Anniversary, and Off to Italy!

At this time last year, DoBianchi and I headed off to California to get married. Our first year together as husband and wife has been joyful and full of excitement about our future. Now we are embarking on another adventure, to the Veneto and Friuli. I'll meet some of Jeremy's old friends and see bits of his life as a student, but we'll also see an old friend of mine from high school. Italian Wine Guy will even be joining us for a bit! What a treat!

On the agenda: Quintarelli, Angiolino Maule, some Prosecco colfondo, Venice for anniversary dinner, Giampaolo Venica, and a place I've always wanted to visit--Trieste.

There's more to it than that, but you'll have to stay tuned! DoBianchi will certainly be blogging and, depending on our WiFi access, I might be blogging too.

Happy Anniversary, 2B! I am thrilled to have such a fun travel partner, I couldn't have been luckier than to have found you. I look forward to a lifetime of adventure by your side.

Now let's go!

Galluccio DOC

Galluccio is one of those DOCs that doesn't get much attention, and doesn't do much to garner any either. According to this text, there are grumblings of a new DOC for the long-forgotten grape varieties, Pallagrello (nero and bianco) and Casavecchia. They are currently produced under the Terre del Volturno IGT. This could definitely create some interest.

The two Pallagrello varieties were favored by the Bourbons, but were all but wiped out by phylloxera. Casavecchia, however, has much more ancient origins with possible connections to the Oscans. The legend goes that an old vine was found in the ruins of a garden with an unusually large trunk. Cuttings were taken (or maybe even seeds), and the variety was reborn. There is a lot of information out there about these historic varieties, but this is the short version, and is based on the stories that I heard back in 2004 when I was introduced to these wines while living in Ischia

And if the producers can keep themselves from tarting up the end product with barrique to make them "important," we might actually be able to enjoy them.

Text below adapted from: Del Canuto, Francesco et al., Il vino italiano, panorama vitivinicolo attraverso le denominazioni di origine, Associazione Italiana Sommeliers (Bertani & C.), Milano, 2010 (2002), fourth edition.

Recognized as a DOC in 8/4/97

Production Zone: includes the townships of Conca della Campania, Galluccio, Mignano Monte Lungo, Rocca d'Evandro and Tora e Piccilli, all in the province of Caserta.

Yield: Whites, 12 tons per hectare; Reds, 11 tons per hectare

Aging Potential: Whites and Rose, about 1 year; Reds, 1-2 years.

Grape Varieties: WHITE: Falanghina, min 70%, alcohol min 11%; ROSSO: Aglianico min 70%, alcohol min 11.5%; ROSATO: same as rosso but with a min alcohol of 11%

Other types: Riserva, must have a minimum of 12% alcohol with at least 24 months of aging

Galluccio, set in the hills of the volcanic Roccamonfina, is the newest appellation in the province of Caserta. This region, though for now unremarkable, has the potential to make good wine. In recent years some pioneering wineries in the the province are looking to reclaim land for vineyard sites that had long gone to ruin. There is also a movement to reclaim and cultivate some ancient grape varieties like Pallagrello (nero and bianco) and Casavecchia in limited production, and to create a new DOC for them.**

**VERY exciting, in my opinion.