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+--- Thread: graticciaia (/thread-7753.html)
- Carm - 02-17-2000
I've just been given a bottle of 92 Graticciaia from Az. Agr. Vallone from the Apuglia region. It has 14.5% alc/vol. Can anyone tell me more about this wine?
- misterjive - 02-28-2000
Apulia, the southerly region in Italy that extends itself into the Adriatic to form the "heel" of the boot, is known for a hot climate and highly productive soil (wine production in the late 80's approached 343 million gallons, more than three times the entire production of Chile, Jancis Robinson tells us). Alas, much of that wine is nondescript, meant for local quaffing. Principal red varieties are Primitivo, Malvasia Nera, and the native Negroamaro. The best wines in Apulia, Robinson writes, comes from the heel itself, Salento: "Eight DOCs share this soil and these varieties: Alezio, Brindisi, Copertino, Leverano, Matino, Nardo, Salice Salento, and Squinzano." Here is the caveat of this answer to your question: I have only had Salice Salentino once, and 100% Primitivo a handful of times. Primitivo, most everyone now agrees, is the same grape as Zinfandel, and the Primitivo I have had indeed tastes like a rustic and somewhat brash (read: unsophisticated) Cali Zin. Salice Salentino is good with spicy Italian food such as sausage in a tomato-based, peppery sauce. I could see it pairing well with jambalaya, or paella, for example. As for your wine, I think it is probably primitivo-based, and the alcohol content reinforces this hypothesis (in order to achieve DOC status in some parts of Apulia, Primitivo generally has to have a minimum alcohol level of 14%--thank you, Jancis, once again). Now, the big clue to your wine's character and composition comes from the "-aia" suffix. For a reason I still have not ascertained, this suffix is used solely by "new school" Italian wines, those that mature in small barriques of French oak, rather than the large casks of Yugoslavian oak, as is more traditional in Italy (can we still use the term "Yugoslavian," even?...probably not). Ornellaia and Sassicaia are the classic examples of the use of this suffix. These wines, which originated in Tuscany at the hands of producers like Antinori, often include large proportions of Cabernet Sauvignon, in direct violation of DOC law. Thus, they bear the label Vino di Tavola (table wine), the lowest designation under Italian law. The wine world knows them as Super-Tuscans, although that term is becoming dated, as we now have "Super-Venetians" from the Veneto, "Super-Umbrians," etc. Mr. Parker simply puts VDT next to his tasting notes for such wines. Check to see if your wine says "Vino di Tavola' anywhere on the label. My guess is that is does, and that the blend consists of about 75-80% Primitivo and 20-25% Cabernet. Then again, maybe not. I don't even know if they grow Cab down in Apulia, but I would be willing to wager, based on the "-aia" suffix, that what you have in your hands is nothing less than a "Super-Apulian," a higher-quality wine that does not fit into any Apulian DOC framework, made in the boutique style of wine-making now so popular in Italy.