They say Lambrusco would work as well as petrol in a Ferrari engine. But Grasparossa and a host of other Lambruscos have long been Ferrari favourites and are always served at our guest dinners and luncheons in Maranello
Enzo Ferrari preferred the light and dry Lambrusco di Sorbara. ‘He had a passion for light wines and rosés,’ his son Piero recalls. Like his father, Piero is a man who appreciates the produce of the Emilia region. ‘At the company’s Cavallino restaurant, where he regularly went to eat, he personally selected the type of wine and the winery from which to restock it,’ he continues. ‘When we were at home we drank the wine made from our grapes. The grapes were grown on our estate in Settecani, a stone’s throw from Maranello, on the first plain, and they were given to the village’s communal winery. Here they made a Lambrusco of the Sorbara variety that was clear and dry, just as he liked it.’ This memory makes one think: what ignites a passion? We are not talking about achieving personal wellbeing or satisfying a need; rather we are referring to which, and how many, senses come alive as the result of a book, a wine or a car. To distinguish a passion from a simple interest, it is sufficient to look to the involvement of the senses. Hence, the more senses evoked, the better.
For example, the simple desire to drive a car cannot be considered a passion for cars, in the same way that wine cannot be considered a passion when it is drunk simply because one is thirsty. But in the Modena area, where the sensory experience is key, this is not the case, for cars or for wines. Here, it is not rare for restlessness and passions to be satisfied under a bonnet – perhaps red – or in a glass of frothing red wine. The colour red is what identifies, in the glass and the bodywork, the two Emilian stars: Ferrari and Lambrusco. In both cases, the involvement of the senses is assured. The pop of the cork that liberates the wine has an energy that is reminiscent of the thrust, not just emotional, of a V12 from Maranello, just as the flavours of Lambrusco recall an outing with the roof down immersed in the Modena countryside. In fact, thinking about it, a cheerful drive and a good glass of wine are both pretty intoxicating. When it comes more specifically to an appreciation of wine, some would disagree over the nobility of the Emilian vine, especially if compared with other Italian vines. Could the attempt to create a Lambrusco-Ferrari combination therefore be a meeting of poverty and nobility? Nothing of the sort. Partly because the humble bottle of Lambrusco has been a constant presence at the lunches and dinners of Ferrari personalities: Enzo first of all and later current Ferrari Chairman Luca di Montezemolo.
Furthermore, it must be remembered that the great authors of the classical Roman period such as Virgil, and even more so Pliny, spoke at length of this grape in their work, even to the point of giving it a precise ampelographic description: ‘The leaves turn blood red before falling…’. It is likely that the name Lambrusco derives from the Latin words labrum (meaning the lip or edge of a vessel) and ruscum (wild plant), even though less prosaically the vine name could go back to its brusco character, as they say in these parts (in other words acidic). Moving on from the genesis of the name, it must be emphasised that the term Lambrusco is an umbrella term for no fewer than 56 red varieties and 27 whites. Today, simplification combined with rationalisation has reduced the varieties to eight (all of them from red grapes). Sorbara, Salamino di Santa Croce, Grasparossa, Maestri, Marani, Montecucco and Oliva are the most common, according to the area, and the wines also include sweetish varieties, as well as the more classic dries. When talking about the Emilian plain, if we think of a vast area, we are making a monumental mistake. The apparent harmony of the plain is broken up as much by the cuisine as by the wine-growing practices. Modena and its provincial area, home to Grasparossa, Sorbara and Salamino, is separated from the provincial areas of Reggio and Parma, more devoted to the Ancellotta, Maestri and Salamino varieties, and the most recent DOC, first recognised in 1987, of the provincial area of Mantua. It’s a wine-growing grid that, even within the province of Modena, splits into three, creating different expressions of Lambrusco. Grasparossa territory is towards the hills, while Modena is the perimeter from Sorbara to Salamino that stretches towards Carpi in the lower Modena region. Lots of different varieties but all based on foaming red wine. How does Lambrusco become so ‘lively’? Even though we are in the land of engines, gas is not obtained by pressing the accelerator to the floor, but through the addition of carbon dioxide. The process through which the bubbles are produced is entirely natural. After an initial fermentation of the wine, a second fermentation stage takes place by putting a must with a high sugar content in contact with yeasts. These organisms feed off sugar at certain temperatures and give off carbon dioxide and alcohol at the same time. Once their task is finished, they still continue to give aromatic components to the wine. The Romans used a refermentation process with earthenware jars that was halted with the first cold of winter and resumed again in spring. Today, the methodologies employed for producing bubbles are quite different. From the vinification point of view, the real advancement occurred in the ’70s with the adoption of the Charmat method.
This technique, also used for the production of prosecco, consists of placing all the components that create the natural effervescence of the wine in a large steel tank (autoclave). Must, sugar and yeasts are still essential for creating the perlage, but it is thanks to this marvel of oenological technology that the special features of the wines are exalted. Today, Lambrusco has taken the one-way street of quality. As well as technology that has lengthened the period of contact with the yeasts in the autoclave, resulting in benefits for the aromatic expression of the grape, greater care is also taken over the grape on the vine. Low yields associated with treatments reduced to the minimum allow producers to make wines that are much less rustic than in the past. Although today more than 95 per cent of wineries adopt the Charmat method, there are still a few producers that proudly stick to the ancient Roman style of refermation in the bottle, or the French-style Classico or Cremànt style. If the content for both dry and sweet Lambrusco is outstanding quality, what is happening to the form? Many producers have taken great pains over the packaging as well. For its top-flight line, Donelli asked Sergio Scaglietti, the renowned Ferrari ‘tailor’ from the ’60s, who dressed models such as the Testarossa and GTO, to design a bottle for its Lambruscos. The result was a meeting of style between content and container.
