Four Wines from Central Italy These wines are all from the heart of mainland Italy, roughly halfway between the northern alpine mountains and the southern tip reaching towards Africa. They have been selected to try to show something of the range and diversity of Italian wines and to reflect particular indigenous qualities and traditions. The huge variety of Italian wine is a consequence of over 350 grapes officially granted ‘authorised’ status and a long shoreline and extensive mountains and foothills which provide different altitudes, climates and soil conditions. This selection shows the differences that can be found within a fairly narrow latitudinal range and from a limited number of grape varieties. These differences can be quite pronounced, even from wines made from the same grape. Each wine has been designated either DOC (Denominazione di Origine Controllata – Controlled Designation of Origin) or DOCG (Denominazione di Origine e Garantita – Controlled and Guaranteed Designation of Origin). The DOG designation system was launched in 1963. Later, the DOCG classification was introduced to provide a top tier of Italian wines. In 2014 there were 332 DOCs and 73 DOCGs. The top level was special because government officials would actually taste the final wines. If they passed the taste test, a band would be affixed around the bottle’s neck to signify approval and prevent anyone tampering with the wine once it had achieved its designation. Within both categories the term ‘Classico’ is used to identify wines produced in the historically oldest part of the designated region according to strict traditional winemaking methods. ‘Classico’ is an indicator of the quality of a wine and suggests that the wine is better than one that does not include this term on its label. Wine Classification Supplier Price Grapes Alcohol Supplier’s Notes Orvieto 2014 DOC Classico Sainsbury £5.00 50% Trebbiano 12% Medium dry (4)soft and fruity – ripe pear, vanilla and honey (Winemaker’s Toscana notes – serve with spicy salami or pasta Selection) 30% Verdello 20% Grechetto Verdicchio DOC Classico Sainsbury £8.00 85% Verdiccio 12% Dry (2) - complex and elegant – a refreshing white with dei Castelli di (Taste the (£6 on Blanco citrus notes and a mineral finish – perfect with seafood and Jesi 2014 Difference) 5/2/16) 15% Trebbiano shellfish pasta dishes Italia Chianti DOCG Lidl £4.49 Sangiovese blend 12.5% Very good (85) - medium bodied (c) – ruby red colour, dry 2014 (£3.99, (min. 75%) flavour, harmonic and spicy bouquet 5/2/16) Brunello di DOCG Lidl £14.99 100% Sangiovese 15% Very good (86) - medium to full bodied (e) - bouquet of Montalcino tobacco and notes of vanilla – complex aromas of fruitcake, 2009 sweet spices and cedar, now fully mature and intensely flavoured – dry on the finish and best drunk with food Sainsbury’s Winemaker’s Selection Orvieto Classico 2014 DOC This wine is made in Umbria in the commune of Orvieto. In the Decanter World Wine Awards, 2015, it was awarded a bronze medal. Judges noted “medium sweetness and rich in style on the palate, with some tropical fruit aromas and flavours, and an entering touch of tea leaf aroma”. In customer reviews, 83% (5 out of 6) said they would recommend this wine and overall, gave it a 4-star (out of 5) rating. There was one negative comment about corked bottles. All the others were positive. Their comments included the following remarks: Too quaffable! Enough said. Far too quaffable, will def buy more (5*) Enjoyable, underrated wine. A very nice tasting and pleasant wine (4*) Great Italian wine. This Orvieto is the best by far. It is what I would call a full bodied medium sweet wine. I first discovered this wine in an Italian restaurant. It needs to be served cold. There are other versions of Orvieto available but not to this standard. Other versions I find too dry. This wine can be enjoyed on its own. Probably the best white wine in Sainsbury’s. (5*) Lovely refreshing wine. Great easy drinking refreshing wine. Good for the summer. (4*) Italian restaurant’s best kept secret. This has to be one of the most underrated Italian whites in the UK. Orvieto is one of the lighter summer wines that blends with any fish or pasta dish or summer dessert. I’ve often been served this wine in Italy with squid or other sea food dishes – love it. (5*) Sainsbury’s Taste the Difference Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi Classico 2014 DOC This wine is produced in the in the hilly territory around the town of Jesi in the province of Ancona within the region of Marche. The area features fortified villages (castelli) built in medieval times which are referred to in the wine’s full DOC title. It was awarded “Commended” status in the 2015 Decanter