Ep. 627 Xiaowen Du Interviews Elena Fucci | Clubhouse Ambassadors Corner

Welcome to this special Italian wine podcast broadcast. This episode is a recording off Clubhouse, the popular drop in audio chat. This clubhouse session was taken from the wine business club and Italian wine club. Listen in as wine lovers and experts alike engage in some great conversation on a range of topics in wine. And remember to subscribe scribe and rate our show wherever you tune in. Before the show, here's the shout out to our new sponsor, fellow has been the largest wine shop in Italy since nineteen twenty. They have generously supplied us with our new t shirt. Would you like one? Just donate fifty euros and it's all yours. Plus, we'll throw in our new book jumbo shrimp guide grape varieties in Italy. For more info, go to Italian wine podcast dot com and click donate or check out Italian wine podcast on Instagram. My name's Stevie Kim, and welcome to Italian wine club. As you can see, we are back to our weekly slot on Thursdays, eight pm central European time. Today, we are back with the second episode of Ambassador Kona where Italian wine ambassadors and wine lovers interview their favorite Italian wine producer. Last week, Cynthia Chaplin kicked off the series with a super duper interview with none other than Alberto Tasca. If you missed it, we've dropped the episode on Italian wine podcast. So check it out. After having listened to our call today and you'd like to nominate and interview your favorite Italian wine producer, please ping me on Insta. Or reach out to Leica, our backstage club house manager on Italian wine podcast, Insta account as well. So as a gentle reminder, this room will be quoted as usual and maybe replayed on the Italian wine podcast. Most likely on Saturdays, but Joy, our producer has the final say on this matter as usual. While you are at it, you would really, really appreciate your support if you can give a thumbs up and rate all podcasts wherever you get your pods. And if you'd like to make a small donation, even better, I'm very pleased to present to you our guest moderator for our call today. She's sitting here right next to me. Our new Vineetale International Academy Ambassador. Congratulations, Thank you, Stevie. Hello, everybody. So nice to be here. Okay. Great. We call her Chow at the office. She's been working with me for nearly three and a half years. She's incredibly dedicated as everybody knows at the office and diligent. About her work. She works mostly with Italian wine now, but she studied inology at Uni in China, Viticulture, and in Knowledge and and she even had a stint at Chateau La Gras in Bordeaux and a other vineyard and winery at Sonamo coast in California. She's incredibly devoted to wine education And she is also currently studying for the w set diploma with me. She the only thing is she'll finish really fast and I'll be the perennial student. So I can completely see her continuing her journey into Master wine studies one day. So listen, Shawan. Why don't you tell me why you have chosen Elena Fucci as your favorite producer? Well, as I have been working here with DV International for more than three and a half years and had chunks to be exposed to many excellent Italian one producers. Among them, Alina Fucci has a special place in my heart to begin with her brand image is her warm, smiling face. She represents herself, her binary. And her hometown, Vasilicata. And I was touched even deeper when I saw the photo of her grandpa working actively in the vineyard at the age of twenty five. Yes. That's very tender indeed. Yeah. And my grandma is the closest person to me in the whole world and I want nothing but for her to be happy and healthy. So that's really touching for me. And last but not least, as my secret dream of making my own wine in the future. I honestly couldn't relate myself to the one making families of many generations as I simply don't have not anything to start with. Alina Fuji instead, is the first generation, female one maker who put her name on her winery. She basically showed me that my dream is not impossible. She is my role model, and that's why she is my theory. Oh my goodness. I'm I'm like, I have my wine ready. I'm ready for the show. You know, Sean sounds really sweet and romantic and she really is. So I think you'll learn all about her and Elena today. So, you know, Sean as the tradition we try to set up some learning objectives of our call. So what should we expect from the interview today? Let's learn more about Alianico grape, Alianico Delo Uturi. To be more precise. And let's learn also more about Alina's new one making projects with Amphora. Oh, yeah. I didn't even know she was doing that. Excellent. And how did you discover the wines of Elena Fucci in the first place? I tried Alina Fucci's one many times, and I would like to share, like, my most recent tasting experience. So