Ep. 1821 Michele Bernetti  | Wine, Food & Travel With Marc Millon

The Italian wine podcast is the community driven platform for Italian winegeeks around the world. Support the show by donating at italian wine podcast dot com. Donate five or more Euros, and we'll send you a copy of our latest book, my Italian Great Geek journal. Absolutely free. To get your free copy of my Italian GreatGeek journal, click support us at italian wine podcast dot com, or wherever you get your pods. Welcome to wine food and travel. With me, Mark Billen, on Italian wine podcast. Listen in as we journey to some of Italy's most beautiful places in the company of those who know them best. The families who grow grapes and make fabulous wines. Through their stories, we'll learn not just about their wines, but also about their ways of life, the local and regional foods and specialties that pair naturally with their wines, and the most beautiful places to visit. We have a wonderful journey of discovery ahead of us. And I hope you will join me. Welcome to wine food and travel with me, Mark Minen, on Italian wine podcast. Today, it's my pleasure to travel to Le Marque, to the wine hills of the Castelli Dierze, and Monteconaro. To meet my guest today, Mikele Bernetti of the Omani Ronki winery in Ozzie Moscow. Not far from ancona. Good morning, Mikele. Thanks so much for being my guest. And how are you today? Good morning, Mark. I'm very well. It's a gorgeous day. I feel very, very good. Thank you. Oh, good. I'm I'm picturing that, beautiful sunshine in La Marque now. Now Mikele, Oman Yronche has recently been named the winery of the year two thousand twenty four. By the prestigious Gambaro Rosa. So I just wanted to pass on our congratulations, magnificent achievement and a recognition for your family's hard work and dedication. Yes. Thank you. It's, has been a big surprise for the first time that such an achievement arrive, in this region in market, and, will be really enthusiastic to open, you know, the series, and, it has been really, really nice. You know, great. A great achievement. Now, me canna, for our listeners who are located all around the world. I'd like you to describe where where you are to describe the Castelli Diaz in Monteconoro. Another two distinct wine zones in close proximity. But I just want to have a brief description to give our listeners, so they can picture in their minds this beautiful countryside of Lemodaca. It's one of my favorite regions. Yes. Of course, we live here. So I think it's easier to enjoy and to describe it in a very positive way, but I think is, first of all, is a fantastic place to live in because, still the lifestyle and, and the way that we, I think we approach in general. Life is, very positive and it's still very, in some ways authentic. So I think it's a very authentic Italian part of the peninsula. From a from a geographical point of view, It's, Mark is basically Hilly, with mountains, in the, with the upennines, you know, that are burdening the region on the west part. And then you have these hills going from the upper nine stores from west and, declining, towards the Adriatic sea on the east. And, only three percent of the territory is flat. So it's very, very healed. Basically, it is mountains on the western part, and mostly it's healed. They're very gentle hills, which in some ways is quite typical and, common in Central Italy. But, compared to first in Tuscany, where you have heel that are covered by bush, or by by small kind of forest or maybe not even cultivated. Here, everything is very, very much cultivated. So it's kind of, little garden or agricultural garden with a pattern of, different type of cultivations and, makes the the the territory very, very nice. The second point is the the small village that are spread, at top of almost every heavy major heels. This medieval, usually, they are kind of medieval castles around which the village has been grown, through the through the centuries. And this is also the reason why we call the Castelier in the case of Verdicca because really the area is characterized by this, small villages, very nice, very well preserved at top of the hill. Okay. That's a very, very good description. And I think, one of the points you mentioned, Mikele, is this patchwork of different cultivations. This isn't an area of monoculture of single, minded, only vines, but you do see lots of other cultivation, crops, grown. And it makes it a very beautiful and gentle landscape going down as these hills ripple down towards the Adriatic sea. With Montecon or sort of standing alone as this little mountain that rises direct clearly from the sea. Yeah. Exactly. It's, we call it bone ten in effect, but if you consider the altitude, which is around, six hundred meter, just below six hundred meters, it's kind of big hill. But because, exactly as you described, with the this big hill, coming straight, out of the water. Sometimes we describe as a as a whale navigating. If you if you see it from a distance, looks like a whale navigating in the adriatic, it really looks like a mountain, especially when you approach from the from the sea side. It's natural park, which is going to be soon at national natural park. Basically, the vineyards are cultivated the in the hills surrounding the park, the top of the the peak of the mountain, where is more bush, more wild. And, it's an area where really the proximity to the sea characterizes the video culture very, very much. Okay. That's another very good description. This little mini mountain rising sharply from