Believe it or not, there are certain native grapes in Italy worth of high reputation, but not fully recognized in Italy among winelovers and professionals. This is even more a paradox, when we consider, among loads of native grapes, Lugana DOC, a white wine highly appreciated more abroad than in Italy. Here we go with some more information about this wine: about 1,700 hectares of vineyards and 18 mln bottles of wine per year(70% for export), about a hundred of wineries.
It’s always a nice job to share impressions, emotions and evaluations about typical wines of a specific Italian region (in this case: Romagna, on the North of Italy), comfortably in my city: Rome. I Like too much the idea of focusing on the Albana di Romagna vine, suggested in dry version (introducing by sommelier Monica Coluccia) proposed which is the most true and perhaps the most natural way. Let's be honest: when we speak about Albana di Romagna DOCG, we think to the most famous kind: the straw wine (Passito) or even the one beneficially shaped by noble rot. But – in my opinion - this kind of Albana dry vinification is the real test for each good wine-grower in Romagna.
There is a particular kind of red grape called Piedirosso considered a small metter or, more precisely, it was useless by the native varieties of Campania, until few years ago.
The wine made by this grape was almost exclusively used as a blending wine because it isn’t much tannic, so it was more difficult realize softer and less aggressive full-bodied and structured wines such as Aglianico.