ACROSS THE BORDER: THE CANTON OF TICINO AND ISTRIA

A small excursion outside Italy to two areas that, in their character, display a certain cultural and artistic continuity with the Bel Paese. As far as the enological panorama is concerned, they show steady growth and are characterized by increased attention to quality production and involve wine tourists in activities to discover the territories.

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The Canton of Ticino

VITICULTURE IN THE CANTON

The Canton of Ticino is divided into two principal areas, Sopraceneri and Sottoceneri – respectively north and south of Monte Ceneri pass – covering eight districts: Bellinzona, Blenio, Riviera, Leventina, Locarno, Vallemaggia, in Sopraceneri; Lugano and Mendrisio in Sottoceneri. All of these areas have vineyards to some extent.

The climate, which is mostly sunny, is marked by abundant precipitation at certain times of the year. The terrain is mostly granite and gneiss and is fairly acidic. Because of pedoclimatic conditions, the best-adapted system for cultivation has proved to be the Guyot system. Because of the frequency of hail, particularly in Mendrisiotto and Malcantone, the vines are protected by anti-hail nets.

The surface area planted with vines is around 1,000 hectares and the average annual production of Merlot, the grapevine covering most of this surface area, is around 55,000 quintals. The grape harvest season generally runs from end-September to beginning October, depending on the climatic situation from one area to the next.

Vinification mostly (around 75%) takes place in cellars that purchase the grapes from grape growers, although some of these cellars also have their own vineyards, the rest is produced by mediumsmall- sized grape growers (2,000-40,000 bottles) that produce wine exclusively from their own harvests, and by the Cantina Sociale Mendrisio (around 15%), which also owns a large vineyard.

ON A HISTORIC NOTE

Wild grapes have existed in Switzerland since antiquity, but it was the Romans who introduced wine grapes at the beginning of the Christian era. Thus it is not by chance that the first references to grapevines and wines in Ticino are from around the year 1000 and according to a few scholars vine cultivation was not yet widespread in the year 1200. Charlemagne promoted its development, but in the Middle Ages only monks pursued this type of cultivation, even because farmers could not have their own properties as land purchases were the domain of only Lords and ecclesiastics. Also, ancient documents from that period testify that farmers were taxed if they consumed wines produced with the grapes they cultivated.

In the course of the 17th century, international commerce took root favouring wine imports from other countries to the detriment of national production. Only in the 19th century can any interest in viticulture be observed: in 1850 Swiss grape farming grew to 30,000 hectares, in 1879 a commission was created to study phylloxera, and in 1893 the Department of agriculture was created.

Phylloxera scourged the Ticino towards the end of the 19th century, causing vast damage to production; more resistant varieties – but of lower quality – were planted with obvious effects on the wines produced.

In order to manage this situation the government developed the Antiphylloxera Service and the Travelling Agricultural Information Desk. In the 20th century the focus shifted to local vines and vine species; testing began with particular attention to Merlot and the Cantine Sociali were created.

Interest in grape farming gradually grew until, it came to a halt with World War I. In 1921 the engineer Giuseppe Paleari, with the collaboration of the Stazioni Federali d’Esperienze Agrarie, resumed testing of Merlot that led to the affirmation of this variety with respect to others. From the second half of the 19th century to the end of the 20th the surface area of vineyards shrank progressively while planting was rationalised and vine cultivation gained in professionalism and quality.

VINE SPECIES IN THE TICINO

Today, Merlot is the emblematic species of vine cultivation in the Ticino, where it occupies over 80% of vineyards. Originally from France’s Bordeaux region, it arrived in Switzerland at the beginning of the 20th century, when it became necessary to recreate the grape farming heritage following the phylloxera blight and it was immediately observed that it adapted well to the climate and the terrain in the canton. Cloned selections and experimentation carefully studied by the Stazione Federale di Ricerche Agronomiche di Cadenazzo from 1955 helped the vine species reach interesting levels of quality as well as good resistance to adverse conditions. Vine shoots were supplied to vine farmers by authorised nurseries and taken from controlled vines.

Merlot is not the only vine species cultivated in the Ticino. Pinot Nero, Bondola (the only native vine species in the region, cultivated in Sopraceneri), Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Diolinoir, Pinot x Cabernet, Gamaret, Garanoir, Ancellotta, Syrah and Gamay are also present. At many vineyards testing is done to identify varieties that could complement the traditional vine species in order to improve the quality of the product offering and identify varieties best adapted to the changing climatic conditions.

LEGISLATION

The introduction of Controlled Denomination of Origin to the Canton of Ticino dates back to 1997. DOC designates a wine meeting qualitative requirements that correspond to conditions set by the Cantons regarding the boundaries of areas for production, grapevines used, cultivation procedures, minimum natural sugar content, yield per surface area, vinification techniques used, organoleptic evaluation and examination.

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The Ordine della DOC is the organization in charge of managing and attributing the DOC label. It consists of a commission of qualified tasters, responsible for ensuring quality and typicality by means of organoleptic and analytical controls of vine samples provided by wine producers for study.

Pure grapevines, if they respect the conditions set forth in the regulations, bear the denomination “TICINO” DOC, followed by the name of the grapevine and eventual complementary information such as the area, municipality or farm that cultivated the grapes.

