Ep. 1041 Map 30 Central Italy | Jumbo Shrimp Maps

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In this episode, we'll be looking at the Central Italy map. For most people, the word Italy conjures up visions of the most famous parts of Central Italy. The cities of Rome and Florence, the tower of Pisa, the Roman gray green hills of Tuscany and Umbria lined with rows of tall, skinny Italian Cyprus. And cafe tables covered with carafes of local wine. So let's explore. Emilia Romagna starts south of the Po river plains of Amelia, where in Limrusco grapes, from ancient vines, possibly descended from wild species, are used to make fizzy to fully sparkling wine. Dry to sweet, pale yellow to darkest purple, while one American company's marketing of high volume, low quality wine, once ruined the reputation, smaller producers today are bringing back the beauty and elegance of La Marisco. These are wines considered by many to be the perfect partner for a platter full of Italian salami. Moving south into the quickly rising foothills of the Appanine range. San Juvezze begins our story of Central Italy. The main red grape and usually well made from the Romagna EOC, it is the most planted grape in Italy and makes the wine that most people associate with Italy. Kianti. Tuscany shares the Appanines with Emilio Dermania to the north and east, where some of its peaks top three thousand meters, and running along the Mediterranean coast to the west, most of Italy is hilly to mountainous with a warm Mediterranean climate. Mild winters, hot, dry summers, with long, sunny days, and just enough rain in the winter and spring. The larger Kianti region that we know today between Florence and Siena started much smaller in the hills around the villages of Rada and Gioli and Garebe. The league of Kianti had already been established in the fourteenth century, mostly as a protective measure for those small towns. And by the fifteenth century, its wines were getting fame in the rural courts of Europe. To establish and protect the wine's reputation and brand, The Duke of Tuscany demarcated the four best wine areas of Tuscany, Kianti first among them. For the first time in history, a wine was defined by place and name, and the winery is there and agreed not to adulterate or dilute their product. To maintain high quality and the prices they commanded. Wine and Vine Research, are the Baron Ricasoli in the eighteen hundreds, led to the first Kianti recipe in eighteen seventy two. Seventy percent Sanjuveza, twenty percent Camayolo, and ten percent white Malizia. This blend has barely changed since, but at least he's been modernized. And so he used his Kianti name for wines from the region made mostly from San Giovanni, but there's Kianti and then there's Kianti. County region is a large area in the center of Tuscany, with seven recognized sub zones, including Rufina, in the north, and Coli Sinesse, for example, in the south, around the town of Sienna. These sub zones highlight the areas around towns known for good quality. They're all part of the Kianti docG. It requires seventy percent sangiovese and allows a blend of traditional approved grapes that make up the recipe, although white grapes are no longer required. The Canticlasco region is the original area, smaller than the larger Kianti, higher in altitude, and now a completely separate docG with stricter rules. Eighty percent San Giovanni, longer aging of at least twelve months, And since two thousand six, no white grapes allowed in the blend, as they surprisingly still are in county DOCG, although that is much less common today. And as we look at the Kennedy Classico pyramid on our map, you see above Kennedy Classico is Reserve. Which requires twenty four months of aging, including three months in the bottle. So a wine maker would wanna use ripe fruit that can withstand the aging process. The Grand Reserve level requires thirty month of aging, also here once in the bottle. But it must be a state grown fruit by the winery, which helps keep production low, and it must be at least ninety percent San Giovanni. The alcohol minimums for aquarium reserva are at thirteen percent versus twelve point five reservea and twelve for Canty classical. Grenz lazione was a new category approved in two thousand fourteen starting with the two thousand ten vintage as a way of elevating the potential for Canty classical. It remains to be seen like the long term reaction and embrace of this new wine, it will be by the consuming public. One thing to note about DOCG rules for Kianti and the Canty classicos, the aging requirements do not specify Oak. So inexpensive wines are not going to see the same quality barrel treatment as more serious and costly wines. South of Kianti are Montal Chino and multiple