All about Ormeasco. Ligurian wines

Set in western Liguria, the Alta (i.e., high) Valle Arroscia is a gateway to Piedmont.

 

This used to be the track of the ancient “salt route”, travelled by merchants who left ports to trade salt, oil, anchovies and goods from overseas towards the affluent Padan plain. A long way from Mediterranean scents. The trails of transhumance feature different notes and flavours, which derive from the union of the Ligurian, Cuneese (i.e., from Cuneo) and Occitan mountain culture: the simple dishes of the “cucina bianca”, the “white cuisine” which owes its name to the colour of its ingredients: flour, dairy products, leeks, garlic, turnips, high mountain cheese and fermented ricotta (brusso). 

 

The local expression of oenology is Ormeasco di Pornassio, a red mountain wine (vineyards dare to reach 800 meters a.s.l.). Altitude provides remarkable temperature variations (especially in summer) resulting in longevity and slow maturation perfumes. The microclimate changes from vineyard to vineyard, in an alternation of sea breezes and Alpine winds. The total area under vines reaches around 40 hectares. The Ormeasco di Pornassio D.O.C (i.e., Controlled Designation of Origin) was established in 2003 – before it was one of the 4 subareas of the D.O.C. "Riviera Ligure di Ponente".

 

This versatile grape variety also suits rosé vinification: the output of short skin contact maceration is Ormeasco Sciac-trà, coral pink in colour and fruity to the nose. Once an easy drinking wine, its pomace was used in red wine vinification to add body. Fresh, docile tannins, sapid hints and almond final notes. It is not to be confused with Cinque Terre Sciacchetrà, the renowned and rare passito of the Levante (i.e., Eastern Liguria) which is made from bosco, vermentino and albarola.

 

However, the D.O.C. is best known for its rosso (i.e., red) base and its superiore (higher alcohol content, one year of aging at the least). When young, the colour turns to intense ruby with purple hues, rich fruit (ripe cherry, mulberry, currant, plum jam, withered violet) and spices notes; when aged, the “superiore" turns to pomegranate, the aromas more varied and persistent – ripe fruit, resin, wood, vanilla and black pepper, with an unmistakable balsamic hint of Mediterranean vegetation (maquis), reminiscent of the distant sea.

 

 

My English abstract of the article as published on LiguriaFood

Luisa Puppo

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