as a staff member, working behind the scenes of many Ven Italy events. I witnesses the toughness of the Ven Italy International Academy via exam firsthand Yeah. You just did that. Right? Yeah. Which made me want to take the challenge and achieve the goal of becoming a certified Italian one ambassador. Last year, I had a chance to participate in the agile audition and last month, I set the testing session and the exam. During the testing, I rediscovered Alina Fucci's Titolo. During the three days of intensive tasting with all the benchmark ones from all over Italy. Alina Fuji's one remained in my memory. Both the intensity on the nose and concentration on the palate very impressive. Here are some of my tasting notes. Okay. Excellent. Love it. Love it. The deep purple in color blackberry balanced with sweet spices such as cinnamon, floral notes, such as violet, and herbal notes such as Bay leaf, and the tendons are really intense and high, but it's so ripe and fun green. Is a lesser known, let's say, an underappreciated trailer from the south of Italy, and I would like to shine a spotlight on Alina Fucci and her one. Excellent. I wanna have a gloss of her wine right now. So, okay, Sean. Up to you now. Take it away. Let's welcome Elena Fucci. Yeah. Welcome Alina. So, when I think of Alina Fucci, Alianico that toury automatically comes to my mind. Her energy and spirit is extremely contagious. You cannot help, but fall in love with her passion for her one and her hometown. So Elena could you please introduce yourself to our audience? Hi. Charles Stevy. Hey, Joanne, Chow. For me is a pleasure and an honor sorry for my English before. I don't speak well. I understand well, but I just speak well. But, I try now. Showing congrats for your life in the wine. I mean, impressed in is impressive for me, your, your work and your studies. Congrats. Thank you, Alina. My dreams start in two thousand, because, in two thousand, I finished the high school in the summer two thousand, finished the high school, and I take to study in January, genetics in January. But I, in December, changing my life because, my father, my grandfather, and my great grandfather have the Vigna in Barile, six hectare in the, only a janikudal Voltery grapes, and I born in the Vigna, in the house, in the Vigna. And I live with my family, my mommy, my my daddy, I living in the Vigna always. And some are, two thousand, they think to sold the the Vigna. But, I decide to study Vitico's Turandology. I change in my life, because, for me, it's a shock where I know the the they think to sell to to solve the the the the house where I born. And, I decide to study medical student technology, studying Pisa in Tuscany, and I decide to changing my life. And, today, I produce only one wine, and I'm very, very happy for this life, for this, this wine. I'm in in the, in, in in the Vultre. The Vultre is old, Vulcanistin is, like, one thousand and three hundred meter, and, my Vigna are six hundred meter, I, on top the mountain. In the first time I decide, okay, I have a single vigna, titular vigna, a single grapes, I produce a single wine, a single label because, because I decide to to working only for the eye quality. And, and my wine, usually, I describe my wine and my project in the moderna, but not modernist wine. Moderna, because it's my idea of a janikodel Bultre. And not modernist because I work in respect, the variety and the The principal characteristic of my wine over the Delianico are three acidity, minerality, and tannin, and I work for this in Vigna, and the seller because I don't love the, very strong wine, and I don't love, a typical, like, characteristic of so detailed wine, because usually, the people think, so Italy, I think very hot weather, very strong red wine. But for the volt red is not true because we are in the part north of basilicata, we are in the middle on the mountain. The the sea is very far, and that the the weather is very cold. We have every winter as snow. And the summer and spring are very fresh with eye description night and day. Ten, eleven grade. And, this is most important for the wine and for the phenolic maturation of the Allianico de vultre. And, I, in the wine love the Agacidity, minerality, the, the the very, very, for me, it's the most important, the, the, the, the, very, for me, it's the most important, the, and, I'm working for this in the after in, in the cellar. And, I usually describe before, in very quickly, my, my wine and my story, modern, but not modernist. Yeah. I love that story, and it's so nice to hear from you. So I want to ask one question. So let's talk about your Kitilo, you mentioned before. And so why do you decide to focus on like only one product name? So could you also share with us the story behind the name? Yeah. Okay. The name Titolo is the name of this area. The name complete is contrada Solania del Titolo. Solania in my dialect