Thanks to the mild microclimate, a qualitatively valuable, full and dry white wine matures in this area. A wine that together with the Sciacchetrà takes the top of the Italian wines. The grapes from Bosco, Arbarola and Vermentino are used to make wine from one of the most fascinating and spectacular wine regions in the world.
The Cinque Terre Wine has been valued since ancient times. During the excavations, amphorae with the inscription Cornelia were found in Pompeii. The name comes from the Gens Cornelia family who owned the Corniglia estate and who produced the renowned wine.
The terraced vineyards are steep and difficult to manage. Sometimes the terraces are so narrow that there is only room for two or three vines. Again and again, the terraced dry stone walls have to be reattached with the natural stones. Vehicles do not come to the winegrowers, so the work is associated with a lot of strength and skill.
Cinque Terre Wine
The Vino Cinque Terre Doc has a special quality due to the sunny Mediterranean location near the sea and the light, nutrient-rich soil. The wine of Cinque Terre is primarily a white wine. The classic Cinque Terre wine is a dry and aromatic. Cinque Terre white wine is made with the three grapes Bosco, Albarola and Vermentino.
Vintage Vendemmia
The traditional vintage “Vendemmia” in the Cinque Terre begins in mid-September. The grapes are harvested exclusively by hand. Large technology has no place on the narrow terraces. Most of the harvest goes to the Cooperativa, where the Cinque Terre winegrowers are united and where the grapes are made into wine.
Use of the Trenino
The only means of transport through the mountains is muscle power and the “Trenino” is a small train that transports the full wine baskets to one of the narrow serpentine streets, where they can be loaded onto a car. Since there are only a few of these trains through the vineyards, the use of the Trenini must be planned and coordinated between the individual winegrowers. Wine growers still use this monorail mechanisms to ferry themselves and the grapes up and down the terraces. The trenino is a cog railway on stilts that moves through the vineyards with a motor. It takes great skill and some daring of the driver to drive steeply uphill or downhill, hovering on the single rail almost over the vines.
Cinque Terre Sciaccetrà
Sciacchetrà is a so-called passito wine. Only if the grapes come from the Cinque Terre can the wine Sciacchetrà. There is a consortium that controls this.
For this, the grapes are hung up after the harvest in order to lose moisture. They ripen and get a special sweetness. The color and taste of the resulting wine go towards honey, a very pleasing wine.
The Bosco grape (at least 60%) is used for the liqueur wine Sciacchetrà. The Sciacchetrà has an alcohol content of at least 17 degrees. The historian Pliny from ancient Rome described the Sciacchetrà as a tasty wine that was drunk to meditate and chat with friends.
Where to buy the Cinque Terre Wine
You can buy the wine in many little shops in the villages in the Cinque Terre and in the wineries.
