Calabria

Calabria has a vast range od wines, and each part of the countryside seem to have its own. Much appreciated by the ancient Greeks and Romans, Virgil and Pliny sing the praises of the fruit of the vine , and it is certain that in antiquity, Calabria was the land of wines (hence the name Enotria), and over a hundred varieties of wine were known there at the time of the Greeks. The best known of Calabria’s DOC wines is Cirò, fabled locally to be a descendent of Krimisa, a celebration wine drunk by Calabrian athletes in early Olympiads. Grown on the foothills of the Ionian coast, this historic wine could not be further removed from its famous ancestor. Modern methods of vine training and improved vinification techniques have produced a fresh, deeply aromatic wine, with no signs of the oxidation that characterised earlier versions. The best examples can age for decades, into majestic dark, brooding wines, densely flavoured with red and black fruits, tar and spices. Fine rosé wines are also produced under the Cirò DOC appellation, and an appealing white made from Greco. Similar quality reds and whites are produced in the neighbouring Melissa DOC. However, reds made from grapes grown on the higher altitude subzones of Pollino, Donnici and Savuto, which are part of the Terre di Cosenza DOC, tend to be lighter in colour and cherry-scented. Although there is also a recent trend towards plantings of Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc, historic varietals like the red Magliocco are emerging as local grapes that can make some exceptional and unique wines. Other appellations such as Bivongi DOC and San Vito di Luzzi, another Terre di Cosenza’s subzone, produce excellent quality reds and whites using local varietals.