is under the sun. And I have only this Vigna in in the Vultore. It's all together, six actors, all together around the cellar. And I think Okay. I, for me, it's most important. This the VINification, the single vigna, the crew. And, I think, okay, I have only more wine, only one grape, only one, only one a single vigna, I decide to produce it to make only one wine, because it's a a hundred percent. Well, that's a great story. Yeah. Definitely. Since you're concentrated on all your energy onto one product, also one grape, I really love the concept. Yeah. Yes. Sean, with a six act, Tara, here for our DUC is possible to produce sixty thousand bottles. But, for me, this, not is possible because I work with a pro I'm pretty short, I select the grapes before and after the arrest. And they produce only twenty five, thirty thousand bottles. It's actually half Oh. Our possibility producer, total producer. Yeah. Definitely. Quality focused one one making philosophy. Yeah. Okay. So I would like to follow-up with another question on the allianico grip. So we would like to learn from you about this grip And how do you define the characteristics of Alianico Delu Toure? Yeah. The principle characteristic of Alianico de vultre are three and our acidity, minerality, and tannin. Where the vintage is a little bit cold, you have a very vertical whine, acidity, minerality, and tannin, and supported by, minerality and flower. When you have the, the, where you have the, vintage, a little bit hot, you have acidity, minerality, and supported by spicy and fluid. But is a very, very, particular, wine because the acidity and minerality are very present and, why? Because we are six hundred meter hike on top the the mountain and the the, the weather is cold and the soil is a very beautiful because, we have the in the soil, the main stratification, the many eruption of Ultra, ash, lapilli, lapilli is a little stone lava, and and lava. And sometimes we have the clay. And, today, the clay is most important because the water draining in the lava ash and lapilli, and the clay stop the water at the plants, not even never stir seed bricks. Here, notice, a permissive irrigation, and, the, the minerality of soil. And after we have, well, when we have the very balanced being touched, for example, twenty eighteen, twenty fifteen, thirteen, for example, we have a very balanced wine because we have a acidity, minerality, and toning, supported by, red fruit and the red pepper and flower is very balanced. So beautiful. Yeah. You talk about the grapes, how it expressed itself in different vintages. It's great to hear from a producer how to describe the characteristics. Mhmm. Our VA faculty, Sarah Heller, shared a useful summary with the three bell types of allianico, which I would like to share with our audience as well. Like Tarazi is very. Yeah. It means it's more, very nice. Tabuno is amaro. Refers to the acidities higher and Wuturi is intense. So it means the aromas and flavors are much more intense. So how would you make the comparison between these three? Yeah. Is the most important, the totally different, in basilicata and in Campania, cultura, the culture of wine, and, in the unification because the the basilicata is the new age of the in the new age of the the production. The Campania is a, a little bit traditional more traditional, and this is the first difference. The second difference is in the in the soil and the in in the weather. The soil in the Taurasi is is a volcanic soil, but the volcano is very far because it volcano is, Vazuvio. And Vazuvio is very far to Taurazi. Only the ash, the wind that put the ash and, arriving in Taurazi, and that the soil is a very is a very closet. It's a two four, but not even more poros. It's closed. And, is a totally different because in the Vultre we are on the volcano and the minerality, the expression in the in the minerality is very high. And the is a a more drink drinkable drinkable because uh-uh have a more drinkability because the acidity and minerality help drinkability. And This is the and it's possible for the Alyanikodil Vultore to drink the the younger the younger vintage, the young vintage for the Taurasi. For example, not as possible to drink, before five years. Yeah. That's really good to know for all of us. So next question is a Viticulture question. So there is a training system called it's very popular in Vasiliicata. So could you tell us something more about this training system and how it is different from, like, other training systems? Yes. We have, in the old vigna de Guyo, and the, in the very old, in the part, very in the part in the part of this, seventy year old, seven zero because I have a problem with the number. Sorry. Seventeen, seventeen. Seven zero years is at the part of all desk for, in the my Vigna. And my grandfather working, for this, because it's most important to don't lost the tradition. And