Alongside sparkling wines (white or rosé) and still wines (usually red) in Oltrepò we also find excellent white wines, and we highlight two truly enjoyable ones from international grapes.
When we talk about Oltrepò Pavese we inevitably think of the Pinot Noir, both still and sparkling red, even in a rosé version with Cruasé, and we talk about it as if it were an indigenous grape variety, given its historicity and considerable vineyard area (3,000 hectares of hillsides, just behind Burgundy and Champagne). Alternatively, our memory goes to very distinctive local red grape varieties, such as Croatina or Barbera. Possibly to unfamiliar names such as Ughetta and Uva rara. Which then together combine to produce the Bonarda, an exceedingly typical wine.
After all, as many as 225 native grape varieties were registered in Oltrepò Pavese in 1884. Today there are little more than 10 of the most popular ones while, as happens in other areas, some historic producers are trying to recover ancient grape varieties that were once widespread, such as Uva della Cascina or Moradella.
Oltrepò in white
If we think about white grapes, however, the argument is less straightforward. Among the historical ones we find some grapes still present today, such as Malvasia, Moscato or Cortese. Yet there is an extremely popular grape variety in the area: the Riesling, both Italiaco and Renano, which arrived in more recent times. As many as 1,300 hectares-but this is a steadily growing figure-and the good news is that many hectares of Italico are being converted in favor of Rhenish, in search of greater aromas and better aging capacity.
We want to tell you today about two wines produced in Oltrepò Pavese from allochthonous grapes, not Doc, but Igt Provincia di Pavia, although both wineries are in the Doc area. The first is a Riesling produced by Monsupello and the second a Müller Thurgau, a grape less common locally, but one that-at least in the case at hand-is a real gem: the Nulla Hora from Montelio.
Monsupello in Torricella Verzate
Monsupello without a shadow of a doubt, it is one of the most valuable and representative wineries in the Oltrepò sparkling wine industry. Alongside the seven sparkling wines produced, however, there is a wide range of still wines, whites, rosés, reds and even three sweet wines, according to a vision that aims to give interpretations and offer all-round expressions of the territory. Since 1883, since always that is, owned by the Boatti family, after the passing of Carlo, patriarch and great figure in local vitienology, it is his wife Carla and children Laura and Pierangelo who continue the work. At their side, very valuable support, oenologist and technical director Marco Bertelegni with vineyard advice from agronomist Giovanni Bigot.
Montelio in Codevilla
A few miles away to the southwest, in Codevilla, Caterina and Giovanna Brazzoli, sisters, represent the seventh generation of the family that over a century and a half ago founded the famous winery Montelio. A winery that helped create the history of the area, with the Champagne Montelio so famous that in 1886 it was chosen by Prince Louis of Savoy for the launching of the Royal Navy’s ship Vesuvius. In undoubtedly more recent times, in the 1970s, one should recall the passionate entries devoted to their wines by Luigi Veronelli in his Bolaffi Catalogue of the Wines of Italy. Now the winery is carrying on with a determined edge, always presenting interesting and well-made wines.
TO READ THE WINE DESCRIPTIONS, WITH SCORE AND AVERAGE SHELF PRICE, CLICK ON THE TABS BELOW.
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