2015 Trebbiano d’Abruzzo

Simply put, Valentini is one of Italy’s 20 or so best wine estates. And to give you an idea of the standing it holds in Italian wine history and society, when the Italian government decided 60 years ago to give an award to those Italian companies that were then at least 150 years of age, Valentini was one of only seven agriculture estates to be so honored. Valentini boasts distant Spanish descent (from Valencia), though the original family name is not known. In fact, one ancestor, Giovanni Battista, was the preceptor to none other than Cesare and Lucretia Borgia, and it was he who was given the right to use the name “Valentinois” (Cesare Borgia was the Duke of Valentinois and nicknamed Il Valentino). That name was italianized over time to Valentini. Giovanni Battista was eventually exiled to the Abruzzo area, but it turned out to be a golden opportunity that ended up netting him profits and properties. The Valentini estate grew over the centuries to a peak of 5,000 hectares in 1790; today it boasts a more modest but still impressive 250 hectares, of which 70 are under vine, plus another 65 hectares of olive trees (without any doubt whatsoever, and not just in my learned opinion, Valentini’s extra-virgin olive oil is one of the two or three best made by Italian wine estates), as well as wheat fields and forests. When I visited the estate a few months ago, I found Francesco Paolo Valentini to be extremely concerned by climate change and what it means for his viticulture and winemaking. For example, in the last 30 to 40 years, the estate has had to move up the harvest date by one full month, from the beginning of October to the beginning of September, and this has had serious repercussions for the wines. Since 2000, Valentini has made his famous Montepulciano d’Abruzzo thus far only in 2001, 2006, 2012 and 2013: that’s only four times in two decades, unless a new vintage currently resting in the cellar is released in the next few years. Happily, the outstanding Cerasuolo d’Abruzzo and the even better, remarkably ageworthy Trebbiano d’Abruzzo are still made practically every year, so there’s no risk of going thirsty at this storied address.