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from the Marche: Something for EveryoneWine
is a serious matter in the Marche. There are roughly 14,200
estates in the region, working with about 17,000 hectares of vines. Although
cooperatives do exist, wine production is very much a family affair. Roughly
80% of the Marche’s wines are DOC or DOCG, a fact that does not guarantee quality
in and of itself (individual producer skill is important) but illustrates the
region’s potential. In fact, the region is blessed with many
high-quality native grape varieties and unique terroirs. Even better,&nbsp;the average level of quality is quite
high, which means that&nbsp;finding a truly bad wine is difficult. A handful of&nbsp;overoaked
and rustic reds are still being made, but for
the most part the Marche’s wines deserve to be on shopping lists of wine lovers
everywhere. The Grapes Of The Marche One
of Italy’s most important native cultivars, Verdicchio takes its name from verde
(green), the color of both the grape and the wine (even with age, Verdicchio
wines never lose their green tinge). One grape, Verdicchio, yields two wines,
Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi and Verdicchio di Matelica, but the wines are
very different due to completely dissimilar terroirs. Other Marche white
grapes include Maceratino (also
called Ribona) and Biancame, two
native grapes long thought to be similar to Trebbiano Toscano but that have
greater potential for making fine wines.The
Marche is also the birthplace of Pecorino,
currently Italy’s hottest white grape, but unlike winemakers in nearby Abruzzo,
most Marche producers tend to macerate the must on the skins for extended
periods of time, making for some very thick, and, to my way of thinking, less
enjoyable Pecorino wines. Producers who throttle back on extraction, such as
Cocci Grifoni and San Savino/Podere Capecci, are most successful. But, as in
Abruzzo, Pecorino’s recent popularity has led to a wave of new bottlings that
barely remind me of their variety.Passerina is another up-and-coming
variety, at least in the Marche and Abruzzo where the same Passerina variety
appears to be grown (there are many different biotypes of Passerina planted all
over Italy, many of which I am sure are not Passerina at all). Passerina wines
from these two regions are similar: usually more floral and less structured
than those made with Pecorino.The
two red grapes typically associated with the Marche are Montepulciano and Sangiovese,
which are usually blended together in varying percentages. International
varieties are also grown; they were misguidedly planted here like everywhere
else in Italy during the boom years of the ’80s and ’90s but they rarely yield
wines of interest. Absolutely unique to the Marche are Vernaccia Nera, Vernaccia
Rossa (actually a biotype of Aleatico) and Lacrima, three aromatic red grapes that can give highly
idiosyncratic but outstanding red wines. The two Vernaccias are unrelated; the
former is used to make the wines called Vernaccia di Serrapetrona and
Serrapetrona Rosso, while the latter is used to make Vernaccia di Pergola and
Pergola Rosso. Both varieties can make dry and sweet red wines, and Serrapetrona
is historically associated with delightful sparkling wines. Lacrima is the
grape from which Lacrima di Morro d’Alba is made, one of Italy’s most pungently
fragrant wines of all.&nbsp;<img alt="" src="https://allgrapes.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads%2F1437488487474-Andrea+Felici2.jpg">Vineyards around the small, artificial lake at&nbsp;Andrea FeliciThe Wines Of The MarcheThe
Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi
production zone includes virtually all the towns in the province of Ancona, the
Marche’s main seaport. “Castelli di Jesi” refers to a string of very pretty
medieval hilltop towns of which the most famous is Jesi. The denominazione can be divided into two
sections. The northernmost one, which extends to the valleys of the rivers Miso
and Nevola, is roughly rectangular in shape and includes towns like Arcevia,
Corinaldo, Ostra and Pergola. A smaller area extending south towards the Esino
river (an area including towns like Apiro and Cupramontana) and Jesi is the
“Classico” zone. The Castelli di Jesi production area is mainly characterized by
gently sloping hills, a moderate climate and mainly marl and clay soils, but there
are differences worth knowing about. For example, the area around the town of
Serra de’ Conti has an almost marine climate, with warmer average temperatures resulting
in earlier harvests (typically finished by the second week of September) and
richer, softer wines.The
more inland areas around Montecarotto and Cupramontana are located at higher
altitudes in much cooler microclimates. Verdicchios made with grapes grown in
these areas are some of the denominazione’s
most refined, minerally and ageworthy. Here grapes are usually harvested about 10
to 14 days later than in the rest of the Castelli di Jesi area, usually never
before October. Not surprisingly, the more successful Verdicchio sparkling
wines are made with grapes grown here. I believe that it’s a huge shame that Verdicchio
producers haven’t had the courage to make these terroir-related differences
more apparent over the years with cru bottlings, but it’s also true that many
estates own vineyards scattered throughout the region. Hence, wines are often
blends from multiple sites, which obviously blurs specificity of terroir.And
winemaking styles are important as well: some producers prefer reductive
winemaking techniques highlighting floral and fruity aromas and flavors
(passion fruit, green fig, fresh citrus), while others prefer slightly late-harvested
grapes and produce creamier wines with a distinctive almond quality, which has always
been considered the sine qua non in all
Verdicchio wines). Last but not least, Verdicchio di Castelli di Jesi Riserva
wines are almost always oak-aged and have improved greatly over the last decade.
