As far as wine goes, Sardinia is renowned for two varieties the world over – Cannonau and Vermentino. Cannonau is easily the most planted variety on this gorgeous Mediterranean island, accounting for 30% of total vineyards planted at 7,600 hectares while Vermentino claims 4,200 hectares on the island. Each variety even has its own esteemed Geographic Indication, including Cannonau di Sardegna D.O.C., Vermentino di Sardegna D.O.C, and Vermentino di Gallura D.O.C.G. And, honestly, it’s easy to see why. The climate and terroir found amongst the different regions of Sardinia produce beautiful, vivid, and unique expressions of these two varieties. Stay tuned for blogs posts to come, which will take a deeper dive into Cannonau and Vermentino respectively.
However, this blog post is all about Vermentino, Sardinia’s aromatic, terroir driven, world-renowned white wine! Marco and I recently had the opportunity to attend a guided technical tasting, or degustazione tecnica guidata, at Benvenuto Vermentino. Every year this three day event is held in Olbia, which was recently deemed the city of wine in honor of representing the vineyards, people, and wine of the surrounding region of Gallura.
Benvenuto Vermentino kicked off on Friday, October 18th with a guided technical tasting and a Vermentino shopping night in Olbia city center, featuring live music and wine tasting exhibits at local stores and restaurants. The festivities on Saturday, October 19th included the presentation of the Vermentino Eno-Literary award 2019 honoring a narrative work that was able to uniquely capture the colorful world of wine production. Saturday also featured a Wine Digital Conference and an Eno-Gastronomic Tasting open to the public featuring Vermentino from Sardinia, Provence, Corsica, and South Africa paired with gourmet bites and live music. A whole weekend dedicated to celebrating Vermentino!
Benvenuto Vermentino – Degustazione Tecnica Guidata
I was looking forward to the Benvenuto Vermentino tasting all summer, as Marco had told me about the event before I even came to Sardinia. And I was not disappointed! The technical tasting is curated and hosted by sommeliers of AIS Gallura (Associazione Italiana Sommelier). Each year Benvenuto Vermentino opens with this guided technical tasting of national and international Vermentino wines.
The tasting was hosted by Attilia Medda, delegate of AIS Gallura, and showcased wines from the Gallura DOC and DOCG designations, Sardinia, Tuscany, Liguria, Corsica, Provence and South Africa. Each wine was professionally presented by a sommelier, though personally I prefer when a guided technical tasting is guided by the winemaker who produced the wine. Of course, the whole tasting was presented in Italian, but from what I could understand, the AIS sommeliers did a lovely job presenting the territories of each wine and describing each wine’s characteristics. Best of all, the event was free! Though space was limited. Lucky for me, Marco works for one of the wineries that participated in the weekend’s festivities, so we were able to secure a spot early on.
Upon arrival at Benvenuto Vermentino, we were greeted by a room set for a professional tasting, bustling with Italian wine lovers and the who’s who of the local Gallura wine scene. The tables were magnificently set with six sparkling wine glasses over numbered mats to help track the tasting experience, along with a tasting list, crackers, and sparkling and still water. A whole squad of AIS sommeliers dressed in black service uniforms and the trademark AIS silver medallion necklaces were happily lined up and ready for service. The tasting promptly began at 3:30pm, as everyone quieted down for the presentation, anxiously anticipating our first sips of Vermentino. Though as the tasting progressed, those poor AIS sommeliers had a hard time getting a room of wine slicked Italians to keep quiet.
Below I’ve included my notes from the tasting in the order we tasted the wines. Per usual, as the wine intake increased the notetaking decreased, but I did my best to capture my tasting experience and what I loved. Most wines that we tasted were from the 2018 vintage except where otherwise noted.
Tasting Notes
Vermentini Della Liguria
Colli di Luni is the local region within Liguria known for Vermentino production. The area located in south Liguria is comprised of 65% mountains and 35% hills, hence the name. There are around 5 million bottles of wine produced in all of Liguria.
