Reviews

South Italian wines: a vertical cut
«Vinnaya Karta» №1(102) January-February 2009

Three vertical tastings from producers of South Italy were recently offered to an international group of wine experts.

Results and conclusions turned out to be quite promising. Vinnaya Karta correspondent reports.

A eurocent coin made in Italy shows a castle. It is Castel del Monte, the heritage of an enlightened emperor Federico II who reigned in the Kingdom of Sicily in the first half of the 13th century. Nowadays the octagonal castle is a major site in Puglia. Interest to the edifice remains strong also because the story of its construction and the use of the castle are still subject to scientific researches and conspiracy theories.

Castel del Monte is also a symbol of a small eponymous wine region. The denomination has existed since 1971 and permits to produce white, rose and red wines. Both local and international grapes are used. The former include Pampanuto, Bombino Bianco, Nero di Troia (local name for Uva di Troia), Aglianico, Montepulciano and Bombino Nero. Among the latter we find Chardonnay, Pinot Blanc, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Noir and two Cabernets. The abundance of varieties prevents Castel del Monte DOC from being firmly associated with a certain grape or wine style. Winemakers weren’t bothered about it until recently. Like in other parts of South Italy, they sent wines in bulk to the north, to be used to ‘beef up’ light wines from cooler areas. Times changed, and now many wineries are taking a new path. The quality is gradually rising, and wines are more often bottled at place, which increases their value, as well as the income of wine estates. The idea of the area can now reach a wine merchant or a final consumer directly.

Despite a proliferation of grape varieties and current obscurity, Castel del Monte has a good chance to build a prominent reputation. Indigenous Nero di Troia grows there, and it can really push the area forward. Success will depend on many circumstances, but the grape at least has potential to produce wines of top quality.

What is Nero di Troia? First of all, it is one of the ancient Puglian varieties that, according to a legend, was brought to the south of Italy by Greek hero Diomed. There are other hypotheses, stating that the grape comes from a town called Troia in Puglia or Cruja in Albania. As yet, there are no scientific confirmations about the origin of the grape. First systematic descriptions of Nero di Troia come from the mid-19th century, and it was regularly presented as one of the key Puglian varieties in wine production since then. Jancis Robinson’s “The Oxford Companion to Wine”, a modern wine bible, though, is uncomplimentary about the grape, saying that “it has yet to reach the potential already demonstrated by the likes of Primitivo or Negroamaro”. I will challenge this by saying that responsibility for the situation lies with winemakers, but not with the grape as such. My argument in defence is Vigna Pedale by Torrevento, made from 100% Nero di Troia.

First vintage of Vigna Pedale was in 1993 when Torrevento had already been managed for several years by Francesco Liantonio. He left his job as a professor of marketing and headed the family estate in 1989. From the very start Liantonio concentrated on indigenous varieties and modern production techniques. He says that both were seen as ‘crazy’ by local winemakers. Today Torrevento is the largest wine business in Castel del Monte and one of the key family companies in Puglia.

Liantonio pioneered production of Nero di Troia in purezza, that is totally unblended with other grapes (Castel del Monte DOC rules allow to state a grape variety on the label when only 65% of it is present in the blend). Vigna Pedale is a top of the range wine among all Nero di Troia labels in Torrevento. Grapes come from the vineyard in Pedale commune that gave its name to the wine. Vines grow on a single plot of 40 hectares, of which 15 hectares were recently planted. The vineyard lies on a plateau at the altitude of 400 metres above sea level, and the soil is a hard strata of limestone, covered by about 60 cm of fertile topsoil. New vines are chosen by massal selection of the best old plants. Grapes are particular, as they are smaller sized and are slightly bitter. Vigna Pedale is special in Torrevento also for sentimental reasons — it was the first vineyard that the Liantonio family acquired.

Up to 2000 wine was vinified and aged in stainless steel vats. Starting from 2001 vintage, Vigna Pedale is kept for 12 months in French oak barriques (equal parts of new, 1-year and 2-year-old barrels), while the total aging period is 24 months. Thus Vigna Pedale is able to acquire extra complexity and structural depth, and it was elevated to the Castel del Monte DOC Riserva category.

Francesco Liantonio offered for evaluation 8 vintages of Vigna Pedale, made between 1996 and 2005. It was the first time when a vertical tasting for Nero di Troia was held in Torrevento and, possibly, in all Puglia. At least, we are not aware of the precedents. Wines were tasted from the youngest to the oldest, and it was like reading a story of Vigna Pedale and the whole estate spanning for the past 10 years. Two latest vintages — 2005 (to be bottled in spring 2009) and 2004 (current vintage on sale) — were the most impressive, being a logical result of work undertaken in the estate in the past 20 years. I awarded them 16,5 and 17 points out of 20 accordingly. The wines notably demonstrate the individuality of the grape, yet made in a modern manner, with attractive fruit and well rendered tannins.