the the the chief grant, in the school, the teacher visit our cella and my grandfather, ask with the children and explain the Capano. Because, it's very difficult, ground system, and, have a a tree bamboo, the three bamboo, and the there's a tree bamboo in the in the Italian, it's in the in the in English, I think. And one supported the the the plants. Mhmm. Have, two, cup of fruit. I don't know in English, cup of fruit. Oh, sorry for me. It's most most difficult. And, it's important because the the grape produce a very small quantity for for plants, and the grapes leaving, protect, inside the plants. And the the wind, dressing the the grapes. So basically this kind of training system will help this one to resist the windy situation. Is that correct? Like when it's windy? It's like a supportive. For the ones. Yeah. Mhmm. Yeah. Yes. Correct. Yeah. It's good to know because also the culture, like, the beauty culture background of the region and you're still carrying the tradition forward. Yeah. I also heard, like, your wannaries focus on the old wands. You mentioned seventy years. So it's a very old wands. The old one has very high quality, just like me and Stevie, we learned from the diploma course. We mentioned a lot about old ones, so had lower production, but higher concentration. Okay. So next question, can I notice on your website, your Titolo has a pink edition now? So when did you start making it? And how did you make this Jose? Yeah. Is a a joke with my husband, and, the twenty twenty is the first, the first of winters. We produce only nine hundred bottles. So it's a very small. Wow. More quality. Yeah. In the part of Vigna, my grandfather, made a home garden, is a very big, a very, is a very big home garden. Six, years ago, he decide, don't working, in the in the home garden. And we planted the the new vigna is a very, is is new, is a, is a young, is a young vigna, or six, six year it's very sweet. Yeah. Yeah. And with a disgrace, I, and my husband, Andrea, decided to making, to start with the design experiment. We, the address for the rosette is in the fall of in the first week of October. Consider, usually, the ayanico is the address is in the end October, the first week of November. I'm the highest in the voltaire. I'm the last. Oh, the last man to harvest. Yeah. Yeah. Mhmm. Yeah. In the usually, in the cold being touched, we have the harvest in the four, five, November. It's incredible. It is incredible for the SUDita ladies because the Alyanico is a later grape. It's the same Yeah. Definitely. So, like, the growing season is very long, so it can accumulate all these flavor contents slowly, then can express it better in the one. Absolutely. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. And, we start with this new new adventure with, with rosette, and we, we are rest only behind the grape arriving in the cellar with the stem, with a whole battery going in stainless steel, in the stainless steel during, today with a premature with the highest carbonic ice, today. And after and after we crushing the grapes and the return in the in the stainless steel. The alcoholic fermentation with the control of the temperature. Mhmm. And after, after we'll finish the, the alcoholic fermentation, we, establish the stabilization of a wine and after going in the bottle, don't don't, don't don't have a malolactic fermentation. We have the very it's a very beautiful wine because have very high acidity and very high minerality that is a is very, very, very beautiful for the, when we heat. Yeah. That's wonderful. Also, it's a limited addition. So is only nine hundred bottles. So whoever wants to whoever can guess it is the lucky ones. Okay. So my next question is I read something about, like, your experiment of using Emperor to Yeah. Age, to ferment and age, Adianneiko Deluri back in two thousand and seventeen. So could you tell us something about how the Emperor actually helps you or helps to age the alianco grape. Yeah. We start with the amphora in twenty seventeen, and the first being touched, and there's a clay Italian clay in Pruneta, near Firense Mid, and, is a, very beautiful, experiment for us because the, is a material a little bit porous, more porous, respect to the wood. Mhmm. And, the decocegenation is a little bit quickly normal, the normal bottle. And, do wine have, the the tittle have a more concentrated and, deminerality is a very, very, beautiful, as a more present. I I love the amphora, but I think in the in the in the next year, in the in the future, is important to study, an evolution in the bottle and, and the definification in the amphora because I, I, I've been made the definification and after aging in the amphora, eighteen months. The one eight months. Yeah. Eighteen months. Yeah. The aging and after aging one year in the bottle before to start to market. But today, we are in the market with a two thousand