the sea below Anncona. Nice. Now, I visited, a ronchi many, many years ago. My goodness, it's more than thirty years ago. It was in nineteen eighty nine or Nineteen ninety. I met your father, doctor Masimo Bernetti, when I was researching my book, The Wine Roads of Italy. Yeah. And I learned a lot from your dad. I learned a lot about how your family was instrumental in really raising the profile for the Verdicca de Castelli daisy. And in particular, the creation of select single vineyard wines. And I just want to, read a comment. Your father said to me, This is in my book, and it was published in nineteen ninety one. So we're going back thirty years ago because it was a new development, the crew wines. Your father said, the market was ready for this development. Fifteen years ago, it was impossible to see Verdicchio in anything but the amphora. If you would have suggested a crew Verdicchio or Orooso Conaro aged in Barrick, people here would have thought you were crazy. So that was That was, as I say, thirty years ago, and times have certainly changed since then. And in no small part due to the efforts of your family and of other families who have really been pioneers in putting these two areas, Castelli Diaz and and Conero on the wine map of Italy and indeed of the world. So can you tell us a little bit about your family story and the story of who who money Ronki? Yeah. Thank you. Yes. In fact, really, the, I think the second part of the eighties probably has been a a moment where there's been a strong evolution towards what has been we've been seeing in the previous years. But Moniroki start that, activity in a little village in Cooper Montana, which is a more historical village at the center of the Castelli as well. Yeah. So it's really where is one of the capital of, Verdicca delizio. What the company was started by Mr. Gino Omani Ronki, who was the founder, but, very, very few years after the foundation My grandfather from my mother's side joined the co joined the business because he was very passionate in agriculture. But as my father who just married my mother and Aliza, as my father, Massimo, to basically to to to join the company and learn something in that business. Maybe temporary was some but my father enjoyed the business so much that he decided to to stay. So I see at first was kind of temporary activity just to settle the business and, and then to let it go on his own. But enjoy the business and the activity and the wine, you know, the wine business. So much. He decided to stay. And, eventually, mister Omaydonki moved to Rome, at the beginning of the sixties. And, we became entirely proprietor of the onenery. My family became entire of the onenery and decided to maintain the original name, umami Roki. And we move the major seller in Osimo. That's where I'm talking from, which is, like you said before it's very neck, very close to Ancona, which is the capital of the market. And since then, oh, my rocket developed, we started with, very few bottles, especially mainly with the Verdicchio and the lit very, very little of Roso Connor nowadays. My rocket is is a company that, sells wine in, basically, the five continents in, sixty countries definitely has opened many, many roads with wines from, from market. Okay. And that's a very, very good overview. And I think it is interesting to consider the evolution of Verdicchio from those earliest days and then my conversations with your father thirty years ago. And it's so successful, I think, have the wines from from the Castelli DAs in particular bin that there's probably a generation of wine drinkers who've probably never even encountered verdicchio in the amphora bottle. Do do you think fondly back on those days on that bottle? And is there still a place for simple verdicchio, perhaps to enjoy by the seaside with a plate of spaghett decoy mortially in Porto Noble. I see that, you know, very well, the the the great food of the area. I think in general, I think one of the characters of Abbicchio is, to be very versatile. Of course, my opinion is the best, expression of this grape is when you age and, particularly in this territory you are able, you're capable to make wines, white wine to have an incredible Asian capability, which is, very surprising, sometimes too, and very unexpected to people that don't know this variety very well. But when, it's young, I think especially with younger version without push it too much on a concentration of richness. The one maintain retained some beautiful salinity mineral, security that is, makes the one very, very enjoyable when it's, when it's younger. Of course, it's not a very dramatic grape. I think the best part The best way to operate is on the on the palate, on the flavor of the wine, or it's a capacity to refresh on the palate, and to be very palatable white wine. Me Kelly, I think you've hit the nail on the head. Vedicchio is such a versatile wine, and it's able to be produced in so many different styles and indeed quality levels from the simpler wines to enjoy perhaps by the beach with wonderful seafood in summer to the richer fuller, more structured crew wines that are, more serious and important. Indeed, Umanyaronke has been instrumental in in pioneering this concept of crew wines. And your wines have long been popular on export markets in particular. I know here in the UK, for example, that Casalticera is one of the most popular of your wines here amongst lovers of Verdicchio. So I wonder if you could perhaps tell us a little bit about this wine, Casa de Sierra from, Yeah. Because, actually, the