s your experience with wines from this region?

Join my fellow Italian wine and food lovers as they share some other great selections of Lazio’s wine region.  Catch us live on Twitter this Saturday at 11am @ #ItalianFWT.  Ci vediamo!

• Camilla at Culinary Adventures with Camilla: Lazio in California: The Quintessential Roman Pasta + 2017 Big Sur Vineyards Pinot Noir Reserve
• Wendy at A Day in the Life on the Farm: Alberico Appia Antica 400 Rosso 2016 paired with Stracci di antrodoco
• Terri at Our Good Life: Pietro Est! Est!! Est!!! with Crab Dip Crostinis Our Good Life
• Susannah at Avvinare: Cesanese del Piglio, Classic Wines From Lazio
• Gwendolyn at Wine Predator: "If You See Kay" -- Lazio in Paso Robles? #ItalianFWT
• Marcia at Joy of Wine: Bellone - one of Lazio's Great White Grapes
• Robin at Crushed Grape Chronicles: Lazio – Exploring low intervention wines inspired by tradition and nature #Italian FWT
• Katarina at Grapevine Adventures: How Wine in Lazio is Reimagining its Past Greatness

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Malvasia on the Island of Sicilia with Tasca d'Almerita

A few weeks ago I was invited to a tasting of the Dalla Terra portfolio where 9 families of Italian wine producers were visiting Boston.  I love opportunities like these, especially when they all Italian.  It was the perfect opportunity to take the day off of work and meet these folks.  I made it through 7 of the 9 so I have plenty of stories and wines to share with you in upcoming weeks.  Life is a little crazy right now with getting our house ready for sale while trying to find one never mind balancing two little ones under 2, but that's why we have wine right?!

Giuseppe Tasca

The wines I'm sharing with you today are made from the malvasia grape from Tasca d'Almerita on the island of Sicily.  This was my first stop of the day and I was greeted by co-owner of the winery and VP, Giuseppe Tasca.  Giuseppe, along with his brother Alberto and father Count Lucia Tasca, manage the operations of the winery today.  Giuseppe greeted me with such enthusiasm and was so proud to tell me the history of his family and the estates that they own.  He walked me through all his pictures and explained the differences between the 5 farms, known as tenuta, and how the expressions of the grape varieties differ from the variety of landscapes that they're grown on.  Those 5 estates include

• Tenuta Capofaro (Salina)
• Tenuta Tascante (Mt. Etna)
• Tenuta Whitaker (Mozia)
• Tenuta Regaleali (DOC Sclafani county)
• Sallier de la Tour (Palermo province)

Tenuta Capofaro

The malvasia wines I'm sharing come from the Tenuta Capofaro estate.  This particular estate is located on the Aeolian island Salina, a UNESCO World Heritage site, off the northeastern coast of Sicily.  At the estate they only grow malvasia, known there as malvasia della lipari, on their vineyards that consist of 6 hectares situated on ancient lava rock.  This area is known for malvasia typically produced as a sweet wine.  Tenuta Capofaro wanted to present it also in a different light and show it as a dry style wine with freshness and elegance, hence their Didyme wine I tasted below.

Giuseppe was showing me pictures of the resort that guests can stay at on their estate. Looked like heaven to me!  They purchased this estate back in 2002 and at the time majority of the hectares were already planted with malvasia, but they restructured some of the vineyard and kept the best quality vines.  

The 2 wines I tasted were the 2016 Tenuta Capofaro Malvasia Passito called "CapoFaro" and the 2017 Tenuta Capofaro Malvasia Didyme.  I hope you have an opportunity to taste these wines and to experience malvasia in its different styles.

2016 Tenuta Capofaro Malvasia Passito "CapoFaro" Salina IGT made of 100% malvasia.  These malvasia grapes are dehydrated indoors, concentrating the sugars in the grapes.  They're fermented in stainless steel and aged for 6 months.  The wine showed a beautiful balance of sweetness and acidity without the heavy viscosity of other dessert wines.  Beautiful notes of honey and peaches.  SRP $38 (wine-searcher)

2017 Tenuta Capofaro Malvasia Didime Salina IGT made also with 100% malvasia.  This wine is named after the old name of the island "Didyme".  A light-bodied dry wine that is crisp, elegant, showing nice minerality and acidity combined with some citrus, flowers and herb notes.  SRP $16 (wine-searcher)

Happy Memorial weekend to everyone!

