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Valentini 2016 Trebbiano d'Abruzzo
£95.00
Sold Out
SKU
ITABWVATR16B
Valentini's Trebbiano is, quite perhaps, the best white wine in Italy. Certainly it is the one that is the longest lived and one of its hardest to acquire.
Edouardo Valentini was known for his extreme selection of grapes, with barely 5% of what he made ending up being released in the bottle, selling off most of his production in bulk. Edouardo died in 2006, but his legacy has been continued by his son Francesco. Whilst much of Italy was planting international varieties and chasing scores from the American press, Valentini continued to make wine in the Italian way, holding fast to his local varieties and winemaking traditions: the Quintarelli of the South, if you could imagine that.
His white, like all his wines, is not made every year, but when it is it is a masterclass in winemaking. It is a particular style, certainly not for everyone: powerful, nutty, huge amounts of acidity and rich texture. It has some fruit, just a little mind you, and you can discern some white currant and pear.
This is a one-off, no doubt.
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The Wine Region
Abruzzo
Abruzzo is located in southern central Italy between the Adriatic Sea and the Apennines. It has a landscape of mountains and beautiful coastlines with rolling hills of vineyards, olive groves and cereal crops. In terms of wines, this region is home to some of the country's best known and best value wines, particularly Montepulciano. In recent years there has been much attention given to the white wines of the region too, mostly for the fragrant and textured wines made from the Pecorino variety, but also those from Trebbiano Abruzzese. This region is home to two of Italy's legendary producers: Edouardo Valentini and Emidio Pepe whose wines are highly sought-after all over the world, but here you can also find one of Noble Grape's favourite value-for-money producers, Rocco Pasetti, who makes simply wonderful wines at everyday prices.
The Producer
Valentini
Edoardo Valentini could be considered one of Italy's great grape growers and winemakers. His dedication to quality was so strict that he would savagely sell-off, in bulk, around 90% of his production, leaving only the very best to appear under the Valentini label. I regard his wines as exceptional: I would even go as far as to say that his Trebbiano d'Abruzzo is the most incredible white wine in Italy.
The winery is based in the beautiful Abruzzo town of Loreto Aprutino and is now run by Edoardo's son Francesco, who continues his late father's strict quality regime.
Three wines are produced, but only some years. The white is Trebbiano d'Abruzzo, made from the excellent Trebbiano Abruzzese variety (no relation to the ubiquitous Trebbiano Toscano or any other variety with the Trebbiano prefix). Deep straw in colour when young, evolving into gold. This variety's essence is made from low yields from Valentini's beautiful pergola-trained vines rather than any alchemy in the winery.
The rose, unlike any other, Cerasuolo d'Abruzzo, is made from Montepulciano, vinified like a white with only a short maceration in the press. The Red, also from Montepulciano, is a masterclass in richness, complexity, and authenticity.
I rank Valentini in the same category as Quintarelli, Biondi Santi, Soldera, and Giacomo Conterno as Italy's greatest producers. They always preserve their traditions and maintain their quality and typicity through successive generations.