Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Malvasia Moscata is also generally more vigor-
ous and productive than Moscato Bianco, and
less sensitive to botrytis.
and produce a monovarietal wine with it, dry or
sweet. I have no doubts this will happen some
time soon, since by all accounts and testimo-
nies, this is a very high-quality grape variety: its
wines are in no way inferior to those made with
Moscato Bianco.
Which Wines to Choose and Why
Malvasia Moscata vines are found only sporadi-
cally in old Piedmontese vineyards, so learning
about the taste of a monovarietal wine made
from it is not easy. Farmers and old timers have
told me that dry wines made with this
Malvasia
variety reveal aromas and fl avors of lemon,
apricot, pear, tropical fruits, and aromatic herbs
(sage, for instance). California versions by
Bonny Doon (Ca' del Solo), Wild Horse, Ballen-
tine, and Birichino have more or less similar
organoleptic profi les to those just described,
and often reveal a lightly aromatic nose and an
almost oily, fl eshy texture. One of Birichino's
owner/winemakers, John Locke, worked for
years with Bonny Doon's Randall Grahm and
also with André Ostertag of Alsace, so he
knows a thing or two about underappreciated
and aromatic grapes, and his wines are excel-
lent (the other Birichino owner is Alex Krause,
who also worked with Grahm). The huge
amount of confusion surrounding this cultivar
(and Italian native grapes in general) is well
evidenced by Birichino's user-friendly and well-
thought-out website, where “Malvasia Bianca”
is said to hail from Calabria (highly unlikely,
unless they mean Greco Bianco), to grow in
Puglia (unlikely, since it's distinct from Malva-
sia Bianca), and to be found in Piedmont in the
Asti area (this is true, since it is commonly
believed that the Malvasia Bianca grapevines
present in California are in fact Malvasia
Moscata). That said, I have tasted Birichino's
wine, and found it excellent. However, since
many very good U.S. wines made with Italian
natives smell and taste different from the origi-
nals made in Italy (in fact, Birichino points out
that their wine has far more intense aromas
than do similarly named Italian wines), I can-
not be sure of how it would compare to a Malva-
sia Moscata wine, if and when it were made in
Italy. All we need to do now is wait and see if
some Italian producer decides to give it a shot
wines to try:
To the best of my knowledge,
there are as yet no monovarietal wines made
from this variety in Italy. So here you have it,
the most international of all Italian native varie-
ties: in fact, it couldn't be any more interna-
tional, since the only wines currently made
with it are produced outside Italy!
Malvasia Rosa
where it's found:
Emilia-Romagna.
national
registry code number:
318.
color:
white.
Found only in Emilia-Romagna's province
of Piacenza, Malvasia Rosa is used to make deli-
cately fi zzy and sweet light-bodied wines. In
1967, a farmer in Vigolzone found a Malvasia
di Candia Aromatica grapevine producing pink
grapes and called Mario Fregoni of the viticul-
ture department at the University of Piacenza
to come see. Fregoni understood the grapevine
was a pink-berried mutation of Malvasia di
Candia Aromatica, and selected and propagated
the vine. It is a very productive variety, with a
medium-large, pyramidal, elongated bunch
(but smaller than that of Malvasia di Candia
Aromatica) and large, round, pink berries with
medium-thick skins. It ripens later in Septem-
ber than its parent, Malvasia di Candia Aro-
matica, and like its progenitor, it is an aromatic
variety.
Which Wines to Choose and Why
wines to try:
Tenuta Mossi** (Malvasia Rosa
Passito Rosa di Vigna); Montesissa* (Rosa Mal-
vasia Rosa Frizzante, a sparkling wine). Mossi's
wine is made with air-dried grapes and the
result is a delicately sweet, pink-hued, lovely
wine reminiscent of raspberries and red
currants.