*Pictures and information sourced from Jarvis Communications and Tasca d'Almerita.

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Top 6 Italian wines at Cru Artisan of Banfi

Lately I've been finding myself immersed in lots of wonderful wines. Such wine problems in the life of a wine blogger. The more the merrier and the more great wines to share with you. I was invited to an all Italian wine tasting hosted by Cru Artisan wines in downtown Boston and I was there with bells on. A tasting of over 25 Italian wines with many that were enjoyable, but I tried to pick some of the highlights for myself to share with you. Here were my favorites for all different reasons that I'll explain:

• 2012 Maschio dei Cavalieri Rive di Colbertaldo Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore DOCG
• 2011 Fontana Candida Luna Mater Frascati Superiore DOCG
• 2011 Banfi Cuvee Aurora Rose Alta Langhe DOC
• 2008 Sartori Corte Bra Amarone della Valpolicella Classico DOCG
• 2009 Palari Faro DOC
• 2009 Cantine Florio Malvasia delle Lipari DOC

Cru Artisan wines are the luxury selections of the Banfi portfolio of wines. The wines I selected to share with you today I chose because they were some firsts for me and I appreciated their quality and characteristics from the areas of Italy that they represent. I think it's always important to share different wines throughout Italy and to get folks to think outside the box and realize the variety and potential of different Italian wine offerings throughout Italy.

2012 Cantine Maschio: Maschio dei Cavalieri “Rive de

Colbertaldo” Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore DOCG

Yes that's a mouthful for one wine. I've never been a big fan of sparkling, but I have found certain ones that have pleasing to drink and this one in particular was very satisfying. This wine originates from the DOCG of the Veneto in the areas of Conegliano and Valdobbiadene. Known for producing some of the top quality prosecco of Italy. It's made of 100% of the glera grape, aka prosecco. This is considered the “Grand Cru” of Cantina Maschio. My favorite aspect of this wine was the elegance and creaminess of the bubbles. Very soft with nice citrus fruit.

2011 Fontana Candida Luna Mater Frascati Superiore DOCG

I've discussed frascati in the past when discussing the wines of the Lazio wine region. It's typically known as a more simple, white wine, but this particular Frascati, Luna Mater, is not your average frascati. Meaning “mother moon”, this wine was very aromatic with lush fruit and a smooth, balanced medium bodied wine. It's a blend of 50% malvasia di candia, 30% malvadia del lazio, 10 %greco and 10% bombino. The vineyards where these grapes grow are 50 yaers old and it's within the Frascati Superiore DOCG designation in the areaa of Frascati and Monteporzio Catone.

2011 Banfi “Vigne Regali” Cuvee Aurora Rose Alta Langa DOC

Alright not a fan of sparkling, but 2 favorite sparklings at the same tasting? This is why you never judge wines until you've had a variety as quality can change so much from producer to producer. The Alta Langa is located in southern Piedmont and known as the sparkling wine area of Piedmont. This wine is made of 100% pinot noir grapes that are produced using the classic method. This wine is 90% from the current vintage and 10% of the previous vintage that is also aged in French oak and is in contact with the yeast for 2 years. Pale pink in color it had a silkiness with notes of apple and vanilla. A fun and different sparkling rose to try.

2008 Sartori Corte Bra Amarone della Valpolicella Classico DOCG

Reminiscing back to my trip over to Italy earlier this year to visit the Valpolicella region of the Veneto it was nice to revisit an Amarone and this single vineyard was definitely pleasing to my palate. This wine is produced with 50% corvina veronese, 30% corvinone, 15% rondinella and 5% oseleta. These grapes were dried for about 3-4 months, further fermented in stainless for 30 days and finished in Slavonian and French tonneaux for 4 years and 6 months in the bottle. As you can imagine with the appasimento, drying of the grapes, it produces concentrated fruit and this was a full bodied, powerful wine that is well structured, velvety with loads of ripe red fruit. This is Sartori's crown jewel of their wines and it's no wonder why after having tasting it.

