Custoza Expands with DOC for Passito and Superiore Wines
White Custoza expands in the space of wines and gains the controlled designation of origin (D.O.C.) for Passito and Superiore varieties. Custoza is a hamlet of Sommacampagna, in the province of Verona. Historically, it served as a guard station and custodian of crossings along the Roman road Postumia.
The area’s viticulture, with Etruscan origins (ritual vessels for toasts dating to the 1st and 2nd centuries BC have been found in a tomb in Valeggio sul Mincio), is attested by maps and purchase documents dating back to the times of Charlemagne (ninth century). After the transit of pilgrims, merchants, and soldiers, today it is enthusiasts of rural culture who traverse the prized production area of Bianco di Custoza. This extends from the Adige River (near Bussolengo), to the hills of Sommacampagna, Sona, and Valeggio, to the Mincio River valley, Lake Frassino, and brushes the southeastern side of Garda at Peschiera and Lazise.
Territory and Production
The wineries display their oldest family jewels (the Bianco obtained DOC status exactly thirty years ago) alongside the newer ones (Passito and Superiore), officially launched in 2001 but the result of careful vineyard management over recent years. About twenty companies, out of roughly forty producers, have dedicated a select portion of their healthy and abundant harvest to Passito.
The process begins with the selection of grapes according to traditional customs (the best bunches are harvested by hand with a woven basket) and no more than 5 tons per hectare are set aside for drying, with a maximum yield of grapes in wine not exceeding 40 percent. The grapes are left to rest in ventilated haylofts designed for this purpose. Vinification proceeds solely with local enological practices, honest and consistent, to impart the intrinsic qualities of the grapes to the wine.
This results in a golden yellow Passito with an intense and fruity aroma; a sweet or pleasant taste, velvety and harmonious, with a light aromatic body and a possible subtle perception of wood; minimum alcohol content. The wine can be released for consumption no earlier than September 1 of the year following the harvest.
Since aromatic grape varieties predominate (Malvasia, Riesling), the product retains the scent of flowers and jam (honey, jam); the hints of vanilla and toasted notes come from aging in oak barrels. The Superiore is produced from vineyard evolution, thanks to reduced grape yield per hectare (up to 12 tons, compared to 15 for specialized cultivation), increased vine density, reduced number of bunches, and the selection of the best and sunniest position.
Characteristics and Numbers
This results in a more concentrated wine with longer aging potential. The new regulations were published in the Official Gazette on August 11. The Superiore, light straw-colored, tends toward golden yellow with aging. It has a soft and harmonious flavor with a minimum alcohol content of 12.
Here are the figures for Bianco di Custoza: 170,000 quintals of grapes, produced on 1,364 hectares by 651 vintners, totaling 110,000 hectoliters, equivalent to 13 million bottles. The wine is primarily sold in Northern Italy (exports amount to 20 percent, mainly going to Germany, Austria, the United Kingdom, and the USA). It is one of the few wines where the grape-to-wine yield does not exceed 65 percent.
The varieties of grapevines include: Trebbiano Toscano 20-45 percent; Garganega 20-40 percent; Tocai Friulano known as Trebianello, 5-30 percent; Malvasia, Riesling Italico, Pinot Bianco, Chardonnay, and Cortese, called Fernanda, either alone or in combination, 20-30 percent.
The Consorzio di Tutela, established in 1972, is presided over by Albino Piona and directed by enologist Giulio Liut. On the occasion of the DOC recognition for Passito and Superiore, tomorrow at 8:30 pm at the Custoza multi-purpose center, Professor Rocco di Stefano, director of the enological experimental institute of Asti, will deliver a presentation. A tasting will follow.