Lambrusco di Sorbara
The finest of them all. Generally, the Sorbara variety is the most difficult to cultivate, because of an anomaly of the flower that, depending on the year, leads to the loss of up to two thirds of the crop. However, if there is lack of quantity, the quality can be exceptional. The most remarkable characteristic of Sorbara Lambrusco is that the foam is very soft, which acts as a prelude to elegant floral aromas, especially violet. It’s a particularly fine feature, and one which made a great impression on Enzo Ferrari personally. He even went so far as to ask Cavicchioli and Giacobazzi, two major growers in the area, to produce a Lambrusco blended with white wine to make it particularly light in hue, just as he liked it, which he gave as Christmas gifts.
Today the most significant wines in the ‘Sorbarese’ category are the Vigna del Cristo DOC dry from the Cavicchioli U & Figli winery; Lambrusco di Sorbara DOC dry, produced by Donelli Vini and Vecchia Modena Premium DOC, produced by Chiarli. The first is a wine made from a particular plot 20km from Modena, with predominantly sandy soil, able to give birth to a wine that shows hints of raspberry and is clear and fragrant. Lambrusco Sorbara DOC Vecchia Modena Premium from the Chiarli winery is more typical for its distinct hints of violet, associated with acidic and mineral salt sensations in the mouth. The company, founded in 1860, by Cleto Chiarli has always based its production on the integrity of the grape, and it was one of the first companies to embrace the cold technology. Hints of violet and gooseberries are typical characteristics of the Sorbara produced by Donelli (a company now owned by the Giacobazzi family) which isn’t made with a single grape, but also includes a touch of Salamino.
Lambrusco grasparossa
This variety naturally goes hand in hand with Ferrari, primarily because, come autumn time, the leaves and stems turn red. The sparkling passion of many Ferrari enthusiasts, it has accompanied the victories, just as it has the boiled meat trolley at the Cavallino restaurant in Maranello, where Anna still serves Grasparossa bearing the restaurant’s logo to wash down its mixed grills. This vine prefers the first hill around Modena, characterised by clay soils which best bring out the qualities of the grape over the whole structure of the wine. The acidity is softer than other varieties, so the tendency is, when used by itself, to pick it rather early. One of the most convincing drops is the Lambrusco Grasparossa Opera Pura, produced by the Opera 02 winery, owned by Levizzano di Castelvetro. It’s a new company with a fully organic system covering its entire surface (21 hectares).The Montanari family has invested heavily to make this wine, which is the fruit of a long refermentation in the autoclave (no less than five months). The result is a wine that best expresses the structural qualities of Grasparossa, blessed as it is with hints of cherry, blackberry and China ink. In general, Grasparossa accompanies classic regional food combinations such as zampone (pig’s trotter stuffed with minced pork and spices) and tagliatelle with a ragù sauce, as suggested by Maurizio at Ristorante Montana in Fiorano.
Lambrusco salamino di Santa Croce
The grapes used in this wine are generous and prolific, and the vines are covered with a light white bloom. Generally this wild card among the Lambruscos is most at home on the sand -and clay- rich soils situated in the lower Modena region. The freshness and fruity fragrance that vividly recalls the cherry and raspberry, make it an ideal choice for many foods. By virtue of its characteristics, Salamino goes well with fried gnocchi, as well as with hearty portions of boiled meats and roasts. However, in the summer months a chilled glass, with its pleasant and refreshing hint of cherry, is ideal when paired with a dish of light ham and melon. Outstanding among the many Salamino di Santa Croce Lambruscos is the IGT Robanera, which is produced by the Cavicchioli U & Figli winery. It’s a dry-fruit Lambrusco resulting from careful cold maceration and subsequent refermentation using the long Charmat method, which produces a wine with strong hints of cherry and black cherry in its flavour and aroma. With a touch of colour, Lambrusco Salamino di Santa Croce is generally produced in two versions: a red and a rosé.
Other regions of lambrusco production
Mantua: The varieties that combine to form Mantuan Lambruscos are Salamino, Ruberti (also called Viadanese) and Ancellotta. Lambruscos cultivated in this area are situated between the Oglio and Po rivers down as far as the borders with Emilia. The two areas that best represent this type of Lambrusco are located between Viadana and Sabbioneta. Of the varieties that can bear the name Lambrusco di Mantova, Ruberti is worthy of note: a rather wild native, the taste of which is distinguished by typical hints of currants and cherries. It is regularly used in blends to raise the standard of Lambrusco short on acids.
Reggio Emilia: For the Reggiano DOC, the varieties that can be used for regulation are Maestri, Salamino, Marani, Ancellotta and Sorbara. As for the DOC wines, Colli di Scandiano e Canossa (recognised in 1971), Grasparossa and Monterrico may be used. Marani is used mainly for the colour and vigourof the plant. The wines have distinctive fruity hints (blackberry and raspberry), which are perceptible in both the nose and mouth.
Parma: Lambruscos of this province must include at least 85 per cent of the Maestri grape in its blend, a variety which probably takes its name from the village near St Pancrazio, in the province of Parma. Recently this variety has taken hold in the south of Italy, especially in the province of Taranto. It favours lean, not very fertile, soils. It is both vigorous and productive, with olfactory and taste characteristics recalling hints of violet.
PUBLISHED IN HOME, PLACES BY MARCO TONELLI ON 04.14.2011
Credit: Ferrari S.p.A. (www.ferrari.com)
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