Heirloom Grapes of France and Italy
by Anthony Lynch
Punta Crena’s Paolo Ruffino in the vineyard
© Dixon Brooke
Old Molette vines in Savoie
© Lambert de Seyssel
Domaine Comte Abbatucci
© Magali Cancel
Tenuta Anfosso’s century-old Rossese Bianco vines
© Dixon Brooke
Gianni Carparelli
© I Pástini
A great number of viticultural gems—once found tucked away in all corners of the Old World—have something unique to say, offering new flavors to curious drinkers, while embodying a rare link to a region’s history and culture.
Punta Crena’s Paolo Ruffino in the vineyard
© Dixon Brooke
Old Molette vines in Savoie
© Lambert de Seyssel
Domaine Comte Abbatucci
© Magali Cancel
Tenuta Anfosso’s century-old Rossese Bianco vines
© Dixon Brooke
Gianni Carparelli
© I Pástini
A great number of viticultural gems—once found tucked away in all corners of the Old World—have something unique to say, offering new flavors to curious drinkers, while embodying a rare link to a region’s history and culture.
Heirloom Grapes of France and Italy
by Anthony Lynch
In the 2012 edition of their seminal work Wine Grapes, experts of the vine Jancis Robinson, Julia Harding, and José Vouillamoz cataloged no fewer than 1,368 unique grape varieties. The authors specified that these represent only those cultivated on a large enough scale to be commercially available; in reality, they estimated there to be thousands, if not tens of thousands, of additional types of wine grapes in existence. Other research has shown that, of these myriad specimens, only a dozen or so make up roughly 90 percent of the surface area planted to wine grapes worldwide. What, then, of the countless others?
There is no doubt that certain grapes are inherently “nobler” than others—the finest expression of Gros Plant, for example, will never come close to rivaling the finest Chardonnay on the planet. But that is not to say we shouldn’t place value in other varieties outside the tried and true classics such as Pinot, Chardonnay, Sauvignon, Riesling, Barbera, and the like. Numerous lesser-known, less-cultivated grape varieties are more than capable of yielding wines that are at the very least interesting, and occasionally downright superb. The globalization of the wine world and the emergence—and subsequent domination—of commercial trends in wine consumption have all but eradicated a great number of the viticultural gems once found tucked away in all corners of the Old World. Many of these, as it turns out, have something unique to say, offering new flavors to curious drinkers while embodying a rare link to a region’s history and culture.
Luckily, there are still vignerons eager to protect and preserve these traditions. Aware that they possess something special and rare that deserves to be perpetuated, they proudly wave the flag for their region’s heirloom varieties instead of letting these grapes, and the wines made from them, go completely extinct. The choice is not always an easy one: commercial pressures and other socioeconomic factors often favor uprooting these old treasures in favor of more recognizable, more marketable, or higher-yielding vines.
Here you will discover twelve examples from Italian and French vignerons who have resisted the tendency to globalize their vineyards, honorably sustaining the varieties native to their respective terroirs. Some represent the last remaining ambassadors of an otherwise lost variety, while others have gone out of their way to revive a grape from near-extinction. And though we will never come close to acquainting ourselves with all of the 1,368 wine grapes in cultivation, perhaps we can be enriched and inspired from tasting and savoring something other than yet another Sauvignon Blanc.
Wines In The Collection
Punta Crena Italy | Liguria
Crack it open now; aromas of tart blackberries and mint will waft out of the bottle, a perfect reminder of summer and outdoor grilling.
Gregoletto Italy | Veneto
The Gregoletto family bottles this frizzante rendition of Veneto’s indigenous variety, Verdiso, with the secondary fermentation occurring in-bottle and left unfiltered.
Clos Saint-Joseph France | Provence
A single barrel was produced of this delicate, peppery, low-alcohol red from a forgotten grape variety. Serve chilled.
Domaine Comte Abbatucci France | Corsica
This rosé, made entirely of the local grape Carcajolu-Neru, is world class and different from anything else we import in the pink category.
I Pástini Italy | Puglia
Crafted from the local variety Minutolo, Pástini’s Rampone preserves lip-smacking acidity and low alcohol despite the baking-hot Puglian summers
Tenuta Anfosso Italy | Liguria
Sourced from 170 year old Rossese Bianco vines (the oldest of all our producers!) the Anfosso Bianco is a rare bird to say the least.
Italy | Liguria
Crack it open now; aromas of tart blackberries and mint will waft out of the bottle, a perfect reminder of summer and outdoor grilling.
Italy | Veneto
The Gregoletto family bottles this frizzante rendition of Veneto’s indigenous variety, Verdiso, with the secondary fermentation occurring in-bottle and left unfiltered.
France | Provence
A single barrel was produced of this delicate, peppery, low-alcohol red from a forgotten grape variety. Serve chilled.
France | Corsica
This rosé, made entirely of the local grape Carcajolu-Neru, is world class and different from anything else we import in the pink category.
Italy | Puglia
Crafted from the local variety Minutolo, Pástini’s Rampone preserves lip-smacking acidity and low alcohol despite the baking-hot Puglian summers
Italy | Liguria
Sourced from 170 year old Rossese Bianco vines (the oldest of all our producers!) the Anfosso Bianco is a rare bird to say the least.
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