World Wine Awards. The judges noted that they found it to be “full and fresh with apricot, citrus and lemon with a touch of honey and almond”. This wine was recommended twice in 2015 by Victoria Moore, writing in The Telegraph. In August she described it as an herbaceous, un-oaked white with a bit of lemon, thyme and basil and a clipped, staccato style which would go well with mozarella, basil and tomato salad. In October she wrote “Verdicchio is well on its way to become a new household staple. The white grape, mainly grown in the Marche area of Italy makes refreshing white wines with a tinge of herbal astringency and bright lemon charm that makes them delicious with pasta in a white sauce (that’s non-tomato, rather than béchamel). In 7 customer reviews it received a rating of 4.1 (out of 5) stars with 83%, saying that they would recommend it. Here is a representative selection of their comments. Average ... It’s packed with tannins. Some say crisp. I say tart. Really tart. Average white wine with no developing taste (2*) Gorgeous ... crisp, refreshing, perfect with/without food – good value for money – the taste is worth it. Another Taste the Difference winner (5*) Fabulous ...crisp, refreshing, delicious. This is a regular buy for me (5*) A good quality wine ... a classy wine at an affordable price. Smooth and well rounded (4*) Great value for money ... excellent quality. At this price, comparable to higher priced wines (4*) Suits my palate ... my favourite white, great with and without food (5*) Perfect balance ... refreshing citrus crispness set against a depth of palate that matches its deep straw colour. It goes particularly well with fried white fish such as sole or bass fillets (4*) Chianti DOCG 2014 (Lidl) Chianti is the largest wine making area in Tuscany. There are a number of regional sub-divisions of Chianti (Classico, Colli Aretini, Montalbano, Ruffina etc.) but this wine could be made from grapes grown anywhere in the entire Chianti DOCG area. It must contain a minimum of 75% Sangiovese grapes to meet the Chianti DOCG regulations. This wine, or previous versions of it, won awards in 2014 and 2015. It was awarded bronze medals in both the 2015 International Wine Challenge and the 2015 Decanter World Wine Awards. Judges noted redcurrants, bitter cherries and herbs on the nose and clean, fresh, fruity tastes on the palate. In 2014 it was awarded bronze medals in both the International Wine Challenge and the International Wine and Spirit Competition. Here is a representative selection of comments from customer reviews of this wine (taken from Lidl and Vivino websites). Superb ... wonderful depth of flavour (5*) Smooth and flavoursome ... went down very well with Rigatoni all’ Arrabiato - just goes to show you don’t have to spend a lot of money for a nice wine! Well done Lidl (4*) Very smooth and for the money it’s great (3*) Flavour dissipates quickly leaving some acidity. Not complex and looses quality (2*) After being left open for 15 minutes this wine had a strong but not overpowering taste. Matched the occasion well (4*) Mellow, quaffable and not too intense. Would recommend for a glass midweek (4*) Very enjoyable, smooth, fruity with a nice aftertaste (4*) Brunello di Montalcino DOCG 2009 (Lidl) This wine, produced in vineyards surrounding Montalcino, Tuscany,about 120km south of Florence, is said to be the boldest expression of the Sangiovese grape. Montalcino is a small medieval village, about 1,850 ft above sea level. Customer reviews (as reported in Wine Moments by Lidl Swiss) gave an overall rating of 3.7 from 8 submissions (74%). This seems fairly low but half of the reviewers gave full points so opinion is evidently divided. Professional reviewers are more positive. ... approachable and gamey. (Anthony Rose, The Independent) ... top quality sangiovese ... luxuriate in the dense black cherry backbone and the nutty chocolate influences (Brian Elliot, Mid Week Wines) ... a big mature, powerful red, this smells of game, truffles and stewed fruits. There’s vanilla flavour. It’s velvet smooth and there’s a big warm kick to the finish – bring out the beef. (Rose Murray Brown, The Scotsman, Food and Drink) ... quite pale with bricking round the edges, reddy brown rather than purply ... it smelled of balsamic and a little Bovril ... dry with medium acidity and smooth tannins. There was a bit of dried fruit and nuts, not quite sherry, but a little Christmas cakey. At the same time there was a meatiness, more Bovril or Marmite than mushrooms. I enjoyed it ... it wasn’t my favourite Brunello di Montalcino but I’d have it again. (Golly’s Wine Drops) ... medium garnet in colour shows the age and the cherry, fruitcake and leather smells are great to have a sniff of.