vines

montepulciano

Montepulciano is a vigorous, medium-late red grape variety (ripening is almost always between the first and second decade of October), adaptable to various growing systems, hardy and generous; it gives rise to wines with decidedly interesting organoleptic characteristics, immediately pleasant when drunk young (from six to eight months up to eighteen months after harvest, as is the case with many of the wines in the economy range), while it proves to be complex and of superior stuff when matured for a long time in oak barrels.

It has a medium, pentagonal, pentalobed leaf with a blistered, dark green upper page. The cluster is medium-sized with a conical or cylindrical-conical shape, serrated and winged.

The berry is oval or sub-oval and medium in size, with a thick, leathery, pruinose, purplish-black skin.

Montepulciano d’Abruzzo is made almost exclusively from grapes of the vine of the same name, with the possible small addition (max 15%) of other grapes from red grape varieties suitable for cultivation in the Abruzzo region.

For the province of Pescara, since the 2006 vintage of Montepulciano d’Abruzzo, two subdenominations have been recognized: “Terre dei Vestini” and “Casauria or Terre di Casauria.” Since the 2010 vintage, however, for the province of Chieti the subzone “Teate” has been recognized, while for the province of L’Aquila the subzones “Terre dei Peligni” and “Alto Tirino” have been recognized.

maiolica

Of unknown origin, although it appears to have been cultivated in Abruzzo for a long time, this black berry variety is now sporadically found in the provinces of Pescara and Chieti, but is present in very small areas in the province of Macerata, Marche.

The leaf is medium-sized, pentagonal, five/six-lobed, with open or semi-closed lyre-shaped peziolar sinus, glabrous, pale green.
The cluster is medium-sized, cylindrical-conical, sometimes winged, semi-sparse.
The berry is medium, ovoid, with medium pruinose skin, black in color.

pecorino

Pecorino is a white grape variety used exclusively for winemaking widespread in Marche, Abruzzo and, to a lesser extent, Lazio and Umbria.

The leaf of Pecorino is medium, orbicular and more be whole or trilobed, the upper page is glabrous and deep green in color. The cluster is medium to small, cylindrical-conical in shape, semi-sparse and sometimes winged. The berry is spherical, medium-small with thin but fairly pruinose and firm skin. When ripe it is yellow-green in color with brown details.

It is a vine of medium vigor with average and rather inconstant productivity. Relatively early, harvest is expected in the first half of September.

It probably owes its name to the sheep that during transhumance ate the bunches that reached maturity at the time of the transition from the mountains to the sea.

trebbiano

Trebbiano is a white grape variety with medium-late budding as well as ripening, which indicatively ranges from September 20 to October 10. It is grown in Abruzzo on more than 10,000 hectares, of which about 4,000 are registered, from which DOC wine production exceeds 190 thousand hl/year.

The trebbiano leaf is characterized by medium size and can be pentalobate or trilobate. The bunch is usually averagely compact, sparse and conical or cylindrical in shape with a single wing. The spheroidal berry is medium to large with a dotted, consistent and thick skin of a beautiful yellow-green color.

Although little considered among noble grape varieties, it is precisely in Abruzzo that Trebbiano has found an ideal ecosystem, achieving relevant results both with young wines of good pleasantness and with wines of extraordinary longevity obtained by fermentation or maturation in large or small oak barrels. To be followed with interest because it has all the numbers to establish itself in the national and international wine scene and increase the already large circle of admirers.

Grapes destined for the production of Trebbiano d’Abruzzo DOC are obtained only from vineyards located in hilly or highland terrain, whose altitude does not exceed 500 meters above sea level and exceptionally 600 meters for those exposed to the south.

chardonnay

Chardonnay is a white, international grape variety grown in all wine-growing areas of the world. It is also used for “classic method” sparkling wines.

Chardonnay has a medium, whole, wavy, smooth leaf. The cluster is medium-small, compact with either a cylindrical or conical shape with two faintly pronounced wings. The berry is small, round with a thin, pruinose skin. When ripe it is greenish-yellow in color.

It is a very early grape variety, in fact it is harvested just after mid-August. Of medium vigor, Chardonnay has good and regular productivity.

pinot nero

The term “pinot” seems to derive from “pine cone,” and more specifically “small pine cone,” signifying both the modest size of the cluster and the characteristic of having dense, appressed berries, precisely like the scales of a pine cone.

Of all the red grape varieties in the world, it is considered the most noble and elegant and at the same time the most difficult to interpret, the one that confronts the winemaker and the simple consumer with perhaps the most complex tasting.

The Pinot Noir grape variety has a medium-small, rounded, trilobed leaf with a blistered, opaque, dark green upper page. The cluster is small, not more than 15cm long, cylindrical, often winged and somewhat compact. The berry is medium-sized and has a spheroidal shape, sometimes slightly oval, with a pruinose, thick and firm skin, black-purple in color.

The Pinot Noir grape variety has a fair vigor and a maturity that varies depending on the size of the cluster, generally low for pinot noirs that will be destined for red wine vinification, while it is higher for vineyards destined for white wine production or for sparkling wine production. Full ripening of this grape occurs around mid-September.