One day when I'm shopping for wine in the Pescara branch of Auchan, I get a nudge from a man standing next to me. He gestures towards a €1 bottle of Montepulciano d'Abruzzo and nods approvingly.

"Hmm," I say a little doubtfully. "Is it any good ?"

He gives me that sort of look generally reserved for the very, very stupid.

"At €1 a bottle," he replies, "does it really matter ?"

Abruzzo alone produces as much wine each year as Chile. According to the 2007 edition of the magisterial Italian Wines:

"Abruzzo boasts a fabric of producers that has few equals in other regions of Italy. Abruzzo (takes) advantage of its traditional varieties, trebbiano and montepulciano, to make wines that impress both for their inherent quality and for the value for money that they offer."

In other words, there's a lot of very good and very fairly-priced Abruzzo wine out there and you only need pay a fraction more than €1 a bottle, (and even that was sort-of drinkable), to enjoy it. 

Montepulciano d'Abruzzo
Here's a useful starting point for Abruzzo reds. If you know your Italian wines, you'll know about the famous black cockerel trademark identifying Chianti Classico. Producers in Abruzzo are following this lead and a growing number now carry the distinctive 'Eagle' logo, which guarantees a decent bottle of wine at a decent price. My favourite Abruzzo everyday red wine carrying this label is the Montepulciano produced by the Cantina Miglianico. Despite the fact it's only 12%, this is a deep, rich and smooth red - and for around €1.60 a bottle, amazingly good value.

A little more distinctive- and at 13.5%, with a little more weight, is Cantina Tollo's much-lauded 'Colle Secco' range. Like Miglianico - and so many others in the region, Tollo is a wine co-operative, using grapes from literally thousands of small vineyards in Chieti province. Here's Italian Wines again:

"The Colle Secco line merits positive comment. The quality is undeniably high and these are delicious wines at very affordable prices."

This terrific example of Montepulciano d'Abruzzo - and the excellent 2004 vintage is still widely available - will set you back around €3.50. 'Delicious and very affordable' is the perfect summary. The Colle Secco range also includes a Trebbiano and a Cerasuolo. 

Trebbiano
From red to white - and Abruzzo's other great grape variety, Trebbiano, which at its very best - like Valentini's 02 Trebbiano - collects awards by the sackload, but which for day-to-day drinking produces a zingy, fruity white which you can pick up for €1.50-€3.00.

Trebbiano's just about the perfect Abruzzo summer holiday dry white. With a strength generally around 11.5%, this is easy-going, easy-drinking and flavoursome: a wine for a long, leisurely lunch under a shady pergola. I've yet to taste a Trebbiano that's thin, mean and sharp. At its least good, it's simply not that interesting. It'd be heresy to an Italian, but even the least good can be enlivened by a splash of cassis to produce an extremely palatable kir. You've heard of 'fusion cooking'; this would be 'fusion drinking' !

In addition to Trebbiano, look out for the white Peccorino. Pasetti do a good, if pricey, example - but in general, you'll pay a little more than you would for Trebbiano: say around €3.50-€5. Personally, I prefer Trebbiano. You can find Abruzzo Chardonnay too. Tollo - again - produce a thoroughly decent unoaked bottle in their budget 'Roccaventosa' range.

Cerasuolo
I think this is what Californians call 'blush' - a rose made exclusively from a red grape variety (here, the ubiquitous Montepulciano). The grape skins are allowed only the briefest contact with the young wine, imparting the characteristic pale pink finish. I've got mixed feelings about Cerasuolo, which for me is far more variable than either Montepulciano or Trebbiano. It can be as subtle as a well-aimed brick and at 13%+ at times, equally as hefty and packing a sizeable punch. But it can also display a gorgeous lightness of touch and a beguiling scent of juicy cherries and red fruit, saved from any suggestion of sweetness by a refreshing crisp acidity. If Montepulciano is the wine for richly-sauced pasta dishes and hearty braised meat; and Trebbiano is the wine for summer sipping; then a good Cerasuolo is the wine I'd take to a summer barbecue and keep it as cold as I possibly could. Pauline's also asked me to mention that she prefers Cerasuolo to Trebbiano !

Unusually - bearing in mind that the general advice is to drink rose as young as possible - a well-made Cerasuolo can improve with a couple of years in the bottle. The taste is a novel experience, providing a depth you never associate with rose. And with a price to match. For me, the jury's still out on this one.

You'll have to try pretty hard - or be very unlucky - to come across a really bad bottle of wine on your Abruzzo holiday. Italians won't drink it and shops won't stock it. Even the €1 Montepulciano has its fans. But for around the €2 mark, you'll experience a daily succession of bottles that at their best will display astonishing excellence and will never be less than highly enjoyable. And just once, maybe with a particularly excellent meal, splash out on one of the best that Abruzzo has to offer. For €20-€30, you'll be rewarded with a wine infinitely more superior and memorable than anything you'd find for similar money in the UK or the US. Salute !

(Click on pictures in text for larger images) 

This entry was posted on Saturday, January 19th, 2008 at 10:43 am and is filed under Eating and Drinking, Vineyards. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.