eighteen Vintaj. And I started in twenty seventeen, and, it is important for me to study the evolution. The the wine, in the vinification and after in the bottle. Yeah. Absolutely. So the vincification also in amphora. So how big is the container? Let's say, how big is amphora? Seven seven hectolite, is very is very small It's very smaller. Yes. And I produce only nine hundred bottle, nine hundred and the thirty three. Oh, wow. Exactly. Yeah. Yes. The bottle have a number. And, on the back label. Oh, on the back label. Yeah. I love that idea. Yeah. So, like, our audience, if you get a bottle, you also know which bottle it is, which number it is. That's wonderful. Yeah. I also love the mindset like you want to experiment something new and always bring new technology to your one making philosophy. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. The other day, I came came across your project on one funding that you would like to purchase amphora and barrels to develop this thousand Italian gun crew. That's really exciting news and I'm also sure like all our audience would be very excited to learn more about this project. So please share with us more details about this project. Oh, yes. Thank you. Thank you. And, I'm the first seller in Italy, decided to to to to to start with, this new project the one founding, is a same crown funding. And, for me, it's, dreams, to to have many, many friends in the world, and they help me in the new project and invest in my project and in my idea. And, I, I think this is the future because the, in the in, in this time when we have, we, we share, with the whole world, our experience, our life, our wine, our winery. And, I think is, is very beautiful, the possibility, the possibility to, sorry for me. It's difficult in English, but I think it's very beautiful to, divide my project with, my friend and with, fun of my wine. Mhmm. Yeah. Absolutely. So how more people join you together on this journey. Yeah. Mhmm. So, yeah, yeah, also TV here, let's say, is in the Italian one podcast are doing similar things. So we invite people to join the journey together because, I feel like if you can get, people from all the world to share the passion and understand what's your mission and to support on your journey. And it will make it more successful. Yeah. So good. Yes. Yes. Perfect. It's true. It's true. Thank you. Yeah. And, another question, because you are the first generation female One maker. So there must be many challenges along the way. To look back on your more than twenty years experience. What's the most difficult thing you encountered? And how did you overcome it? Yeah. Yes. It's a very beautiful question. Yes, because I start very young. Mhmm. And, I don't have a tradition in the unification because my mommy teaching mathematics and my father teaching in this life, and now he's in retirement, teaching, physics mechanic, and is another life, totally different. I returned to work with my grandfather, and I returned to work, in the vineyard. And, my grandfather had more experience in the vineyard. But, for the verification and the sale are, no. And, I study and after where I study, I I I start, I start the definition and I started to study my wines and the I start with a with a problem with a with a big problem because, I have only the tradition, but the other tradition, not my tradition. And, this is, for me, this is, important because, I have the family they helped me. But, they, they don't have idea. They're making a wine, and the, the, they don't study the wine. I study in the, and I I and I start very young When I start very young, I, I have more difficult, in the first time, in the first and second, in through in in in the five years. Mhmm. In the five, in the two thousand, two thousand and five, I have difficult because, is, but this is only the unification. You are, you have, at the end, you have a company. And the company is, is more more more work, not only Vigna, not only VINification, not only. And, in the first time, yes, I have problem. But after I I I know, okay, this is my life and, I love my life, and, I love my, my, my, my, my vines, and I love my town. And, for me, it's possible to work, for this. And, I'm working a lot in, in my life, in the twenty years, I start very young, and, I have a totally different, life, younger, the other, my friend. Yeah. Totally totally different because But, better today I'm very happy, this life and this, because, my my mommy met the they don't have a tradition in the vinification. And for me, this is positive because, I work, I work alone for this, and, when you don't have the the tradition. You work with open your mind and open your mind. And, but but today, I'm very, I'm very proud, and I'm very, I'm very, so distracted for my life for my wife, for my la for my, my seller for all my life. Okay. Mhmm. Yeah. Definitely. Yeah. I think less actually