They were once too oaky and marked by what seemed like generous doses of
residual sugar, but that is no longer the case.&nbsp;With
only 300 hectares of vines compared to Castelli di Jesi’s 3,000, Verdicchio di Matelica&nbsp;is
one of Italy’s best-kept wine secrets, producing a number of refined minerally,
high-acid whites that take on dry Riesling-like notes with age. The Matelica
zone is a narrow mountainous area located in the upper Esino river valley
between the towns of Fabriano and Cingoli, including hamlets such as
Castelraimondo, Matelica and Cerreto. It is characterized by cold winds and
soils with a high limestone content; the wines of Matelica are recognizably higher
in acidity and more minerally than the more floral and fruity wines of the
Castelli di Jesi.<img alt="" src="https://allgrapes.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads%2F1437488972711-Villa+Ligi2+La+Cantina.jpg"> The cellar at&nbsp;Villa Ligi Rosso
Conero, Rosso Piceno and Marche Rosso are
the best known of the Marche’s red wines. The Rosso Conero DOC, created in 1967, allowed only two grape
varieties, Montepulciano (a minimum of 85% of the total blend) and Sangiovese
(the remaining 15%). Riservas could also be made from the best grapes and must
be aged longer in oak. In 2004, new Rosso Conero production guidelines were put
in place: the 15% Sangiovese minimum was replaced by a minimum 15% of any local
non-aromatic red grape (a horrible idea, in my view) and a new wine was
introduced, the DOCG Conero Riserva. For the latter, only Montepulciano and
Sangiovese may be used, always with the same 85/15 mix.The
areas around Candia, Castelfidardo, Loreto (do not confuse this town with
Abruzzo’s Loreto Aprutino, where the famous Valentini estate is located) and
Offagna have deep clay-rich soils, while those closer to the Conero mountains are
generally more calcareous. However, while clay-and-calcaire&nbsp;soils dominate
around Montaucuto, Poggio degli Angeli and Poggio Varano, limestone is even
more abundant around the Poggio di Ancona, which is clearly shown by the much
more intense white color of its soils. The presence of clay increases near
Camerano, while soils around Numana and Coppo are much more varied, with clay,
limestone and sand dominating in various spots. Unfortunately, as is often the
case, it’s hard to generalize about single Rosso Conero terroirs&nbsp;since many
estates blend grapes from different soil types. Generally speaking, Rosso
Conero wines are big and sturdy, making up in power what they lack in elegance.
Without doubt, they are some of the Marche’s most accomplished reds.<img alt="" src="https://allgrapes.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads%2F1437489292747-Tenuta_Cocci_Grifoni+-+Copy.jpg"> Tenuta Cocci Grifoni focuses exclusively on indigenous varietiesRosso Piceno can be made in
the provinces of Ancona, Ascoli Piceno and Macerata and in terms of production
volume is the Marche’s biggest DOC. Unlike Rosso Conero, in which Montepulciano
dominates the blend, Rosso Piceno had always been Sangiovese-based (until 1997,
the blend was at least 60% Sangiovese), making for some of Italy’s more
delicious lighter-bodied red wines. Unfortunately, production guidelines were
changed, and now up to 70% Montepulciano is allowed in Rosso Piceno wines. In
my view, this was a huge mistake because what used to be two recognizably
different Marche red wines (Rosso Piceno easygoing and light-bodied, Rosso
Conero bigger and more structured) are no longer as dissimilar. Besides Rosso
Piceno, Rosso Piceno Superiore wines are made in a smaller, historically famous
wine-producing area in the southern reaches of the Marche close to the Abruzzo
border. It’s potentially the best Piceno wine, but the level of quality is uneven
across producers.Marche Rosso is the denominazione&nbsp;used to name wines made with hefty doses of international grapes. I well
remember when these wines, back in the ’90s, were thought of some Italian
critics as the highest-quality red wines of the Marche, but anybody with even
minimal knowledge of the world’s great red wines knew better. At best, such
wines are boring and without “somewhereness”; at worst, they are overoaked and
tough, and ultimately do very little to advance the Marche’s cause.Made
just east of Ancona, Lacrima di Morro
d’Alba is one of the Marche’s most interesting wines, thanks to its highly
