Italy’s Workhorse Grape Is the Foundation of Some of Its Best Wine

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If you’ve tasted the Italian grape Trebbiano recently, it’s likely been as the base for an authentic balsamic vinegar or an after-dinner glass of grappa at an Italian restaurant. It can also be a cheap and delightfully crisp white wine from the east coast of Italy, unless you manage to get your hands on a bottle that often shows the true potential of this iconic Italian grape. Although most of the local production in Abruzzo is the red Montepulciano d’Abruzzo grape, a handful of producers are making higher-end versions of Tribbiano d’Abruzzo, a crisp yet sophisticated white that gets even better with a little age.

The earliest written mention of Tribiano is found Historia Naturalis, An encyclopedic collection of volumes written by Pliny the Elder, who died during the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD. It is not known exactly which version of Tribiano he is referring to. A very recent book, Janice Robinson Grape winepublished in 2012, discusses six members of the Tribiano family in depth and mentions several more. “Although Tribiano exists under many different names throughout Italy, the Abruzzo biotype we work with contrasts with the rest due to its low-yielding nature,” explains Leonardo Pizzolo, owner of Valle Real, whose Vigna del Convento di Capistrano Tribino d’Abruzzo is a stunning example. “When grown in low yields on well-exposed hillsides or hillsides, in the right vintage, it expresses some of Italy’s most ageable, powerfully complex white wines.”

“I find that Vigna del Convento di Capistrano misses some of the best Chibs: flinty and minerality, a touch less, but with plenty of structure, an evolved and exciting aromatic depth, and lifting acidity,” says Fi Bravo Hospitality’s Corporate Wine Duffy, Corporate Wine Director of Masra Bravo Specialty, to the New Yorker. is an example, because it’s unlike many other Trebbiano-based wines from the region.” Duffy finds the wine’s acidity, complexity and freshness to make a perfect pairing for light or even raw foods at the start of a meal, such as Massara’s fluke crudo, but he thinks it also works well with large seafood dishes or lighter meats. He also encourages guests to let the wine come up to temperature during the meal rather than keeping the bottle on ice. Permit, as a slight rise in temperature allows the wine’s deeper, more expressive elements to reveal themselves.

Although many of the wineries in Abruzzo are located along the Adriatic coast, Valle Real is high in the mountains at the intersection of three national parks, a few hours from Rome. Valle Real’s Vigna del Convento vineyard borders property owned by Franciscan monks who began producing Trebbiano in the 1400s using spontaneous fermentation. Like his native predecessors, Pizzolo prefers a hands-off approach. “Our philosophy in the cellar is to interfere with the fermentation process as little as possible,” he told us. “We don’t try to direct it, but allow it to develop as naturally as possible.” He farms his vineyards using biodynamic methods to express the influence of his terroir and natural biodiversity. “For this reason, the cellar should be as neutral as possible: it should host the process, not interfere with it,” Pizzolo says. With this in mind, he uses only stainless steel and glass vessels for both fermentation and aging, avoiding barrels, barriques or amphorae that might mask the natural characteristics of the vineyard in any way.

Two popular versions are Marina Cavetti Tribiano d’Abruzzo Dr. Superior and Reserva, which winemaker Marina Cavetti says was “made first to make an Italian white capable of standing alongside the great wines of Burgundy.” Although Cavite’s vineyards are about 50 miles from Pizzolo, the location of its mountain sites below the Magella massif ensures constant air circulation, offering natural freshness to the grapes. She also credits the biodiversity of the region and its vineyards for supporting a healthy environment for the cultivation of terbino, and points out that low yield ranges equate to lower yields, lower grape flavor concentration on the grape and higher quality. Unlike Pizzolo, Cveti ć ages its Tribiano in French oak with a light to medium toast level. She explains that this helps the wine reach its full potential and that it “enhances depth, personality and character” while preserving balance and finesse.

Cavetti believes that the fineness and composer of the Tribiano d’Abruzzo set it apart from other interpretations of the Tribiano. “It’s a more structured, precise, and terroir-driven expression of the grape, characterized by natural freshness, salinity and remarkable longevity,” she says. Although many people refer to Trebbiano as a fresh white that is meant to be young, Pizzolo maintains the Abruzzi clone is “an absolute testament to the longevity of white wine age in Italy” and describes it as truly “one of the very few ageable Italian whites.” He believes that a change in the drink’s paradigm will save true wine lovers from “missing out on the most interesting and profound phase of its evolution”. Uncorking a bottle from each vintage and tasting them together once a year to see how the wines evolve, Pizzolo says he’s always pleasantly surprised. Cavetti ć describes a recent vertical tasting held in Rome, including 12 vintages of his Tribiano d’Abruzzo in 1998, which demonstrated his ability to evolve beautifully over time. “The older vintages revealed layered tertiary aromas, remarkable structure, and the perfect balance between acidity, depth and length,” she says.

Other producers worth seeking out are Valentini, Amorotti, Tiberio, and Amedeo Pepe, who also make sophisticated, ageable versions of Trebbiano d’Abbruzzo. Although most of the vineyards are high in the mountains in the interior of the region, an enduring coastal Abruzzi tradition is enjoying the local white. trabocchiancient fishing piers that have been converted into overwater seafood restaurants featuring locally sourced catch. Although Tribiano is a sure match for fish and molluscs, it’s complex enough to hold its own in the refined chicken, pork, and veal dishes favored by high-end producers, even with hearty stock or cream-based sauces. Served in some of the best Italian and international restaurants around the world, Tribiano d’Abruzzo is definitely one you don’t want to miss.

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