Ep. 417 Sangiovese Lambrusco... | Venice and Ribolla Gialla

Welcome to the Italian wine podcast. My name is Joy Living in. And for the next several weeks, I will be bringing you some choice narrated content from the book San Jose, Lambrusco, and other vine stories written by mister Science himself, Professor Atigio Shenza, and Serena Eimaccio. Published by positive press dot net. To get a copy of the book, the Kindle version is available on Amazon and hardcover copies are available from positive press. If you like the content we share each week, consider donating to our show. Find details at italian wine podcast dot com or on our social media channels. Sit back and get your geek on as we jump into the details stories and science of Italian wines and vines. Venice Riva de Laribola, in the year of our lord thirteen o five. From a ship anchored in the port numerous wooden barrels are rolled onto land with care suggesting the preciousness of their contents. The scene repeats itself at the warehouse of Marvasia. More than a hundred years have passed since the fourth crusade, the one that saw the end of the Byzantine Empire and the Constantinople's stripping of its artistic and architectural wonders, many of which found a new home in Venice. Yet it was not only the Byzantine treasures that enrich the coffers of the lagoon city. Compensation for having provided a fleet to the crusaders. The crusades were in fact an opportune passageway to the east, A source of spices, silks, and wines. Extra ordinarily precious goods that Venice would sell to the aristocratic representatives of the clergy and the commercial bourgeoisie of Europe for centuries. These products in the wise hands of the Venetians, among the greatest experts in marketing of all time, would become real status symbols, coveted items to be obtained at any price. Where it all began, the fourteenth century crisis. We are at a particular point in time within the very long European middle ages period. Some cities, especially in the northern part of the continent, are experiencing strong demographic and economic growth. And the demand for wine is very high. The cooling climate which already begins to be felt in the fourteenth century and will last until the eighteenth century does not allow for the sufficient production of cereals nor the level of ripening required of grapes to ensure a minimum shelf life in wine. The richest northern European nations are really feeling the pinch as their demand for wines, especially the very alcoholic ones is not satisfied. There is no sale without a product. The Venetians know this well and for this reason they begin looking for suppliers in lands that enjoy a more favorable climate. During that period, Venice controlled almost the entire quality wine market from the Eastern Mediterranean to the North Atlantic regions. The opportunities did not escape them and they were able to acquire what they sought leading Italy into a new VITicultural style. One defined by imitation with regards to Vincent and Marvasia. This new Viticulture integrated the Mediterranean wine production, which had been their monopoly for the most part and was intended for Northern Europe. In addition to the characteristics of the production area, the technological aspects became fundamental. Inological techniques and the choice of vineyard are integral and rewarding. Where necessary for the limited suitability of a territory, which was beginning to be perceived as important? The periods of the harvest are differentiated according to the environment of origin. And harvest notices are issued that not only consider the different characteristics of soil and climate, but in some cases, they also mention the vines. Presses of different types are tried out And there is an improvement in the VINification and transport techniques to guarantee greater stability of the product, moreover for sweet wines, the late harvest, the withering of the grapes, and the working of the cellar Make it possible to overcome the imperfect characteristics of the terroir. Even in books that deal with nutrition and medicines, the wines mentioned are linked to the areas of production. The new focus and the duty rates from this point on will start to distinguish common wines from those that boast an origin. While sweet wines, which are produced close to the areas of commerce, represent a fashion and luxury reserve for the few. Dry wines are more tied to the territory as they are usually produced close to the areas of consumption and remain products integral for combination with food. The role of the northernmost regions of the Adriatic is made even more important by the capitulation of crete which became Turkish territory in the mid seventeenth century. Again, the shift in the enological production represents an innovation associated with the emulation of Greek production. The territories begin to produce sweet and fortified wines. First Tunisia, and Israel with their islands, followed by numerous areas of central and Northern Italy, soave, Coli Eogane, Trevigiano, and veronese. At this stage, despite the fact that there is a growing awareness of the wine and the varieties used to produce it, the wines are not perceived as an important element. The most disparate are used united by having resistant skins and arrakis that won't disintegrate with the appassimiento process. A sense of serenity for marketing. The Seda Nissima Republic of Venice coinciding with the small glaciation reaches its peak of territorial and commercial expansion, which includes the peloponnese, Crit, Cyprus, and most of the Greek islands, as well as several ports and cities in the Mediterranean and the Eastern coast of the Adriatic. This is still a period of Cortivare Elazar Laterra, the motto with which the Venetians declared their disinterest in a policy of expansion towards the Venetian hinterlands and turned their attention to the conquest of overseas territories and supremacy in the Eastern Mediterranean. Venice like the Greek merchants who had sailed the Mediterranean two thousand years before realized that it was necessary to transform wine into an iconic secular object. It now begins to lose its mystical and symbolic charge of death and resurrection or a symbol of blood within some cryptic rite. And acquires more earthly values becoming a remedy for the body and spirit in a return to models more similar to those of Imperial Rome. Behind all this, is what we would now call an accurate marketing strategy that is the choice of certain wines and only those to be given to the elite brought as a gift for the rulers of the time offered at official banquets and on all occasions when they would be tasted and talked about by the continental diplomats. Choices were precise focusing on specific products, They were given a name and made to grow in the cultural imagination of a society in search of myths. For this picture to be complete, the products needed to be perceived as rare and valuable. The duties applied to wine imported from crete Cyprus in Greece were useful. Their consumption was intended and reserved for the social classes that it could afford the cost. Much of the charm lay in the origin story and history. There was a growing awareness in this period that the territory and the history of the wine being enjoyed had value and could be monetized. Geographical origins, especially if they were exotic and distant are emphasized by associating the name of the wine with the toponym, which is extremely innovative in a period when names were often confused and very general. The type of wine offered is new for European palates. Sweet, and aromatic. Thank you for listening to this week's and dollment of San Jose Lambrusco and other vine stories. We hope you expanded your horizons and gave your brain cells an Italian wine workout. We'll see you again next Thursday and remember. The kindle version of the book is available on Amazon and hardcover copies are available from Positivepress dot net. If you feel inspired to make a donation to our show, please visit us at the Italian wine podcast dot com. Find Italian wine podcast on Facebook and Instagram. Our Twitter handle is at Ita Wine Podcast.