because you don't have, let's say the older generation give you all the instructions you actually can make up your mind and make all the mistakes and learn from it. So let's actually make you a great one maker from all these experimenting from a very young age. And it was a lot of responsibilities I can imagine because every year you got one chance to make it right. So there will be always a pressure. Like if the grips are are right, so you have to make the verification right and the aging right. So there's definitely a lot of responsibilities. And if you, yeah, after learning always along the journey, I think now you'll be much more experienced than a lot of one maker at your age. I love the the I love the I love the Nebula grapes and, I I love the elegance in the wine and I love the, and I love, the the the the grapes. The grapes is my my dreams, in the barolo barbaresco, Baltellina, the mini different expression. And, the white wine, I love is, the white grape. Sorry. Do I I love is the Sabignon and, in my dreams is an and the possibility to plant it in the, on the voltura, the, on the voltura, six, eighty eight, eight hundred meters, I go on the mountain where, the soil is only lava. My dream ceased planted, the sovignon. But, this is my, my, my dreams. I love the, I love the the the the system champagne was, and I love the champagne. I love the French wine. I love the Italian. Italian bubbles Trento doc. I love, and for me for my in my dreams, for me, is possible to work for all these, these vines for all these, these these graves. But, but, I don't have a time in the in the in the day. Yeah. And my, and, is my dreams, but, they're not as possible. Yeah. Yeah. I see you shared with us, like, y'all future possibilities, like the great priority you would like to try in the future. Yes. So, yeah, the last question is really, I'm really excited to ask you this question because also for me, because something regarding to pursue a career as a one maker. So I noticed like the women who are involved in one making, let's say, is a still minority here in Italy. So what advice would you like to give to girls who are willing to pursue a career in winemaking? Me is most important to to study. I in the, my, the, my career don't, don't leave the discrimination on the man and the woman. I, I don't leave this because, I, I don't have never a problem for this. But uh-uh, it's important to study. Because, today, in the in the wine world, in the food world, not all ways, the people studying for this work. But I think it's most important for the new generation to study because, only in this in this, in this mood is possible to, to have the high quality and the the and the have the high level in the in the in the in the in the win, in the win, in the win, in the and the, in the, in the, in the making, in the future. Only only the studying the and the the the only the study is, is there the way I think. Yeah. Absolutely. Nowadays is the power. For girls or boys to succeed in one making. Yeah. That's a great advice. Well, with that, let me hold that. Okay. I know it's very cheesy. The kids hate it when I do this, but listen, thank you so much. Oh my god. Shawwen and Elena Fucci, you are a star but so is Shawanne. My goodness. What a great interview. I knew this was the right thing to do. I want every single Italian wine ambassador to pick their favorite producer and and interview them personally. This fireside chat, I think, style. I I'm really, really beginning to love it mostly because I can just grab a wine and then just relax. I love that. And I just want to remind everyone we are back next week, but we're back at nine pm. That's this twenty second. Next Thursday, nine pm central European time because we'll have Jill Golden Smith. From Australia. So the time zone just to give her some, just a little bit of margin. She'll be on at nine pm with roco toscani from the Tosghani wine estates. So so please please stay tuned for next week. I hope you can join us. I see a lot of our ambassadors. Melissa, of course, Leica is our clubhouse stage manager. Paul, I know you're up to do an interview soon, Keiko, Carrie, pick your producer. Of course, the fermented boss. He's he I don't know if he's restarted. He does a room every Monday at, five or six pm. Chow Christina, if you want to interview a producer, to Shar Annie, our new Ambassador and Lan, I know you're going to be doing a interview soon and Cheeto. I see some others. I think Sue. Hello, Sue. So join us next time and next Italian wine podcast and Italian wine club Listen to the Italian wine podcast wherever you get your podcasts. We're on SoundCloud, Apple podcasts, Himalaya, them and more. Don't forget to subscribe and rate the show. If you enjoy listening, please consider donating through Italianline podcast dot com. Any amount helps cover equipment, production, and publication costs. Until next time.