Rosato, Drinking Pink Italian Style from the Mountains to the Sea

The Italian Food, Wine and Travel writers are celebrating Italian pink wines made from native grapes. That means anything still to sparkling and dry to sweet, and it’s happening August first!

A huge thank you to Lauren at The Swirling Dervish for hosting this month’s event, and for all the fabulous wine articles she writes!

As Lauren wrote in her invitation article, “Italy’s rosato wines offer an entire spectrum of their own… They come in every style and intensity…”

Rosato, Rosado, Rosé

Mark and I drink plenty of pink wine whether it’s rosato (Italy), rosado (Spain and other Latin countries), or rosé. And yet another name in the Sudtirol/Trentino-Alto Adige area of Northern Italy: kretzer.

Today I am sharing two very different styles with you: one from the foothills of the Italian Apennines that evokes candles, romance and a great meal, while the other, from rolling hills closer to the sea conveys beaches, laughter and sunshine filled days. Between the two is another area making  super rosato, you can read about Chiaretto here if you’d like!

Le Marche and Azienda Agraria Guerrieri

It is in the northern part of this region (pronounced lay-MAR-kay), about 45 minutes from the Adriatic coast, and on the eastern bank of the Metauro River valley you’ll find the Guerrieri property. They are in Bianchello del Metauro, which was among Le Marche’s first DOCs for white wines in the still, spumante (sparkling) and passito styles. While they do produce DOCs wines, they utilize the IGT (Indicazione Geografica Tipica) for their rosato and a few other wines.

The fifth and sixth generation of the family work together on this grape, olive and grain farm. One hundred and eighteen acres (48 ha) are dedicated to grapevines with an annual production of 250,000 bottles.

A Healthy Family Affair

Wanting to use less and care more for the land and farm, the operation now runs 100% on solar energy. According to the website,

“We live and work in a country ‘bathed’ in sun. The sun produces energy not only for the life of our plants (photosynthesis) but also for our production processes.
In the summer of 2011 we had a 300-kilowatt photovoltaic system installed on our farm building roofs. The energy generated exceeds the needs of all our production processes; any surplus energy is therefore fed into our network and distributed to benefit other local users.

In 1996, in collaboration with ASSAM, we installed a weather station to monitor climate information, which we post online for use by farmers in our territory.”

Guerrieri Rosato Tasting Notes

Sangiovese goes solo in this direct press wine where harvest is completed earlier to maintain higher acidity. They don’t use oak and bottle shortly after fermentation completes. Their goal is to produce a lighter colored, vibrant wine for immediate enjoyment. In Italian that means aperitivo and they succeeded with this wine!

Rosa Dei Venti – Marche Rosato IGT

This wine is pale rose in color. The aromas were a blend of fresh and bright strawberry and raspberry fruit with an underlying tart cherry and floral (violet) notes. These flow to the dry palate yet tart cherry is dominant. The wine finishes strong reminding me of lemon squeezed over crushed red cherries. Great length, medium plus acidity and medium body, this wine transports to the beach on a gorgeous day.

Cost: $13 | 11€ – 12% ABV

Some Guerrieri wines are available in the US through PDV Imports.

Heading to Alto Adige and Muri-Gries

The Muri-Gries working monastery lies at the southern end of the Isarco River Valley in Alto Adige’s capital town Bolzano. Built as a castle for the Counts of Bozan in the eleventh century, it was donated to Benedictine monks in 1947 who brought their viticultural knowledge to its 86 acres (35 hectares) of vineyards. They work with neighboring growers for access to additional grapes.

The entire site is quite spectacular, oozing history with a zen-like quality. Mountains surround the area with the Italian Alps lying north and west while the Dolomiti hang to the east. What’s astonishing is this- although deep within the Alps, the surrounding alpine glacial valleys form a geological basin protecting Bolzano from cold northerly winds. In fact at just under 1,000 feet (300 meters), would you believe me if I told you Bolzano is one of the hottest places in Italy?

I attest to this ‘heat-trap’ having visited the area!

The site is also organically managed, integrating natural pest management and other sustainable methods.

Tasting Notes: Muri-Gries Sudtirol Lagrein Kretzer 2017

Lagrein is the Muri-Gries hallmark grape variety. It grows exceptionally well in the warmer area of Bolzano. Grapes for this wine are single vineyard designated which Muri-Gries describes as follows:

“As Lagrein is especially dear to our hearts and we are determined to respect its origins, we have developed the single-site principle guaranteeing targeted development of these special sites and the production of each vintage using grapes from one and the same site”.

A deep, coppery-pink color with prominent aromas of raspberry, strawberry and creamy peach were in my glass. They have a mineral slant reminding me of crushed stones and perhaps a minute bit of volatile acidity that aerated off. The medium-intensity palate of wild red berries is fresh and bright yet with a smooth, satiny feel. A bit weightier that a typical rosé yet vibrant still at three years of age. Perhaps less length than if I drank last year but a balanced, quality wine that went perfect with candles on our terrace.

Find Muri-Gries wines:

• Polaner Selections
• Alberello Wines
• Use 1000 Corks to locate stores selling both wines

The Italian Food Wine and Travel group Rocks Rosato

This Saturday, August 1^st at 11am ET, 17:00 in Italy, join us for a Twitter chat using hashtag #ItalianFWT. Below are direct links to everything Italian Rosato from the group.

David from Cooking Chat writes about Cerasuolo d’Abruzzo: Pairings with My Favorite Italian Rosé

Pinny from Chinese Food and Wine Pairings writes about Pairing Bibi Graetz Casamatta Toscana Rosato with Drunken Cold Chicken Wings and Pork Knuckle, Sautéed Julienne Leeks #ItalianFWT

Camilla from Culinary Adventures with Camilla tempts us with Italian Pinks, Sardinian Native Grapes, and Gamberi all’Aglio

Terri from Our Good Life shares her pairing for Roasted Chicken Flatbread with Spumante Rosato

Linda from My Full Wine Glass says Summer Won’t Last: and Neither Will this Charming Chiaretto in Your Glass

Martin from Enofylz Wine Blog is Dreaming of Sicily with a Graci Rosato

Gwendolyn from Wine Predator offers Summer Dinner with Rosato from Tuscany and Sicily

Marcia from Joy of Wine chats about Rosato d’Aglianico Vulture: More than Just a Red Wine

Lynn from Savor the Harvest suggests Rosato: Drinking Pink Italian Style, from the Mountains to the Sea #ItalianFWT

Nicole from Somm’s Table prepares Cheese, Charcuterie, and Ciabatta with Praesidium Cerasuolo

Robin from Crushed Grape Chronicles offers Pallotte Cac e Ove & Orecchiette with Two Brilliant Cherry Red Rosatos from Southeast Italy

Katrina from The Corkscrew Concierge advises us to Get to Know Lambrusco Rosato

Susannah from Avvinare tells us that Italy’s Chiaretto from Lake Garda Makes Waves

Jennifer from Vino Travels shares Rosato from the Veneto with Pasqua

Katarina from Grapevine Adventures shares An Italian Rosé Wine that Makes You Sparkle

Our host Lauren from The Swirling Dervish discusses Cantele Negroamaro Rosato: Summer Wine from the Heart of Puglia