aromatic nature (not unlike a dry Black Muscat). Both dry and sweet (passito) wines are made and wine quality
today is generally very high. There are still a few too many inky, overly
tannic Lacrima wines that speak very little of the variety (they’re probably
loaded with too much Montepulciano), but they are the minority now. A good
Lacrima wine is graceful and full of aromatic charm and can be enjoyed lightly
chilled. There are few more intensely perfumed red wines in Italy but if
aromatic grapes are not your thing, look elsewhere.One
of Italy’s most interesting and at times best wines, Vernaccia di Serrapetrona is produced in an inland area near the
southern reaches of the Matelica area, with vines planted as high as 2,200 feet
above sea level. Production is concentrated mainly around the towns of Belforte
del Chienti, San Severino Marche and Serrapetrona. Vernaccia di Serrapetrona is
a delicately sparkling dry or sweet red, and a more tannic, structured still
wine called Serrapetrona Rosso is also made. <img alt="" src="https://allgrapes.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads%2F1437489042482-Panorama+Balciana.JPG"> Panoramic view over Sartarelli's&nbsp;Balciana VineyardOther Noteworthy Marche Wines And
Production AreasOffida, Bianchello del Metauro, Colli
Maceratesi, Falerio dei Colli Ascolani, Esino, and Colli Pesaresi are less-known production areas but not totally
without merit. Each can boast a talented producer or two who makes very good
wines. Offida is especially interesting, excelling with the Pecorino and
Passerina grape varieties, and even Offida Rossos hold more interest than many
Rosso Piceno and Rosso Conero wines. Bianchello del Metauro and the Colli
Maceratesi are emerging areas we are likely to hear more about in the near
future; the former’s white wine are lighter and fresher, the latter’s richer
and slightly deeper.Recent Vintages In The MarcheThe
2014 vintage, much maligned owing to almost non-stop rains and cooler
temperatures all year long, was generally better in the Marche (especially in
the Castelli di Jesi) than in most other regions of Italy. The Verdicchio was
able to ripen slightly later in the fall, during a period featuring lower
daytime temperatures, and thus benefited from a longer growing season. Clearly,
some wines are less concentrated than usual due to bloated grapes, but overall
they show excellent aromatic character. The 2013 vintage wasn’t easy either: frequent
rain showers in June and July and an unheard-of eight days of rain during the
harvest hampered quality. By contrast, 2012 and 2011 were both hot years, but the
wines differ greatly. In 2012, daytime temperatures were high through most of
the growing season, and so the vines adapted and the grapes were able to reach
optimal ripeness. But in 2011, the heat came suddenly and brutally in August,
shriveling grapes directly on the vine; those that didn’t turn to raisins often
failed to achieve physiological maturity. Consequently, some 2011 reds are
marred by cooked aromas and flavors and gritty tannins.You Might Also Enjoy<a target="_blank" href="http://vinous.com/articles/italy-odds-ends-jul-2015">Italy: Odds and Ends</a>,&nbsp;Antonio Galloni, July 2015<a target="_blank" href="http://vinous.com/articles/friuli-it-is-what-it-is-releases-part-1-jun-2015">Friuli: It Is What It Is</a>,&nbsp;Antonio Galloni, June 2015<a target="_blank" href="http://vinous.com/articles/looking-at-italy-through-rose-tinted-glasses-cerasuolo-rosato-ramato-and-chiaretto-jun-2015">Looking at Italy Through Rosé Tinted Glasses: Cerasuolo, Rosato, Ramato&nbsp;and Chiaretto</a>, Ian D'Agata, June 2015<a target="_blank" href="http://vinous.com/articles/the-wines-of-abruzzo-and-molise-may-2015">The Wines of Abruzzo and Molise,</a>&nbsp;Ian D'Agata, May 2015<a target="_blank" href="http://vinous.com/articles/alto-adige-a-pause-for-thought-may-2015">Alto Adige: A Pause for Thought,</a>&nbsp;Antonio Galloni, May 2015<a target="_blank" href="http://vinous.com/articles/exploring-roero-may-2015">Exploring Roero</a>, Antonio Galloni, May 2015 <a target="_blank" href="http://vinous.com/articles/2011-barolo-the-here-and-now-mar-2015">2011 Barolo: The Here and Now</a>, Antonio Galloni, March&nbsp;2015--
Ian D’Agata





























































































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