CONERO DIVINO

It is not only the toponym of the majestic promontory that plunges into the Adriatic coast, but it is the new denomination since 2004 of the red wine Riserva DOCG; the basic one, the DOC Rosso Conero will be recognized much earlier, in 1967. The regulations provide for a blend of 85% Montepulciano and the remaining 15% with Sangiovese.

Montepulciano, the mountain vine par excellence, has its origins in Teramo and L'Aquila, but it has been rooted in the area for centuries.

The ancient Benedictine monks of the hermitage of San Pietro al Monte already appreciated it in the 10th century and the wine-growing location is therefore ideal for this powerful vine.

The skilful work, the many investments of small and large wineries, the research of oenologists and technicians, have given rise to this winemaking quintessence known and appreciated today throughout the world.

Its wonderful fruitiness is a mix of raisin black cherry, spices and balsamic vinegar; this - in the reserve - immediately distinguishes it from the national wine scene. Five million years ago Conero was a mountainous Adriatic island, not a volcano as per old false popular legend. An imposing tectonic thrust of the Euro-Asian fault raised the territory of the Marche region. The island then became one with the lands emerged and remained a sea mountain. The restaurants of the Riviera have always produced excellent seafood cuisine and therefore a single red wine could not do justice to the combinations with fish specialties.

Old native vines have been exhumed, such as Malvasia, the Bruni 54 cross, a hybrid of Verdicchio and Sauvignon, born in the 30's in the Pesaro area by Prof. Bruno Bruni, but also the replanting of some international vines, such as Chardonnay and Sauvignon, and . . . these have given rise to the new white fragrances of the Conero. Fresh, fruity and amiably medium aromatic, they now share a complete production with their big red brother, the delicate rosés obtained from this and the elegant Martinotti and Classico method sparkling wines.

But that's not all: the old white muscat grapes are used to make delicious dessert wines and, like the icing on the cake, the sour cherry, the bridegroom who loves cakes with berries and cherry tarts, and the sinful lover who loves chocolate tarts, close the list. We never expected so much. Producing in a single mountain composed of clayey soils caressed by the breath of the sea a complete range of wines that enhances our superb cuisine of sea and land.

GUALBERTO COMPAGNUCCI Lecturer Sommelier