one is merely sourced in the center of the contravenience. A la county is, is one of the custody as a municipalities, village, a wetness place, and that's where we have one of the original, vineyards since nineteen eighty three, around forty years ago, forty vintages ago, my father decided to start the production of a selection of Vierdiki. So rather than insist in producing more commercial style, sold enough, but I decided to make selection from one of the best vineyard in, in our property at the time. And, to bottle the wine in a burgundy bottle, let's consider a kind of classic bottle rather than for a bottle that was the one that has been used for so many years by by us, by all the producers of the area. This proved to be very successful. The the people started to operate, especially in market, there were in markets that were more sensitive to quality, adventurous in trying something different. I I remember the UK for instance was one of the first market where Kazadi Sarah was introduced since the beginning. It was it has been a great success and it still is because it still is one of the ones that we sell with most success, and they really reflect the offer of our our wire reseller. Okay. So that was a a real groundbreaking wine. As you say, a move away from this popular and fun bottle, the amphra. Do you still bottle in amphra at all? Basically, not. We have, Allie customers in Japan that they still want, but basically, we have, completely abandoned the the Okay. Italian wine podcast. If you think you love wine as much as we do, then give us a like, and a follow. Anywhere you get your pods. Now, one other one I'd like to learn about, I I I don't know this wine, but I know it was mentioned in a special citation in the gambler Oroso award is your historical two thousand eighteen. Yes. Yes. This is that's a very new product. It's a new project, in general that is, we've been working many years in, releasing a wine, a verdicchio, classical, quite a few years. After past the vintage. And, we found the right conditions in two thousand eighteen. So we decided to keep separate and to separate, special parts, special portion of, vacuum, and the old vines vineyard in Montecarotto. The mast was fermented in a stainless steel tanks, then we aged quite a few months in concrete, and then we rack again in in a special smaller stainless steel tanks. And we released a few months ago, the two thousand eighteen vintage. All the after put in this wine is in the elegance rather than strand. We have a motto at the one that says, grand divini, manongrocevini. Okay. Beatters related in Greek wines, but not big wines. This is really I think an expression of this philosophy. One that really hits on, the arrogance the finesse of of the grape, and I think it's really a great expression of this, this planet. That's really interesting. And the lengthy aging in stainless steel, not in wood. Yeah. No wood is just concrete. It's still a still tanks. It's a long time on, on the yeast. I'll find, find lilies. We try not to go through my elastic fermentation, so to keep the freshness, even the haggler, and, actually, very, very nice, very nice one. What does concrete bring to a line like this? Well, concrete is, interesting because I think it makes the wine. The wine definitely breathes slightly more than still, still, they tend to bring a kind of more active character, and the concrete tend to open up the wine, a little bit more. And I think with a very thickened particular that is not very dramatic grape. It's not like a, you know, I think it's very beneficial because it tend to open the nose a little bit more. And to add, slightly more complexity into the wine. Okay. Thank you. Now, I know you make a full range of of other Vadiki, but I'd like to turn to a much smaller zone. Tell us, a little bit about your Roso Conaro and perhaps your crew San Lorenzo. Yes. The Roso Conaro is, says one of the oldest appalachian from market was established in, nineteen sixty seven. And we've been since the beginning, one of the most important producers. We have, also quite an important estate. In terms of number of videos, we cover around sixty to around sixty five, seventy hectares. In the area, which is an area which total counts about three hundred and fifty thousand and seventy hectares in total. So we've been believing in this, varieto very much. I considered the car a kind of a little crew within the Montepulciano growing area because Montepulciano is definitely a big growing area. It starts down in the south in Pulia. Of course, the the the the major center and the earth. Is in a brusso for Monte Puciano, the brusso. But the northern place where you grow Monte Puciano normally is corner is the northern latitude. And this can be combined with the proximity of the sea. Makes the wines obtained in this area very different. Very nice, very elegant. The temperatures doesn't exceed too much in the summer. Maybe we don't have big utterance between day and night, technical discussions, but, this helps to make a very steady growing and, makes the one maybe less powerful than in a group so they want to put channel grown here, but very elegant, very fine. And this is kind of a character that we try to reflect translate in our wines, and Salorenzo definitely is one of these wines was created for the first winter in nineteen eighty two. Almost the same time then when we release Casa de Sarah. And, it's a wine which sees an aging in, part in large cask and part in, smaller barrels that can be used for the top wines