Tre Bicchieri 2020 Preview. The 13 best wines of Emilia-Romagna

Oct 13 2019, 05:55 | by Gambero Rosso

The previews of wines awarded by the Vini d'Italia 2020 guide of Gambero Rosso continue. Today it’s the turn of Emilia-Romagna.

There 's nothing like travelling along the Via Emilia to capture the many regional wine-making areas that change drastically from Province to Province, from the Colli Piacentini to the Bologna province, by way of the vast lands of Lambrusco.

Tre Bicchieri 2020 Emilia Romagna. Emilia

If Bologna is now very popular in the production of Pignoletto, in all possible variants, with sub-areas and a widening of the denomination, in Piacenza and surroundings, the most interesting signs come mostly from the Malvasia di Candia aromatica and from Metodo Classico, which should not be surprising, given the territorial contiguity with Oltrepò Pavese. As for Gutturnio, as long as the sparkling, more traditional, and the non-sparkling version coexist, each capable of giving rather interesting results, it will be difficult to promote it effectively, all the more so given the chronic inaction of the Consortium.

Wine-making moves in random order on the Colli di Parma, combining international vines with native ones, with some virtuous wineries yet with the absence of an overall vision.

This overall vision certainly is however present in the Lambrusco area, in Reggio Emilia and, above all, in Modena, where the Sorbara––albeit in a year that is not as fortunate as 2018––plays a starring role, bringing in agreement both the great wineries and the smaller family ones.

Tre Bicchieri 2020 Emilia Romagna. Romagna

Dialectics and complementary equality between different wineries, especially in regards to numbers and size, is obviously also the characteristic of Romagna. Large groups go arm in arm with medium-small wineries, sometimes minuscule, able to draw together an overall picture in dashing colours, in a positive evolution on each front.

We are in one of the undisputed kingdoms of Sangiovese, it's therefore understandable why many ideas and energies have turned to this great variety, for some years now. So much so that a detailed map of geographical references had been codified in the region, and claimed by some of the most interesting producers around. Map aside, it's increasingly easier, glass in hand, to trace territorial routes and significant deviations, starting obviously from a solid common base.

There are many other varieties in which the region engages, between recently rare and almost forgotten native grapes, and great international varieties. Honourable mention goes to white grapes, that are increasingly considered, including the widespread albana and the intriguing rebola.