However, it doesn't share with its neighbors the same enological prestige, because no great vintage red wines like Chianti, nor trendy sparkling wines like Prosecco, are produced here.
Apr 4, 2017 - Arts, Culture and above all Good Food. Follow us on this journey to discover the exquisite wines of Emilia Romagna.
Emilia-Romagna's most renowned gastronomic products are cured meats and cheeses, like Culatello di Zibello, Prosciutto di Parma and Parmigiano Reggiano, not to mention its world famous, diet-busting dishes such as lasagne with ragù alla bolognese, tortellini and cotechino.
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Still, Emilia-Romagna enjoys a certain popularity among wine lovers as the home of one of Italy's most popular wines, one whose name is a synonym for conviviality and merrymaking: Lambrusco.
For a long time, this wine had a bad reputation because it is fizzy and meant to be drunk young and thus doesn't show much complexity. Moreover, it can be pretty harsh (after all, it's something that cleans your mouth after eating zampone), and a huge quantity of not-so-good Lambrusco has been produced and exported in the past decades, contributing to its bad reputation. Nowadays, sensible producers are going back to quality winemaking.
The center of Lambrusco production is Sorbara, in the province of Modena. It's a small village between the Secchia and Panaro Rivers, at an elevation of about 100 feet (30 meters). Sorbara lies in the heart of Pianura Padana, the large and flat valley of the Po River. Its soil is made mainly of maritime and fluvial sediments, and the absence of slopes makes it very hard to make interesting wines here.
Lambrusco, however, can be a quality wine. It received the DOC appellation, which is the second best appellation for Italian wines, after DOCG. Nowadays, its strong link to local traditions is not the only reason Italian wine laws protect this product, as cellars like Monte delle Vigne and Fratelli Cella are producing high-quality wines.
Another much-praised Lambrusco producer is Cantine Lombardini, but this cellar is based in Mantua (indeed, their one makes Lambrusco Mantovano, the sole kind of Lambrusco produced in Lombardy), outside of Emilia-Romagna.
Within the region, seven different Lambrusco DOC appellations can be found:
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Lambrusco di Sorbara
Lambrusco Modena
Lambrusco Grasparossa di Castelvetro
Lambrusco Grasparossa Colli di Scandiano e Canossa
Lambrusco Salamino di Santa Croce
Lambrusco Reggiano
Colli di Scandiano e di Canossa Lambrusco Montericco rosato frizzante
Though it's the most famous one, Lambrusco is not the only wine produced in Emilia-Romagna. The region can even boast two DOCG wines, one from Emilia, the larger, northern part of the region, and one from Romagna, a subregion that includes the provinces of Ravenna, Rimini and Forlì-Cesena. The two are Colli Bolognesi Classico Pignoletto, produced in some municipalities of the province of Bologna and in Savignano sul Panaro, in the province of Modena; and Romagna Albana, produced in the province of Forlì-Cesena.
Both these areas of production are hilly and benefit from the relative nearness (just 60 miles/95 kilometers) of the Adriatic Sea. Notable producers of these DOCG wines from Emilia-Romagna are Manaresi and Tenuta Santa Croce (for Pignoletto) and Calonga and Santa Lusa (for Albana).