Directly east of Rome on the side of the Apennine mountains, Abruzzo is Italy’s fifth largest wine region with around 30,000ha of plantings. Best known for Montepulciano d’Abruzzo which is commonly found by the glass in Italian restaurants, the wines of the region as a whole are not that widely available despite its size. Its reputation is not aided by the generally average nature of Montepulciano, where yields (of up to 100hl/ha) are valued more than quality. However, plantings on slopes influenced by the nearby Adriatic Sea can result in lower yields and more concentrated wines—but the potential of these zones has yet to be fully discovered.

I’ve just been to a tasting of Abruzzo wines in San Francisco, which was an opportunity to see if quality is rising in the region. I have to say the reds were disappointing, with a simple, chocolate character reminiscent of basic Syrah. The whites though were much more interesting, which provides a challenging contradiction for producers: if the most famous wines are red but the best are white, which direction to take?

montepulciano d’abruzzo

As with any article on Italian grapes, there’s going to be confusion about names. In Tuscany, Montepulciano is the name of a village which produces wine from Sangiovese (labelled Vino Nobile di Montepulciano). In Abruzzo, Montepulciano is a grape variety, the wines usually labelled as Montepulciano d’Abruzzo. Apart from the name, the two wines have absolutely nothing in common.

Montepulciano d’Abruzzo is often designed to be drunk young, in a fruity, easy-to-drink style—which is suited to the high yields that growers and producers chase. In contrast, more serious, ageworthy styles can suffer from the use of too much oak to overcompensate for the wines’ natural fruitiness. At the tasting, many of the Montepulciano d’Abruzzo wines I tried were extremely jammy and with an overly chocolate character. The appearance of the wines was dark and deep, which is attractive to consumers, as is the overt fruitiness. At the same time, though, the tannins were often quite drying, which clashed with the fruity style.

But the producers there are also trying to make more serious wines. Paride d’Angelo’s 2020 was meaty and earthy, and the fruit aromas were well integrated. Talamonti’s “Kudos” 2019 is 70% Montepulciano and 30% Merlot (labelled Colline Pescaresi IGP because of the Merlot; see below), which felt like a warm-climate Bordeaux blend. Galasso’s “Torre” 2018 was also oaky with chewy tannins and red fruit, sweet spice aromas. But even though these wines were quite good, I’m not sure there’s a compelling reason to choose them over other Italian reds such as Chianti Classico.

cerasuolo d’abruzzo

Cerasuolo is a trendy (albeit on a small scale) pinkish wine, deeper in colour than a rosé—its name means cherry-red, which is an accurate reflection of its appearance. These are youthful, fresh, easy-drinking, and fun summer wines, made from Montepulciano. I tasted two, both of which were very moreish (especially tasting them in June). Ciavolich’s 2021 was floral and fruity, with very light tannins. Biagi’s “Rerum” 2021, which spent six hours on the skins, was even more drinkable, fresh and floral, with a light, grainy tannic texture. Both of these wines would disappear in minutes sat by the pool.

pecorino

Almost every producer had a white wine from Pecorino on show. This is a variety that comes from Marche, which is just north of Abruzzo, and which since the early 2000s has become more fashionable after plantings had drastically fallen during the twentieth century. As with many Italian white varieties, it produces fresh, dry, citrusy wines with a mineral, grainy texture, although with perhaps a bit more earthiness, fleshiness, and, coincidentally, cheesiness. The quality of the wines was extremely consistent, acidic and youthful with a creamy texture adding some richness. Pecorino is sometimes compared to Sauvignon Blanc, though much more like an earthy Loire version than a pungent, highly aromatic wine from Marlborough.

(The name of the grape comes from the word for “sheep,” pecora, which is why there’s also a hard, sheep’s cheese with the same name.)

trebbiano d’abruzzo

This is where name confusion returns. Trebbiano Toscana is the most planted white grape variety in Italy, and produces simple, neutral wines of little interest (called Ugni Blanc in France, it’s much better suited for distillation). However, there are many unrelated varieties also called Trebbiano that produce much more interesting wines. Trebbiano d’Abruzzo is the name of the local wine made from Trebbiano Aruzzesse, although there’s lot of confusion as to what’s actually planted in Abruzzo—quite which variety is going into the wine is not clear. But I found a creaminess to the better wines, as well as an attractive florality. Marramiero’s “Altare” 2019 was particuarly reminiscent of Chardonnay, fruitier and more aromatic, but rich and creamy with dairy aromas. Talamonti’s “Aternum” Riserva 2019 was not quite as rich but similar in style. Both these wines are from 2019, suggesting that Trebbiano d’Abruzzo has the capacity to age. The most famous producer to try, which wasn’t at the tasting, is Valentini.

cococciola

Although there are around 900ha planted in Italy, Cococciola is a variety I had never previously heard of. I can now tell you that it’s mostly planted in Abruzzo, was usually planted for blending, and has only recently been made into single-varietal wine. I can’t tell you much more because there was only one wine to try—Paride d’Angelo 2021, but it was fantastic: citrus and green fruit aromas, with a grainy texture, crisp acidity, light spice and lees aromas, and an overall combination of freshness and weight. Even if plantings of Cococciola are relatively small and concentrated in Abruzzo, it would seem that producers are now taking it more seriously (it also has the major advantage of high yields while maintaining quality—both a grower’s and a producer’s dream).

labelling terms

As with the rest of Italy, Abruzzo has plenty of regional and labelling terms which only add to any confusion about the region. A few producers had wines labelled “superiore” and “riserva”; the former is an indication of greater ripeness in the grapes, the latter of a year’s ageing before release. In theory, this means higher quality but it can also indicate a wine that’s trying too hard to be something it’s not.

Besides Montepulciano d’Abruzzo, Cerasuolo d’Abruzzo, and Trebbiano d’Abruzzo DOCs, there are a handful of other DOCs as well as IGPs which have broader regulations. Colline Teramane is now a DOCG, from thirty villages where it’s considered that higher quality wine is produced—but the wines are a struggle to find. IGPs include Colline Pescaresi, Colli Aprutini, and Terre di Chieti, which as the names suggest are located on hillside slopes. With the potential use of Bordeaux varieties, these IGPs may be a safer bet than Montepulciano d’Abruzzo DOC itself even if almost no one knows about them.

I have to confess I left the tasting even more unconvinced by the overall quality of Montepulciano d’Abruzzo than when I entered. But there was an excellent consistency to the quality of the white wines, as well as a subtle variety of styles. Next time you’re in a restaurant, see if they have any white wines from Abruzzo rather than red.