for a few years. So kind of used French of balance. And normally it's the release within a couple of years from the harvest. Okay. That's a very good explanation of also Colorado as you say, the northernmost expression of multiple channel. Now we've been talking about the versatility verdicchio, and also in wines, we have both great white, as well as great red wines. But Lemorte is also a place that's very versatile food wise because we have gastronomy that comes from this wonderful wealth of seafood and shellfish from the Adriatic, but also moving into the hills and into the mountains. There's a completely different cuisine. Can you perhaps tell us a little bit about the cuisine of La Marque or viewer area? And how your wines pair well with some of the Pianti tipichi that our listeners could sample when they visit. Okay. Yes. With, Uprasia, I think Mark is, is really definitely two faces in in full, which is the the part by the sea where we have some of the most important fishing ports in Italy, some that are in the north are very, very important for the fishing fleet. And the Azriatic is, is, despite the fact of being, a kind of a shallow, water, relatively shallow water. But because of this, makes very tasty flavor for fish. And there's always been a long tradition in making these recipes that are never too have either quite delicate with the with the large use of vegetables, in the recipes, along with the fish because of the traditionally the the the ants and fishermen as well. People that were cultivating some piece of land, and they were going efficient. So it's kind of a mixing, of matching the two the two products. I can name some something you mentioned before is the spaghetti or pasta, but normally spaghetti with mostly with martial is the is the dialect. It's the local name for muscles that they grow here. They grow wild in the cliffs around the Montecoder. And they're because of this reason, they're very, very tasty because they grow in open sea. So that will taste this marine taste. It's very strong. Other, other preparation, which is the potato, which is the fish soup. It's kind of a light much lighter biomass. As plain, of course, is the fried, of the small size fishes, delicious, and fantastic to be enjoyable in particular. More inland, you have a lot of use of pasta and made, homemade pasta. So fresh pasta. They are very, very typical and not normally prepare with meat sauce, which is a game quite typical in the in the inland territory. So you've got a range of foods that pair perfectly with Verdeque, and then moving inland to some of the meat dishes, perhaps, you know, in porchetta. Yeah. Yes. Cruise kicked in cooked in Portachio. And, of course, on Vincis Graci. The wonderful lasagna type pasta. It's one of the great cuisines of Italy, I think. I really enjoy my visits to le marche. And of course, these wines such as rosso conaro pairs, so perfectly with the foods from the inland. I hope our listeners will travel to Le Marque because as you said at the beginning, it's still relatively undiscovered compared to some of the other areas of Italy and one of the great attractions of many reasons to come. Is this wonderful food paired with the local wines. Thank you. Yes. It is. It is definitely. Let me tell you. Let's turn to wine hospitality at Moni Rongi there. A number of ways for our listeners to discover your wines. Can you tell us about wine hospitality? Yes. We have, this is a relatively new project that we started two years ago, managing directly one of our property, which is in hotel in, in encore in the center in the pension part of a car, just in front of the Yanssen port. And then we opened a a one bar, which is of course characterized by a lot of all the money wrong key assortment, but also some other wines from, some of our friends around the Italy around the world. Which is called why not. But also from there, we organized the visit to the one area. And, even if you don't sleep in the place, the visit are very much possible here. They're very well organized. We have, tours itinerary is the vertical area, and itinerary is, in the corner area. So in both areas, we organize the verdicchio safari, which is conducted with an old Land Rover, Land Rover, going around the vineyards and tasting the wines through the itinerary. So we have we built a very, very interesting, platform to visit and to make the, visit of the one territories for accessible and, enjoyable. Okay. Well, that sounds very good. I know they're our our listeners enjoy visiting places that they hear about here, and I hope some will find their way to you. It's interesting how wine hospitality has evolved since I last visited you as well. It's an important part of, the experience. It's an important way that we listeners and our listeners can really gain a more full and deeper understanding of an area. Mikelly, thank you so much for being my guest today. It's been great to catch up with the story of your family and, the Omone Ronky winery. Congratulations again for the fabulous Gamborough Roso award. And please send my best wishes to your father. Yes. Yes. Thank you. You will remember your business. Thank you. And I hope you have a great day. Thanks again for being my guest. Thank you, man. Thank you. I hope to see you soon. Bye bye. We hope you enjoy today's episode of wine, food, and travel with me, Mark Millen, on Italian wine podcast. Please remember to like, share, and subscribe right here or wherever you get your pods. Likewise, you can visit us at Italianwine podcast dot com. Until next time.