In general, Vigna Pedale has intense ruby colour changing to garnet with time. Young wines are filled with gentle aromas of ripe red and black fruit — mulberry, plum, cherry, blackberry, raspberry. Flavours are further adorned with bright spice and touches of coffee and chocolate. The wine gracefully evolves to feature dried fruit and fruit confit, balsamic and truffle, undergrowth and mushrooms. Despite its southern origin, Vigna Pedale is consistently fresh and has a medium level of alcohol (12,5-13%). This is an athletic, rather than a sumptuous wine. At first it is quite shy, but once it had a chance to breathe, it opens up with a refined bouquet that, depending on the vintage and age, combines in different proportions fruit, herbs, flowers, minerals, spices, truffles and balsamic notes. Vintage conditions strongly affect the character of wine — it seems that Puglian Nero di Troia is just as sensitive as Burgundian Pinot Noir. When everything happens in a right way, both grapes give outstanding results. Nero di Troia has a good aging potential. Vigna Pedale 1999 is now at the peak of its development — the nose combines sleek, youthful aromas of red fruit, underlined by forest floor and truffle nuances, and the palate features a lovely natural concentration of flavours, freshness and a complex interplay of fruit, chocolate and balsamic, while the finish is lifted and lasting (16,5 points).

At the moment Francesco Liantonio is among a minority of winemakers who believe in Nero di Troia potential. Perhaps after this tasting that left a very positive impression on the international tasters, it will be easier for him to persuade his colleagues that Nero di Troia is an ideal candidate for a signature grape of Castel del Monte. The variety has chances to win this wine area recognition and prestige.

It is almost impossible that Bisceglia winery should be found in Basilicata. The minimalist building, with clean lines of black basalt and glass was designed by a Japanese-Italian duo of Hikaru Mori and Domenico Santomauro. Inside is a futuristic 21st century winery that combines function and conceptual design. Each space, from the wine bar to the barrel cellar, is made in an urban spirit of a great city, rather than that of a poor, little populated agricultural region, as Basilicata still largely is.

Bisceglia is a new, ambitious phenomenon in the local winemaking, and it can only be managed by a successful businessman. That is exactly who Mario Bisceglia is. He started a winemaking project after working in top managerial positions in several well known food companies. Bisceglia tasted his first wine made with the indigenous Basilicata grape Aglianico not even in Italy, but in New York. This may explain well why a new winemaking enterprise was based not on traditional farming ideas, but on a clearly formulated business model.

Bisceglia set a goal to become the leading Basilicata producer, and he’s been working towards it with an admirable determination. A winemaking estate was founded in 2001, with an initial investment of 10 million euros. First 70,000 bottles were launched on the market in 2001. Last year the figure was 400,000, and 900,000 are planned for production in 2011. Vineyards are mostly located in Basilicata, but some grapes also come from Puglia and Campania. Mario Bisceglia believes it is important to think outside of the limited local mind frame. The estate’s slogan is “Southern Italian Essence”, which is a good broad foundation to present wines on the international markets. Quality is another essential factor. The company relies on production of premium wines that should be mainly channelled through restaurants. In a short period of the company’s existence its flagship Aglianico wine Gudarra twice received a top award in the Gambero Rosso guide, as well as was listed among 100 top wines in its 2009 edition.

We also had this wine for the tasting — four vintages of Gudarra Aglianico del Vulture DOC 2003-2006 and the first vintage of Gudarra Riserva 2001. Two years ago Maurizio Angeletti, who also works with Antinori estates, was invited as a consulting enologist. He made the last two vintages — Gudarra 2006 and 2005, and the “writing” of the new enologist is clearly seen. Fruit in aromas and flavours are clean, generous and very concentrated. Tannins reinforce the powerful structure, without giving away a drying sensation. Wines are made in a style of intensity, easily understood by an international consumer, yet they remain wines of Aglianico, with its sweet cherry-blackberry fruit framed by spice. It would be good if the winemaker puts an additional accent on acidity: it brings freshness and sapidity, as well as balances alcohol whose presence is obvious through the wine’s warmth. For this reason my preferences lie with an older vintage, 2004 (16,5 points). Though earlier vintages of Gudarra are slightly rustic, the wine has balance, elegance, attractive sapidity and an interesting element of wild herbs as a link to the territory. There is no doubt that Aglianico can age well: Gudarra Riserva 2001 (by law Riserva category is aged for 5 years before release) has enough potential to develop for at least another 3-5 years.