Vermentino Le Pianacce, Azienda Agricola Giacomelli, Colli di Luni
- Winery started in 1993
- Maceration with 12 hours on the skins
- Nose is clean with a medium-pronounced intensity
- Notes of mandarins, white flowers, and a prominent minerality
- On the palate, medium-bodied with high acidity and a long finish
- A bit angular
Vermentino Etichetta Nera, Cantine Lunae, Colli di Luni
- I rated this wine ** (2 stars)
- Founded in 1966, this is the biggest winery in Liguria with an annual production of 700,000 bottles and 45 hectares planted to vines
- 48 hours of maceration and 2 months of bâttonage
- Definitely more fruit forward with notes of white flower, candied grapefruit, and a brioche quality characteristic of bâttonage
- Based on the aromas and flavors, potentially has another variety like Moscato in addition to Vermentino
Vermentino Boceda, Azienda Agricola Zangani, Colli di Luni
- Very closed at first with a bit of reduction
- Opened with time and had prominent notes of salinity
Vermentini Della Toscana
Traverso, Vigne Conti, Candia dei Colli Apuani
- Minerals, white flowers, and apricot on the nose and palate
- VERY acidic, which seemed to be added tartaric acid
Vermentini Internazionali
Vermentino Aiaccio, Domaine Comte Peraldi, Corsica
- I gave this wine ***(3 stars), one of my favorites of the tasting
- The vineyards are located near the coast at high elevations amongst mountains on granite soil
- 2-3 hours of skin contact
- Aromas of delicate citrus with white pulp, like a white grapefruit
- Balanced and clean on the palate, aromas and flavors of the sea, delicate white potpourri and dried pears
- Very vibrant on the palate with a long, focused finished
Corse Calvi, Petra Rossa, Corsica AOP
- Organic wine
- Maceration on the skins and bâttonage
- I didn’t even take notes on this one because this wine was on the downward slope, this was a dumper unfortunately
Fleur de Rolle, Domaine de la Bastid Neuve, Provence
- I gave his wine **(2 stars)
- Winery and 150 hectares of vineyards are located 40km from St. Tropez
- Only 5,000 bottles produced
- Notes of gardenia and white nectarines
- Delicate, elegant, and clean
- A bit sweet on the palate to balance the high acidity
- Aromas of Provence
2017 Vermentino, Ayama, South Africa
- Half fermented in steel tanks and the other half fermented in 2-year-old neutral barrels
- Known as the best Vermentino in South Africa
- The nose is clean with aromas of oak influence and dry herbs
- More full-bodied on the palate from the use of oak with heavy notes of vanilla from the oak influence and a bitter quality
- An oak influenced white wine the American palate would love, but the oak masks the qualities of the Vermentino
Spumanti
Akenta Vermentino di Sardegna D.O.C., Santa Maria La Palma, Alghero
- Spumante produced in the Charmat method
- I’ve had this wine before and it is consistently delicious
- A lovely, refreshing spumante you can rely on to please
- Super fresh on the palate, a hint of sweetness
Birbante Vermentino di Sardegna D.O.C., Tenute Asinara, Cargeghe
- I gave this wine ***(3 stars)
- Spumante produced in the Charmat method, grapes harvested the first week of August
- Notes of juicy pear, white flowers, and green melon
- Very, very, very fresh
- Bright, fresh acidity
- Delicate pear and green melon on the finish, a bit of white pepper and vegetal
Adelasia Vermentino di Sardegna D.O.C., Cantina Mancini, Olbia
- I gave this wine ****(4 stars)
- Spumante produced in the Charmat method, 6 months in tank with the lees
- More texture from the lees contact, soft minerals, white pepper, slate
- Seriously beautiful, big fan
2013 Filighe, Vermentino di Gallura D.O.C., Cherchi, Usini
- I gave this wine ****(4 stars), easily my favorite wine of Benvenuto Vermentino
- Spumante produced in metodo classico with secondary fermentation in bottle
- Notes of caramel, apricots, nuts, amaro, and a woodiness
- Layered and complex with a long, focused finish
Karagnani Vermetino di Gallura D.O.C.G., Tondini, Calangianus
- Spumante produced in metodo classico
- Savory on the nose, sweet on the palate
Spumante Metodo Classico Vermentino di Gallura D.O.C.G., Surrau, Arzachena
- Spumante produced in metodo classico
- Very delicate, almost dusty nose of white flowers and green apple
- Angular on the palate with bracing acidity
2012 Bisso Vermentino di Gallura D.O.C.G., Olbios, Olbia
- Spumante produced in metodo classico, bottles turned by hand for 23 months
- Mature fruit, notes of raisins, potpourri, pastry dough, yellow apples, and brandy
- Oxidative
Vermentino di Sardegna D.O.C.
