AlessandroJacopo Boncompagni Ludovisi, owner of Tenuta di Fiorano, has revived the legendary Fiorano Semillon of Veronellian memory.
The last versions of Fiorano Semillon that I remember date back to the early 1970s. It was a legendary wine, wanted by the Prince Alberico Boncompagni Ludovisi and made from grapes of the same name grown on the Fiorano Estate on the Appia Antica, just outside Rome.
I remember that Luigi Veronelli spoke of it as a true oenological gem and that I, then very young and penniless, would set aside money to buy at least one bottle every year. Then the vines were leveled just before the prince left us.
Now his grandson and heir AlessandroJacopo tried again. New vines planted in 2015 and from the 2021 vintage here is the rebirth of Fiorano Semillon. It matures as in the old versions for one year in 10-hectoliter barrels and then stays in the bottle for another two years.
He let me taste it at the Vinitaly just finished and the excitement was great. Also with me were Ampelio Bucci, legendary Verdicchio producer, Pier Mario Meletti Cavallari, who invented Grattamacco in Bolgheri, and Alessio Di Majo, winemaker in Molise. All three were reminiscent of the old Fiorano Semilon, and also the Fiorano Rosso, which is coming out with the new 2016 version.
But that white was the true protagonist. Golden yellow, enveloping, with notes of peach and acacia flowers. Especially with the usual savoriness it had in those past versions. So a few tasting notes and especially a warm “welcome back” seemed due.
PRODUCER
