If You Are Touring to Rome, Right here Are the 8 Wineries You Need to Go to

Virtually two million People arrive in Rome every year, and whereas the town itself is a stellar place to drink wine, there’s additionally a superb argument for escaping the vacationer bustle for a number of days to go to one (or extra) of the close by wine areas.

Surrounding the town is the Lazio area, lengthy a sleepy place identified largely for cheap, easy Frascati, however now populated with a burgeoning variety of bold younger winemakers. Umbria, to the north, is house to nice Sangiovese-based reds and the basic whites of Orvieto. Abruzzo, an hour and a half drive to the east, sandwiched between the mountains and the ocean, is considered one of Italy’s most fun wine areas nowadays, adopted intently by Marche to its north.

Listed below are eight wineries unfold throughout these areas, all with terrific hospitality choices.

Cirelli, Abruzzo

Azienda Agricula Cirelli, within the city of Atri in Abruzzo, gives a superb instance of how desires can turn out to be actuality. After graduating from school in Milan with a level in economics, Francesco Cirelli determined to pursue agriculture, a ardour inherited from his grandfather. At age 23, he purchased a parcel of land and began his personal farm.

From the start, partly due to the area’s favorable microclimate, Cirelli has farmed solely naturally, utilizing no artificial chemical compounds in any way. With the assistance of his spouse Michela, at the moment he cultivates vineyards, olive groves, and vegetable gardens, raises animals, and produces all the standard wines of the Abruzzese hills: Trebbiano, Pecorino, Cerasuolo, and Montepulciano d’Abruzzo. Previously few years, he’s additionally added a choice of wines made in amphora. 

Cirelli has additionally turn out to be identified for wine tourism. Right here, visitors can immerse themselves within the stunning Abruzzo landscapes in other ways reminiscent of glamping, permitting them to mingle discreet luxurious along with direct contact with nature, or “Yoga and Wine,” which incorporates an out of doors yoga session adopted by a go to to the vineyards and cellar.

For individuals who select to not glamp, there are two wood lodges positioned amongst vineyards and olive groves, every geared up with personal loos, air-con, heating, and furnished panoramic terraces with views of the encircling hills. Within the morning, a breakfast made with native merchandise is served, permitting visitors to start out the day with an genuine, zero-kilometer expertise. Additionally don’t miss the “All About Amphora” tasting, which features a tour of the vineyards and cellar, and tasting of the amphora wines accompanied by a platter of native, zero-mile merchandise.

Wine to attempt

Cirelli Trebbiano d’Abruzzo Anfora

Wealthy with citrus notes, this white displays Francesco Cirelli’s give attention to seasonality, respect for the area, and, as he usually likes to say, a means of being and feeling the Earth.

Tenuta i Fauri, Abruzzo

Chieti, the house of Tenuta i Fauri, is the southernmost province of Abruzzo. Its worth for vines and olive timber was found in Roman instances, and it continues to be an space of nice archaeological curiosity. The identify Tenuta I Fauri itself derives from historical historical past: Fifteen years in the past, excavations within the winery dropped at mild the stays of an early Christian monastery from the Roman period. A plaque within the ruins spoke of the monks who lived right here, referred to as “fauri.” 

On these hills, which descend from the Maiella to the Adriatic, making wine is a ardour transmitted from one era to the subsequent. At Tenuta i Fauri, Domenico Di Camillo takes care of the vineyards, whereas his youngsters Luigi and Valentina work within the cellar and out there.

They’re winemakers each by alternative and by custom, working 86 acres of vineyards in six totally different municipalities; all small peasant properties, they belonged to grandparents and ancestors, and have been reacquired through the years by the household. To get to know I Fauri, to start with stroll among the many organically grown vineyards on the Teatro hills, then go all the way down to grandfather Luigi’s cellar in Ari, renovated a number of years in the past.

There the Nineteen Sixties-era concrete tanks have been fastidiously preserved and renovated by the household, alongside the metal vats and some barrels, and tastings listed here are accompanied by a choice of native merchandise, with explicit consideration to typicality and seasonality. Then cease on the property: Baldovino is the household farmhouse, suspended between the tip of the nineteenth century and modern design, with terraces and a swimming pool wanting over the vineyards and hills. (Additionally it is doable to remain in a single day of their close by nation home within the San Severino district of Villamagna.)