Akesi Vermentino di Sardegna D.O.C., Alba & Spanedda, Ossi
- Delicate and elegant on the nose, but sweet on the palate
- Notes of pear, green apple, and white flowers
Sessantaquattro Vermentino di Sardegna D.O.C., Poderi Parpinello, Alghero
- Notes of yellow flowers, fresh almonds, and pear on the nose
- A bit sweet on the palate
Cala Reale Vermentino di Sardegna D.O.C., Sella e Mosca, Alghero
- Great intensity on the nose with notes of tropical fruit, pineapple, mature fruits, and a beautiful ocean breeze salinity
- Soft and rounded on the palate, dry with balanced acidity
Sussinku Vermentino di Sardegna D.O.C., Nuraghe Crabioni, Sorso
- I gave this wine ***(3 stars)
- Delicate, dusty perfume with notes of apricot, white nectarine, and melacotogna (quince)
- A delicate, elegant dance of Vermentino
- Very unique expression of the variety
Opale Vermentino di Sardegna D.O.C., Mesa, Sant’Anna Arresi
- Notes of mature fruits and Mediterranean herbs
Su’Orma Vermentino di Sardegna D.O.C., Su’Entu, Sanluri
- A bit lacking in aroma and flavor, other than heavy oak notes
- Possibly used oak chips for this wine
Vermentino di Gallura D.O.C.G.
Invidia Vermentino di Gallura D.O.C.G., Consorzio San Michele, Berchidda
- Very fresh, light, and translucent
- Zippy acidity from the calcareous and granite based soils
Jankara Vermentino di Gallura D.O.C.G. Superiore, Jankara, Luogosanto
- Non mi piace
Incontru Vermentino di Gallura D.O.C.G. Superiore, Aini, Berchidda
- I gave this wine **(2 stars)
- Delicate floral aromas along with notes and flavors of lime, pear, slate, and salinity
Bianco Smeraldo Vermentino di Gallura D.O.C.G., Un Mare Divino, Berchidda
- I gave this wine ***(3 stars), easily my favorite Vermentino I have tasted in Sardinia
- Beautiful, elegant yellow hue
- Very aromatic with notes of nectarine, apricot, white balsamic, white pepper, and macchia with flavors to match
- Layered and complex with a long, focused finish
Nonz’inna Vermentino di Gallura D.O.C.G., Cantina Li Duni, Badesi
- Delicate nose, but high, heavy alcohol (16.5%)
- Very sweet to balance out the alcohol
Lumenera Vermentino di Gallura D.O.C.G., Murales, Olbia
- Very different for a Vermentino with resinous notes like fresh sap from a tree
- Also notes of salinity
Arakena Vermentino di Gallura D.O.C.G., Cantina del Vermentino, Monti
- I gave this wine ***(3 stars)
- Medium bodied and very aromatic with notes of white flowers, citrus, and orange blossoms
- A lovely wine and beautiful expression of Vermentino