2009 Palari Faro DOC 

I just shared this wine in a recent article hosted by Snooth sharing summer fall transitional wines under $20. I was more excited to talk about the wines I was excited to switch over to from summer to fall that I forgot it must be under $20. None-the-less you can read about wine that is grown at Mt. Etna in Sicily with the nerello mascalese and nerello cappuccio grapes combined with nocera.

2009 Florio Malvasia delle Lipari DOC 

This was my first time having a Malvasia delle Lipari and it was a unique experience. This wine is part of the Aeolian Islands just off the coast of Sicily. Lipari is largest of the Aeolian Islands and the terrain here made of volcanic soil and sand. The grapes that make up this wine are Malvasia delle Lipari and Corinto Nero are dried on mats after being harvested for about 15-20 days. Golden in color with notes of honey and dried apricots, this is a full bodied, high alcohol but smooth, sweet way to end your meal. A unique dessert wine indeed.

I hope you enjoyed my unique selections of wines. There were others that were notable and I'm happy to share those with you also if you're interested. Drop a comment and I'll provide the others. If you've had any of these I'd love to hear your thoughts or if you've tried others of the same variety that you prefer more. I'm always open to hearing about other producers that I maybe haven't had exposure to yet.

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Best day trip outside of Rome visiting the wineries of Lazio

Andiamo a Roma!  Yesterday you may have caught my podcast with Rick Zullo discussing an introduction to Italian wines including the Lazio wine region.   If you have been to Italy, most likely you have visited Rome, the capital of Italy in the central region of Lazio along the Tyrrhenian Sea. As we all know, Rome is rich in history, art, architecture, and much more, but let's escape today from the city and chaos and journey to wine country outside of Rome. Here are some of the best areas to visit outside of Rome for a day trip to experience the wines of Lazio. You may not immediately gravitate to the Lazio region when it comes to wine. Lazio is known for producing easy drinking, simple table wines, without drawing much excitement, but there are some top whites and reds that you can find that are worth experiencing. Plus, any time you visit a wine region you learn so much about the cultural history of an area, plus the climate, terrain, and much more. If you are a lover of whites you will be able to appreciate this region. My first suggestion, that is near to Rome, is to venture out to the Castelli Romani area to see the production of frascati, the primary white wine. There are a number of towns in this area in the Alban hills, Colli Albani, which is about 12 miles south of Rome. Wine lovers have enjoyed Frascati for over 3,000 years in this region. What makes the winemaking of this region unique is the volcanic soil. Volcanic soil imparts lots of character to wine that is grown on it, especially minerality and complexity. Frascati wine is a blend of the malvasia bianca, trebbiano and bombino bianco grapes. Check out the Frascati Superiore DOCG wines as well as the Cannellino di Frascati DOCG, which is a dessert wine. The Alban Hills of Frascati by CucombreLibre If you're a red wine lover, the best wine area outside of Rome to visit would be the town of Piglio, about 30 miles southeast of Rome in the Frosinone province. The primary red grape of Lazio is the unique cesanese del Piglio made with 90% of the cesanese grape. Cesanese is an aromatic red grape producing wines with spice, ina concentration that shows the ability to age. Outside of the cesanese grape, most of what you'll find in this region for red wines are your typical international varieties like cabernet sauvignon and merlot. Don't get me wrong, no one should miss visiting Rome for its history alone, but take a day off and enrich your experience with a visit to the wine region. It might be overwhelming with the number of choices available to stay in Rome, but if you are looking to base yourself out of Rome for your vacation and excursions, consider Worldhotel Ripa Roma in the Trastevere district of Rome. For a gastronomic Lazio experience, check out my blog with a food and wine pairing of Lazio featuring saltimbocca alla romana with Casale del Giglio petit verdot, and get a sample of what this region has to offer from a culinary perspective. This article is associated with #Hipmunkcitylove.

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