Wine to attempt

Tenuta i Fauri Montepulciano d’Abruzzo October Crimson
This Montepulciano goes solely into concrete, the place it ages for 9 months, gaining an intriguing depth even because the fruit stays vividly alive. Elegant and deeply attribute of the area, it’s additionally a wine that expresses the soul of I Fauri.

Zaccagnini, Abruzzo

Cantina Zaccagnini, based in 1976 by Marcello Zaccagnini in Bolognano (now owned by the Argea group), farms some 617 acres of vineyards in Abruzzo’s Pescara hills. From these vines, it summons distinctive wines that inform the story each of the area and of Abruzzese wine; not for nothing is it one of many benchmark producers of the area.

Among the many rows develop native varieties reminiscent of Montepulciano, Trebbiano, Passerina, and Moscato di Castiglione—a uncommon selection used each within the vineyard’s candy, glowing Aster Moscato and in its passito Plaisir Bianco —together with small plots of Grenache and Pinot Grigio. All the pieces is farmed sustainably, utilizing natural fertilizers. Legumes develop between the rows to assist protect life within the soil, and 500 oak timber have been planted to assist offset CO2 emissions. 

Along with the standard of its wines, Cantina Zaccagnini is thought for the greater than 40 modern artwork installations on the property. This program began in 1984, when the cellar hosted the German artist Joseph Beuys for his “Protection of Nature” occasion. Since then, Zaccagnini, whose philosophy is summed up within the phrase “wine, artwork of man” has turn out to be a vacation spot for each wine lovers and artwork lovers who come to admire the works of up to date artists reminiscent of Mimmo Paladino, David Bade, and Mauro Berrettini. 

For these visiting Zaccagnini for the primary time, the “Basic” tasting is a perfect approach to begin. Beginning with a tour of the cellar, it ends with a tasting of the vineyard’s Tralcetto Trebbiano, Tralcetto Montepulciano and Tralcetto Cerasuolo d’Abruzzos. The “Il Re Montepulciano”  tasting focuses on the vineyard’s Tralcetto, Chronicon, and San Clemente Montepulciano d’Abruzzo wines, whereas “Finest in Class” is a journey by means of 5 of Zaccagnini’s prime wines and the artworks positioned within the cellar and within the barrel room. For purchasers eager to take pleasure in nature, Zaccagnini additionally provides personal tastings in an occasion area deep within the woods, the place the home windows overlook the encircling vineyards.

Wine to attempt

Zaccagnini Montepulciano d’Abruzzo Terre di Casauria Riserva

This intoxicating crimson is considered one of Zaccagnini’s most consultant wines. Aged for 2 years earlier than launch, its flavors are wealthy and sophisticated, dominated by wild berry notes.

Lungarotti, Umbria

Loads of wineries have ridden the wine tourism wave, however there are just a few who helped create it, significantly in areas the place it by no means existed up to now. One in every of these is Lungarotti, one of many definitive producers within the Torgiano space, and certainly in the complete area of Umbria. 

Lungarotti was based within the Nineteen Sixties by the far-sighted Giorgio Lungarotti. A terrific wine thoughts, he maintained a powerful bond with the countryside whereas additionally bringing collectively a gaggle of small household farms and remodeling them into Cantine Giorgio Lungarotti. His work not solely revolutionized Umbrian wine, however related to an agricultural custom that had by no means targeted on specialization; and it made Torgiano a real enological, touristic, and cultural hub. 

From the outset, Lungarotti targeted on Sangiovese (a wink at close by Tuscany): thus its benchmark crimson Rubesco was born. That wine remains to be Lungarotti’s flagship bottling, in addition to the main wine of each the Torgiano DOC and of the Torgiano Rosso Riserva DOCG. In 1974, following an identical entrepreneurial spirit, the Lungarottis began to focus on hospitality, first by opening their cellar to vacationers then by founding the MUVIT Wine Museum. The cellar tour, with its vault of outdated vintages, is greater than well worth the go to by itself. 