Chano, a hill and valley area lower in altitude than Kianti, with a warmer climate. But cooling maritime breezes are funneled in from the western coast, and the result is two DOCs that produce intense full bodied wines from San Diego. Bernelo was first identified as a special clone that are now over a hundred recognized of San Diego. And it was bottled separately in the eight eighteen hundreds. One of the first DOCGs recognized in nineteen eighty, and it is required to be one hundred percent this Pronello grape. It must be aged five years with two of those years being in oak barrels. The reserve age is even longer. Many people consider Bernillo to be the Apex expression of San Giovanni. Although, honestly, most of it is expensive and destined for Escport markets. Italian wine podcast, part of the momo jumbo shrimp family. The wines are certainly not homogenous. Vineyards surround the hill topped with a medieval town in Montalcino, some rising to six hundred meters above sea level. The soils are quite varied as well, depending on which side of the hill and how far from it. Of course, winemaker decisions on type and size of oak and identification techniques are the final piece of the puzzle, but the government is vigilant in enforcing the laws of production and maintaining the purity and reputation of one of Italy's most recognized wines. Just east is the venerated Vino Nob de Monteciano, a more ancient wine town, famous for its wines for centuries that is now maybe overshadowed by some of the newer Tuscon bottlings. With sandy soils and warm Mediterranean breezes. Vito Nobule is not always the blockbuster like Bernelo. In this case, it's a blend like Chianti, with seventy percent minimum of the local San Diegoese clone called Pragnolo gentile. But longer aging requirements of two years with at least one of those in wood barrels. This creates a bigger, richer style, but that is still retaining more of the elegance of Sanjay. For both of these DOCGs, They can be classified by their wine down to rosso di Montecino or rosso de multiple chao, respectively. These are for wines from younger vines or in poor vintages, and some of these from conchase producers can be great values. Visty classification is not possible in many Tus and DOCGs, like Canticlassico. For wines that could be considered even bigger, we go to the Western Tuscany coast, around the town of Bulgaria and the area of Marima. A relatively new wine region, as Italy goes, modern soil analyses of the gravels and clays and the sunnier and warmer region than Kianti made French grapes the choice in this area. Many of these already existed as experimental plots in much of Tuscany for well over one hundred years. But these wines didn't have a DOC or DOCG. So these prestigious blends, winning international acclaim and awards, were labeled as Tusin table wines, but called Supertuscins, even after creation of the IGT category in nineteen ninety two. Many of them still stay true to their original character. This went a long way towards reclaiming reputation for Italian wine excellence in the world at a time when quality was not very high or possibly just hit or miss. Now, these docs from Boguely and Marima allow wine from these non Italian grapes. In fact, the Boguely rosso doc even limits the use of San Juese to fifty percent of the blend. If we are talking about big wines, Let's go to Umbria for the most tannic red grape there is, Sagarantino, the doc credited in nineteen seventy seven, was for a sweet Vasita wine, which at the time was the only way known to tame its tannins, modern winemaking, and video management, and more recently made dry wines drinkable. And now, Sacramento Dimonte Falco is becoming quite famous as an expression of wild mountain zumbria, dark berries, tar, tobacco, dried cocoa, balsamic notes, and those tannins that grip your tongue and teeth. A perfect wine for the Ombidium session with all things pork. These hills and forests of Ombria earn a more continental climate. It's landlocked and only the edges receive coastal winds. The western cliff top town of Orvieto has long been famous for white wines made from local Guraqueto and Treviano grapes. The Treviano adds the acidity, through Aketo brings the floral apple and pear flavors, while blends that include more Gurecqueto are usually better The DOC allows either as a main grape and for other local white varietals in the blend. So you can find a wide range of quality and flavor. Buy our beware with Avieto. East over the mountains in Marque, We start to feel again the coastal influence of the Adriatic sea. The white grape Verdicchio is what has become to define the best of Marque, and is now being recognized as one of Italy's best white grapes. Although it's not originally from