I recently had the opportunity to see first-hand how Recioto di Soave is made – in “Le Sponde” room of the Coffele Winery in Soave.
Following the EWBC 2011 in Brescia, I went with a number of fellow-bloggers on a day trip to Soave, guided by Elisabetta Tosi . We visited 3 wineries – Balestri Valda, Coffele and Cantina Sociale di Soave and met a group of winemaker – Soavecru - in the Palazzo Vescovile in Monteforte d’Alpone, where we had lunch with them and tasted their wines.
This is the sixth and last posting in a series of postings on Soave:
Blogging, Wining and Dining at the European Wine Bloggers Conference (#EWBC) October 2011 in Brescia, Italy – A Tour D’ Horizont
Wining and Blogging in the Soave Region, Italy
Visiting Balestri Valda in Soave, Italy
Meeting the Winemakers of the Soavecru Association in the Palazzo Vescovile in Monteforte d’Alpone, Soave, Italy
A Visit of Cantina di Soave, Soave, Italy
Recioto di Soave is a Raisin Wine
Normally, wine is dry: the sugar, naturally present in grape juice, is transformed into alcohol and carbon dioxide by the action of yeasts during fermentation - the sugar content of the must declines, while the alcohol content increases and the carbon dioxide disappears. Fermentation, however, stops naturally, when the alcohol has reached a certain level – around 15%. Thus, any sugar that is still in the must at that point of fermentation remains in the finished wine and makes the wine sweet. But this happens only under very special circumstances. Even in hot climate countries, the sugar that is in the grapes at harvest disappears completely as a result of fermentation. Thus, normally, wine is dry. But …. there are many wines that are not dry. How do wine producers do this?
There are a number of different approaches that wine producers use around the world: One is to remove water by air drying the grapes (raisin wine). Northern Italy is home to a number of raisin wines, where the grapes are dried on straw, on racks, or hung from the rafters.
For more see: Normally, Wine is Dry. But there are Many Sweet Wines in the World. How is Sweet Wine Made?
Recioto di Soave falls into the group of raisin wines. It is the raisin white wine from around Verona, made from the Garganega grape used in Soave. It is the first wine from Veneto to have obtained the D.O.C.G. appellation. Recioto di Soave can come as Bianco (normale), Classico (from the classical zone) and Spumante.
Dry and Sweet Raisin Wines
In Italy, the generic name for these wines is passito. The method of production is called rasinate (to dry and shrivel). Vin Santo is the raisin wine made in Tuscany.
Raisin wines are typically sweet wines, but do not have to be sweet. For example, the raisin wines from the blend of red wine grapes typical of Valpolicella can come as dry or sweet: If fermentation is complete, the result is a (dry) Amarone della Valpolicella; if fermentation is incomplete, the result is a (sweet) Recioto della Valpolicella.
Recioto di Soave at Coffele Winery
Coffele’s vineyards in Soave are located in Castelcerino, in the hills north of Soave in the traditional Classico region. In this 25 hectare vineyard, they cultivate Garganega and Trebbiano di Soave, as well as Chardonnay, Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. The house in Castelcerino has been restored, and a large grape-drying room added, which we had a chance to visit and where we could observe first-hand how Recioto di Soave is produced
The Coffeles were not there when we visited the room, but a representative explained to us: “After many years of experimentation, we have chosen to return to the traditional Veronese system of drying where the grapes are attached to a vertical framework and left to dry for many months, from September sometimes even until April. We are the first in our area to do this.
This system is much more expensive and requires a lot more space, but the results are far better as the grapes are dried to a higher quality when compared to other drying systems. As a result of this, in 2003 we built a fruit loft or ‘fruttaio’ so as to be able to study this process in more detail. The location is a result of a deliberate choice.
See more: Meeting American Wine Journalist/Writer George M. Taber (who was Present at the 1976 Judgment of Paris Tasting), USA
The room was built on a ridge (Sponde) of a hill where there is never any fog and, where we have noticed over the years, has good air circulation. Taking advantage of these optimal conditions, we then looked into a software system that would automatically regulate the opening and closing of the large windows, so that only through the movement of air, we obtain the best level of humidity and temperature within the fruit loft (fruttaio).
This allows an ‘appassimento’, which is more natural (also the characteristics of the winter will pass to the wine) and allows a considerable saving in energy as we are able to do without humidifiers and air conditioners.”
schiller-wine: Related Postings
The Wines of the 2010 Giro d'Italia
Italy's Top Wines - 2011 Gambero Rosso's Vini d'Italia Wine Guide
Meeting Winemaker and Owner Massimo “Max” di Lenardo from Friuli, Italy and Tasting His di Lenardo Vineyards Wines
In the Glass: 3 Easy Drinking Wines from the Soave Region in Italy
The Wines of casa 236 in Italy – Peter Schiller
In the Glass: 2010 Pinot Grigio, Venezia Giulia IGT, Attems, Italy
Kobrand’s Impressive Tour d'Italia 2011 in Washington DC, USA
The 2010 European Wine Bloggers Conference (EWBC) in Vienna
Blogging, Wining and Dining at the European Wine Bloggers Conference (#EWBC) October 2011 in Brescia, Italy – A Tour D’ Horizont
Wining and Blogging in the Soave Region, Italy
Visiting Balestri Valda in Soave, Italy
Meeting the Winemakers of the Soavecru Association in the Palazzo Vescovile in Monteforte d’Alpone, Soave, Italy
A Visit of Cantina di Soave, Soave, Italy
Meeting American Wine Journalist/Writer George M. Taber (who was Present at the 1976 Judgment of Paris Tasting), USA
Normally, Wine is Dry. But there are Many Sweet Wines in the World. How is Sweet Wine Made?
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