The DOC for blends are Rosso or Bianco del Ticino (or Ticinese) eventually followed by the grape species in the blend. DOC wines must be made within the canton. Wines that do not correspond to criteria defined in DOC specifications bear the denomination “Svizzera Italiana” IGT, and may mention the type of vine species, or simply the wine’s colour. The term “nostrano” may complement the IGT denomination, but such wines may not bear the Ticinese denomination which is reserved for DOC wines.

Bilateral agreements between the EU and Switzerland have made it possible to reserve the denomination “Grappa” for Italian-speaking Swiss regions (Ticino and Valli dei Grigioni). This traditional definition has always been used here and in Italy’s Alpine and Pre-Alpine valleys.

The Merlot that undergo quality control receive the label Marchio VITI that is the result of an evaluation system based on a series of parameters introduced by the Council of State in 1948 in order to provide incentives for higher quality standards. In order to boast this label, producers must present wines before a tasting commission that determines pertinence. From 1995 the Marchio VITI has been controlled by a private entity, the Associazione Viti, composed of wine producers that attribute both the Marchio VITI and “Grappa e acquavite ticinese controllata” labels. The criteria for this classification are openly qualitative and expressed in points (80/100). Analytical data for the wines must respect internal regulations.

(Source: www.ticinowine.ch)

ROUTES AND EXHIBITIONS

There are five Strade del Vino del Canton Ticino (itineraries to visit cellars and places of interest for nature, culture and history) that cover the following vine and wine growing areas:

– Mendrisiotto: from the centre of Mendriso to Chiasso

– Locarnese: from Tenero to Ascona

– Bellinzonese: from Camorino to Bodio

– Malcantone: from Lamone to Termine

– Piano di Magadino and Valle di Blenio: from Gudo to Dongio

Wine lovers should visit the Museo del Vino at Matasci winemakers in Tenero. Each fall there are many festivals centred on grapes throughout the region. The Bacchica is the grape harvest festival in Bellinzona at the beginning of September (for more information see www.ticino.ch).

The wine routes in the region of Mendrisio, particularly those on the slopes of Monte San Giorgio, a UNESCO world heritage site for its fossil deposits, and through the vineyards of Castel San Pietro and Chiasso-Pedrinate are of particular interest (www.mendrisiotourism.ch).

Istria

Some scholars believe this name is derived from the ancient peoples called the Histri who lived in this area in Antiquity, others maintain that it comes from the Latin term Hister, referring to the Danube, which marked the confines of the region.

Close Encounters Photography/SHUTTERSTOCK

ON A HISTORIC NOTE

Istria boasts a long winemaking tradition. It is thus not by chance that in the Gulf of Arsa, near the village of Rakalj, there is a bay called Kalavojna, that in Greek means good wine (kalos oinos), attesting to how well the Greeks liked the wine of Istria.

But the Romans gave local winemaking the fundamental stimulus, such that Pliny the Elder, referring to Istrian wines in his work Historiarum mundi, sang the praises of vinum Pucinum, even attributing the long life of Empress Livia to it. Histrian wine has also had its vicissitudes: periods of splendour and others of hard times.

The Middle Ages were certainly a historic period in which it gained great fame. Italian Moscati wines were an unavoidable delicacy at royal banquets and the introduction of Malvasia grapes to Europe dates back to the Middle Ages, an era of fruitful and plentiful commerce between the Serenissima Repubblica of Venezia and Peloponnesus, whence this vine species hails. Another period of glory was the epoch of the Austrian Empire when vineyards covered more than 30,000 hectares. Unfortunately from the second half of the 19th century to the beginning of the last century, Phyloxxera brought Istrian viticulture down to its knees. Vineyards were replanted and only today have they returned to their original splendour. Today, Istria’s wine is highly considered and is an integral part of the region’s identity.

WINES AND VINEYARDS IN ISTRIA

Malvasia and more

Istrian winemaking cannot be mentioned without leaving some room for its symbolic vineyard, Malvasia, which is now an integral part of Istria’s identity, and occupies nearly two-thirds of the vineyards planted in the region. While Malvasia is the prevalent white grapevine species, its red equivalent is surely Terrano, which produces ruby red wines with purple highlights, offering fruity aromas – wild berries in particular – as well as character and acidity. Terrano is the protagonist of one of the most characteristic preparations: supa, a traditional peasant dish consisting of toasted bread soaked with red wine served in an earthenware dish called a bukaleta.

Denis Miraniuk/SHUTTERSTOCK

Along with Malvasia and Terrano, different types of Moscato are cultivated in Istria, in particular Moscato di Momiano and Moscato Rosa di Parenzo, which are used to produce excellent sweet wines served at the end of the meal.

Finally, Croata Nera (hrvatica crna), a vine species known in Italy as Croatina, has remained a minor species with respect to better-known black grapes by pure negligence. International white grapevine species that have found ideal conditions for cultivation in Istria include Chardonnay, Pinot Grigio and Pinot Bianco, which are used to make dry wines for drinking young and for aging. International black vine species cultivated there include Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc.

LEGISLATION

IQ (Istrian Quality) is the label conferred through an articulated system of controls established by Vinistra, the Associazione dei viticoltori e dei produttori del vino istriani. In recent years this association elaborated a specific approach to follow to obtain a detailed system of checks to survey the quality of Istrian Malvasia from vineyard to wine cellar, to bottling and sale. The IQ label on bottles is an important guarantee of quality for consumers.

Itineraries through the vineyards

The Fruits of the art of Viticulture

Chris P./SHUTTERSTOCK

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Ant Clausen/SHUTTERSTOCK