Marque, recent that DNA analysis have shown that Vardicchio is actually the same grape as Treviano Diswabe in Benito, and was probably brought there from the fourteenth of fifteenth century. So it has been established for a while. It is an adaptable grape to many soils and climates. But in the sweet hills, the Dolcea Colini, if you will, it ripens slowly and evenly, always retaining its naturally high acidity, flavors and aromas of apple, citrus, even notes of almond and fennel are typical. Especially that green note, whether it be from fruit or herb, it's very common. Even the grape name itself comes from Verde, Italian, for green. The doc and docG of Castela DSE, along the coast, is the Verdicchio experience most people have. Starting with young, fresh, racy wines, perfect for the local seafood. But Virdicchio could easily age and develop additional notes of honey and almond, Marzipam. A seven to ten year old reserva, which is the docG, can have the complexity of any great red. Sangiovese still thrives in this warm Mediterranean climate with rolling the steep foothills that come right down to the coast, but another red grape becomes a star, Monte Pocciano. Remember, this has no relation to the town in Monte Pocciano in Tuscano. The grape has more color and more tannins than Sanjay, but with less natural acidity, and the two wines are often blended to get the best of both. The fruit flavors are most often of red and black plums and particularly dark cherries, but the style of the wine depends on the wine making. No oak aging and fresh vintages make wines that are simple and fruity, clump and dinner's in the glass, which is why Monteppucciano is the fifth most planted in Italy, but maturing in oak and reducing yields can give wines of deeper flavor firmer structure, not often complex, but always a wine that seems to define the taste of ripe red cherries in the glass. The better wines can be found in blends like Conoro DOCG, which is a reserva of two years, with eighty five percent multiple Chiano and fifteen percent Sanjuvez. Moving south into a brusso, however, is getting to the home of multiple Chiano. Every Rosa DOC has multiple Chano as the main grape. The hills and mountains of a brusso get a little more rugged and remote. Only one percent of the whole region is considered flat terrain. Multiple channel needs these hilly sites to thrive. It ripens slowly and late, and needs plenty of water to fully mature. The d o c four, Davruzzo, covers most of the region, and and two new DOCGs seek to highlight the best microclimates for the grape. Monthly piano even makes great Rosado wines. The cerro swallow the russo is famous as a full bodied fruity and often tannic dry rosé. You will end our tour of Central Italy where all roads lead, Rome. The surrounding region of lazio has long supplied the eternal city with vast amounts of easy drinking whites and soft reds, but there are important wines to know. The region has warm, usually sunny, with rolling hills between the sea and the interior mountains, and multiple lakes and rivers that create ideal growing conditions, especially for white grapes. The most common wine defined in Roman cafes and wine bars is Fraschati. A white wine d o c, with a d o c g for superior level, superior level, made mainly from the Malvisia de candia and or Malvisia de lazio grapes. Actually, not related, but both giving orange blossom floral notes and citrus flavors. The wines blended with Trebiano and some other local grapes. The wines are usually unoaked, medium of body and acidity, and lovely to sip in a piazza with simply Italian cuisine. The wines are usually unoaked, medium of body, and acidity, and lovely to sip on when in a piazza with simple Italian cuisine. Thus, we end our circle of Central Italy, Adibodechi, Thanks for listening to this episode of Italian wine podcast brought to you by Italian wine Academy, offering WSET levels one, two, and three in English. Visit our website at italian wine academy dot org for more information and sign up today to start your personal adventure in global wine education right here in the heart of verona. Remember to subscribe and like Italian wine podcast and catch us on SoundCloud spotify and wherever you get your pods. You can also find our entire back catalog of episodes at Italian wine podcast dot com. Changing. Hi, guys. I'm Joy Livingston, and I am the producer of the Italian wine podcast. Thank you for listening. We are the only wine podcast that has been doing a daily show since the pandemic began. This is a labor of love and we are committed to bringing you free content every day. Of course, this takes time and effort not to mention the cost of equipment, production, and editing. 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