Over the course of twenty years, different ventures adopted: a luxurious resort (Le Tre Vaselle, now underneath exterior administration), the Poggio alle Vigne farmhouse, and in 2000, the 12 months after Giorgio Lungarotti’s loss of life, the MOO, a museum devoted to the cultivation of olives and the making of olive oil. Lengthy his dream, it was opened by his household in his reminiscence. Since his passing, the corporate has been run by Giorgio’s daughter Chiara, supported by her mom Maria Grazia and her sister Teresa Severini (from her mom’s first marriage) — a largely feminine group that stands out within the Italian wine scene.

Wine to attempt

Torgiano Chardonnay Aurente 

Although Lungarotti concentrates on indigenous grape varieties, the vineyard additionally makes glorious cuvées from worldwide vines. This Chardonnay, unusually recent given Umbria’s heat local weather, has been since 1999 an affidavit to the equal high quality of the white wines at a vineyard primarily identified for its reds.

Cantina Sant’Andrea, Lazio

After their farmlands in Tunisia had been nationalized throughout the nation’s 1964 shift to socialism, the Pandolfo household returned to Italy and rebuilt their fortune in decrease Lazio, close to Terracina. They planted their first vines in 1968, and at the moment Gabriele Pandolfo and his son Andrea farm 247 acres of Sangiovese, Trebbiano, Aleatico, Cesanese, and Moscato di Terracina (the latter on considered one of Italy’s solely vineyards grown on karst, a lunar-like panorama of damaged limestone and marble). Andrea Pandolfo additionally supervises Cantina Sant’ Andrea’s winemaking. 

The Pandolfos’ perseverance in producing glorious Lazio wines was complemented in 2021 by the opening of their agriturismo Seguire le Botti (or, Comply with the Bottle). The venture, helmed by Andrea Pandolfo, is a farmhouse inn with 5 bedrooms and a connoisseur restaurant led by Neapolitan chef Pasquale Minciguerra.

Open 12 months spherical, the restaurant serves dishes that inform the story of the area by means of the work of native cheesemakers, farmers, breeders, and millers, which chef Minciguerra attracts on for his menu, reminiscent of black pig loin and bacon served with zucchini alla scapece and cipollini onions in agrodolce. The vineyard’s personal farm merchandise are additionally a significant a part of the menu: hen and duck eggs, additional virgin olive oil from the Itrana olive selection, focaccia, and honey (particularly good with the home made bread at breakfast).

Wine to attempt

Cantina Sant’ Andrea Vermentino 253 Days

First launched in 2024, this white pays homage to the town of Sabaudia and, in legend, the variety of days it took to construct the town. The vineyards’ sandy soil and seaside affect offers this Vermentino savory and mineral notes, paying homage to a recent spring day.

Terre di Marfisa, Lazio

Because the Italian saying goes, lanciare il cuore oltre l’ostacolo, or, “throw your coronary heart over the impediment.” That describes the fervour within the face of impossibility that the Clarici household had, 15 years in the past, once they selected to imagine within the potential of Lazio’s deeply undervalued Tuscia Viterbe area.

The inspiration first got here from Bruno Clarici, a retired civil engineer (who sadly handed away in 2024), and his daughter Nathalie, who at thirty-nine, in the course of her profession and with two younger daughters, didn’t suppose twice about leaving her job and dedicating herself physique and soul to the venture named after her grandmother Marfisa. Her brother Riccardo and cousin Marco Baroni, a mechanical engineer and an architect, then joined, overseeing the design of the property. 

Terre di Marfisa began in 2009 with 15 acres of olive groves; afterward got here the wine cellar and in 2018 the farmhouses (meant for visitors) opened their doorways. In the present day the property farms a complete of 57 acres of crops, of which just about 17 are vines: Sangiovese, Syrah and Vermentino, varieties impressed by close by Tuscany, in addition to small quantities of Petit Verdot and Incrocio Manzoni.

The Podere di Marfisa provides 12 elegant rooms, a swimming pool and an impressive spa, in addition to the Osteria Unicorno restaurant, led by the Campanian chef Luigi Ferrante. And adorning each nook of the property are sculptures by native artist Cesare Bozzini, of whom the household is now a patron.

Wine to attempt

Terre di Marfisa Vermentino Zamathi Iris

This uncommon white comes from Vermentino grapes along with 15% Incrocio Manzoni. The 2 varieties unite the volcanic soils of the Tyrrhenian coast with an unusual minerality, enriched with Incrocio Manzoni’s unique citrus notes.