Salu2food(Home) Wine Regions Old World Italy
CENTRAL WEST ITALY
Central Italy - West
This area of Italy is totally dominated by the red Sangiovese wines fromthe hills and tiny valleys of central Tuscany between Florence and the Umbria-Latiumborder. There are few other wines of any repute produced in the region andlittle to connect them.
TUSCANY (TOSCANA)
PROUD POSSESSOR OF THREE OF ITALY'S six DOCGs, Tuscany is also a centerof experimental wine making. The powerful red Vino Nobile di Montepulcianowas the very first of Italy's DOCGs and was followed by another Sangioveseclone, Brunello di Montalcino. More recently Chianti was made DOCG, withCarmignano tipped for future classification. These are the most famous namesin Tuscany but although many of the region's finest wines bear them, notall do and the quality of the wines granted DOCG status can be very variable-notablyChianti. This fact was recognized by the Tuscan producers themselves, whoactively sought the ideal solution of a DOCG for the best of Chianti. Twobasic approaches towards achieving this aim were to either apply DOCG tothe Chianti Classico area, where most of the finest wines have traditionallybeen made, and leave the rest as DOC Chianti, is recognizing that some exceptionalestates exist outside this central zone, grant DOCG status to the best 10per cent of the production, regardless of origin. Unfortunately those responsiblefor drawing up the new regulations applied DOCG status to the whole areaand to all Chianti wines. It is still theoretically possible for Chiantisto be refused DOCG, and a few awful wines are, but the selection by tastingis a public sham.. Any system that does not recognize that the majorityof Chianti is mediocre is doomed.
The largest number of exceptional Tuscan wines are the "new'' barriqueaged ones. Their origins stretch back to 1948, when a vineyard for the nowfamous Sassicaia wine first planted by Incisa della Rochetta with Cabernetsauvignon vines reputedly from Chateau Lafite-Rothschild. This became sosuccessful that a new red wine called Tignanello was introduced by Antinoniin the wake of the 1971 vintage. This wine was a compromise between Tuscanyand Bordeaux, with Sangiovese used as the base and 20 per cent of Cabernetsauvignon blended in. Until Tignanello appeared. nobody truly appreciatedthe harmony that could be achieved between these two grapes: it is akinto the natural balance of Cabernet and Merlot, only the Cabernet adds weightto the Sangiovese, and provides balance through satisfying flavor Tignanellosparked off the current new-wave of Tuscan wines.
UMBRIA
Orvieto is Umbria's best-known and best-forgotten wine. Next to Frascatiand Soave, it is the most used and abused name in the Italian restaurantsof the world. While there are a few exciting Orvietos, such as Bigi's VignetoTorricella, they are in a lamentably small minority One of Umbria's fewdeservedly famous names is Lungarotti's "Rubesco" Torgiano, whosereputation led to the establishment of the Torgiano DOC. Lungarotti is alsothe clear leader when it comes to producing Umbria's excellent new-wavewines. These utilize numerous grape varieties, both native and French, andare thus produced in numerous styles, but they are nearly always aged innew-oak barriques
LATIUM (LAZIO)
One of the country's largest regions, Latium appropriately boasts one ofits largest selling wines, Frascati the Latin Liebfraumilch. Unfortunatelyfor a region that can boast one of the classic wines of antiquity; Falernum,it has few quality wines. However, Latium's only two fine wines BoncompagniLudovisi's ''Fiorano" and Cantina Colacicchi's "Torre Ercolana", both innovative Cabernet - Merlot blends, are very good indeed.