“My strategy is to show the world that Basilicata can produce great wines”, says Mario Bisceglia. His pioneering mission is hard, but if someone can prove that relatively little known South Italian grapes like Aglianico are worthy of international recognition, Bisceglia is an ideal candidate. His business grip and marketing talent together with high quality of wines make him an Angelo Gaja from the south of Italy.

The Italian heel in the wine geography is Salento, that produces wines in IGT and DOC categories. Candido estate has there one of the central places, both literally and figuratively. The family company owns 160 hectares of own vineyards and buys contracted grapes from another 100 hectares. Donato Lanati, a recognised researcher and enologist from Piedmont, has been consulting the estate for several years. Lanati’s status in Italy compares to that of professor Denis Dubordieu in France.

Candido prepared a tasting of Duca d’Aragona, a prominent label in the hierarchy of the estate’s wines. It is a blend of Negroamaro with a small amount of Montepulciano, aged in barriques. Vintages 2001, 1998, 1997, 1993 and 1991 were offered.

Donato Lanati did the presentation, and he also brought a surprise. Our group was the first who saw and heard the results of an innovative analysis on which Lanati had been working lately. The idea is to present wine’s key aspects as pictograms, easily understood by those who work in wine industry. Each wine went through 2,000 tests, and the results were processed in two directions.

Firstly, general wine characteristics. Colour is represented by two arrows, one of which shows intensity and the other — limpidity. Knowing figures, it is possible to accurately predict the colour, without factual visual assessment. The pie chart gives ratio between ‘short’ and ‘long’ tannins. In the process of aging molecules of tannins undergo chemical reactions. They tie to antocyanins and become larger. We feel these changes as textural, and describe tannins in aged wines as soft, silky, supple. According to Lanati, the share of ‘long’ tannins in fine wines is around 80%. As for Duca d’Aragona, the youngest 2001 vintage has 46% of them, but the oldest 1991 — 79%. Other important parameters are presented as a picture of a man. Size of the hat is proportionate to the amount of flavonoids, the head — alcohol level, the tie — pH level, the body –total amount of extract, legs — antocyanins. All pictures of wine are different depending on the levels of substances in each. When wines evolve, they greatly lose in height, as flavonoids and antocyanins decrease markedly.

The second pictogram is dedicated to aromas. It looks like a daisy where each leaf and petal correspond to a certain aromatic group. The more they are present, the bigger the elements of the flower are. There are 3 leaves in total (alcohols and benzenoids, terpenes, norisoprenoids), and six petals (compound esters deriving from aging; furanes and lactones; compound esters deriving from fermentation; alcohols and benzenoids; terpenes; norisoprenoids). Again, knowing figures and ratios, it is possible to determine from a pictogram what the wine’s bouquet is like, its evolutionary stage how much aromatic potential has already been realised.

Based on this analysis, Donato Lanati presented aromas and the character of wines without actual tasting. He pointed out that Duca d’Aragona 1993 and 1998 should be the best wines in the line up. The enologist was right. The 1993 vintage is indeed in a superior shape to others. It has polished garnet colour with a brick hued rim, aromas are finely interlocked between red fruit and nuances of leather. The palate is impeccably integrated, on bitter-sweet cherry, black fruit, balsamic and tar. Tannins are built into a monumental structure. All in all, Duca d’Aragona 1993 is reminiscent of a well aged Barolo (17 points). Vintage 1998 is also excellent, with aromas of red fruit and evolved balsamic and tarry notes (16 points), but 1997 appeared more exciting. Rich, yet elegant nose of fruit and spices is followed by a supple palate of red and black fruit, spices, and piquant bitterness of a cherry stone. The wine hasn’t reached the evolutionary plateau (16,5 points). 2001 also shows good potential (16 points), while Duca d’Aragona 1991, a venerable 17-year-old wine is a true Negroamaro rarity, showing a bouquet of truffles, forest undergrowth and petrol and a fatty palate of red fruit, spices, notably nutmeg and a fine petrolly note (16,5 points). By the way, as Donato Lanati explained, Negroamaro, Nebbiolo and Riesling develop with age the same petrolly notes, so comparison of the Puglian grape to the Piedmontese is justified.

If Lanati’s analytical wine profiles are so correct, will they be able to replace traditional tasting notes? Their great help in wine understanding is indisputable, but the answer is likely to be “No”. Even the most sensitive laboratory analysis cannot communicate a wine’s beauty and emotions of the person drinking it. A good wine is always a product of culture, and subjective evaluation often has more importance than objective technical analysis.