Ciao Tutti!
This weekend at Piazza Italian Market, we will taste the Terrazze Toscana IGT ($19.50) from the Beconcini winery in San Minato, near Pisa. The distinctive label of Terrazze (terraces) reflects the winery’s 18th-century topography. Emily and I tasted this wine with the rep. recently,y and we wanted to add it to Piazza’s collection.
The story of the Beconcini winery begins with a family. In the early 1950’s, Giuseppe Beconcini, a sharecropper at the Marchesi Ridolfi estate, was able to purchase the land he was renting, one of the first Tuscan peasant families to break away from the ancient regime. He began to grow and sell agricultural products ranging from fruits to livestock. When the business passed to his son Pietro, his focus was producing Chianti (after all, this is Tuscany) that he sold in the signature fiaschi (straw flasks). When the winery passed to his son Leonardo, he took it to another level and made it his own.
Leonardo’s first task was to conduct extensive research into the winery’s environment. Soon, to his amazement, he discovered two local Sangiovese clones that are now planted in his vineyards. Lurking among these vines was also an ungrafted, unknown grape variety. He was so impressed with the quality of the wine he produced that he nurtured these grapes and painted the vines with an “X”. Eleven years later, including DNA testing, the mysterious grape was identified as “Tempranillo”. Leonardo discovered that the ancient Via Francigena had run through his property. This road was heavily used by locals and by religious pilgrims from Canterbury and Santiago de Compostela in Spain, so Tempranillo’s Spanish provenance became clear. Beconcini produces the only commercially produced Tuscan Tempranillo wines- two red and one rose’ and one wine is labeled ”X”.
The Bencocini Terrazze is a blend of eight indigenous Tuscan grape varieties; 60% Black Malvasia, and Canaiolo; 40% Black Trebbiano, Ciliegiolo, Gran Noir, Tempranillo and Buonamico. I liked its earthy, herbal, savory taste, soft tannins and low ABV. This wine is a great match for rich roasts, game birds, and cured meats, and its herbal partner is rosemary.
Come join me Friday from noon to 5:45 or Saturday from noon to 4:45 for a taste of Tuscany!
Cin Cin-
Jenn
Piazza Italian Market is located in the Talbot Town Shopping Center at 218 N. Washington St., suite 23, in Easton, MD
Contributor Jennifer Martella has pursued dual careers in architecture and real estate since she moved to the Eastern Shore in 2004. She has reestablished her architectural practice for residential and commercial projects and is a real estate agent for Meredith Fine Properties. She especially enjoys using her architectural expertise to help buyers envision how they could modify a potential property. Her Italian heritage led her to Piazza Italian Market, where she hosts wine tastings every Friday and Saturday afternoons.
