I don’t even drink wine. I pour it in my mouth, taste it like a magician and spit it like a fool. What Would Bacchus Do?
But what I do know for sure is that the essence of wine is romance. Besides for its ancient roots, it is the visceral production process and then that deep enjoyment of the final product enfolding its ardor and mystique. And besides for the long trusted wine regions of the world – Bordeaux, Napa Valley, Stellenbosch (where my family have had a home for more than a century) – there are small groups of vintners rediscovering alternative fountainheads to wine creation like some volcanic slopes far flung on the globe.
With that said, the making (and enjoyment) of wine is absolutely ancient. Wine has been around almost since the beginning of humans. Makes sense, in order to live they needed to get wasted. Ever so true today…just watch one episode of “The Last of Us".
There was rarely a time on the planet that humans didn’t have some involvement with wine. There is archaeological evidence that shows that the earliest production of wine from fermenting grapes was during the late Neolithic or even early Chalcolithic periods in the Caucasus area and into the northern parts of the Middle East. The first chemically attested grape wine, according to Patrick McGovern, the Scientific Director of the Biomolecular Archaeology Project for Cuisine, Fermented Beverages, and Health at the University of Pennsylvania Museum in Philadelphia, was discovered to date back to 5400 B.C. and found at Hajji Firuz in the northwestern Zagros Mountains of Iran.
And so in recent years the world of wine has dramatically opened up. Wine aficionados now have easy access to wines from all over the globe thanks to buoyant economies, better quality vintages and improved grape yields on all the continents. But this has led to the desire for off the beaten path wines and the need for wine devotees to not only find the most interesting and unique bottle of wine at the local wine store (or whilst dining) but also to go and explore the unorthodox wine regions of the world – and so the volcanic soils came up for consideration. And I was ready to go see what they had on offer, right? Spit or no spit.
One of these regions is in Soave, close to the city of Verona in Italy, where a band of ancient volcanic soil lies among the chalk, clay and alluvial soils. Although the hills around the Soave region are not as dramatic as the proverbial volcanoes of the world, the wine does eventually benefit from the locale. According to Soave Consortia's lead enologist, Giovanni Ponchia, it is actually quite easy to find great wine productions in volcanic and former volcanic areas: “The only risk is, eventually, if you plant a vineyard in soil that is covered by recent lava flow that it will probably be completely without organic matter.”
And as organic matter increases in the soil, so does the soil's ability to hold water – necessary for grapes to grow extremely well. Volcanic rocks constitute high levels of macro-porosity in soils and according to Ponchia “these pores allow the rocks to store water up to 100% of their weight and then release it very slowly, thanks to their high water retention capabilities. This makes them a water supply of notable importance for the root systems of the vines, especially in years with little rainfall or even drought.” He goes on to say that when the roots breathe actively they derive benefit from the contact with porous gas-filled rocks that are “released to meet the needs of the plant.” What I do enjoy about wine is the nerding out…thrills me to know a little more.
Of the three types of soil in Soave (sandy, calcareous and volcanic), the volcanic wines come from dark volcanic soils that produce wines that are said to be riper, weightier, richer, and with texture and minerality that are the most age worthy according to Jamie Goode in his book “The Science of Wine: from vine to glass.”
“There is however not a unique flavor profile attributed to volcanic soil, but it is quite normal that the wines produced there are often salty, good for aging and come with aromas more complex - compared with wines produced with the same variety in different soils,” Ponchia explains. “The main variety for the Soave, the garganega, is for instance able to express flavors of peach, apricot, tropical fruit and, after some years, some interesting hint of pouring stone or hydrocarbon. Whereas outside the Soave area, in sandy soil the aging is really short and garganega can mainly express green apple.”
Ponchia now gathers the wine cognoscenti of the world in hope that “volcanic wines” will become an official wine category. He called their convocation “Volcania” (after the Roman god of fire) and they now include participants from Sicily (Mount Etna), the greater Ischia and Naples area (Mount Vesuvius), Israel (Golan Heights), Cape Verde (Fogo), Hawaii’s Kilauea and even Portugal’s darling, Madeira. With the sci-fi like Canary Islands and the North Island of New Zealand, and all their constituents, next on the list of contributors. I scurried to all of these and took friends along to get absolutely drunk on all that was on offer. I learnt things and I was entertained, bonus.
In fact, many of the world’s famous wine production areas are of volcanic origin including the Willamette Valley in the U.S. (a big nod to my friend Sue) and Santorini in Greece as volcanic rock soil covers around 124 million hectares around the globe (1%). But it is Mount Etna in Sicily and the zones of Vesuvius that are receiving the most interest. “Volcanic soils are distributed predominantly along the edges of tectonic plates or in proximity to them. All of these areas have a very strong vocation for vine-growing and winemaking, and the products they engender are of absolutely top quality, especially in regards to the category of white wines,” says Ponchia. “It is evident that a relationship exists between soils composed of basalts, tuffs and pumices and the richness of flavor and balance that one habitually finds in the white wines they yield.” You’re learning new things at this point, right?
Etna has a long history of winemaking - and is so described in Homer’s “Odyssey” – but has suffered under a label of “cutting wine” that was shipped to Italy as an additive to vintages produced there. The vineyards there are up to 1000m above sea level, rich with volcanic nutrients and even though exposed to an extreme variation from day to night temperatures produce a fine indigenous varietal called Nerello Mascalese. With the oenologist Salvo Foti, Giuseppe Benanti pioneered the new wines of Etna in 1988 and the industry has slowly grown over time.
According to Frank Cornelissen, a badass insanely creative winemaker from Mount Etna, “volcanic soil is not necessarily better or less compared to limestone. It has its own specifics in terms of working soil as it varies from sandy/powdery to rocky/stony. When talking about great terroirs, we have to include the microclimate, altitude…which makes a difference.”
According to Giovanni Nastasi, GM at Belmond Villa Sant’Andrea, Mount Etna has become one of the most important wine producing areas in Italy for the great diversity of its land and its microclimate. He says, “because of the wine cultivation at high altitude, wines produced are similar to the best Burgundy Pinot Noir”. In fact today Etna is considered the “Burgundy of the Mediterranean” by some - moreover, thanks to the unique black soil rich with minerals from the lava sand and, of course, that magical, and unnamable, view across the ancient lands it all allows for romance…
So there you have it, hopefully you procured yourself a morning wine as you’re reading this. So get a little sozz’d and come travel with me to Italy in the summer…
Choose Your Own Volcanic Wine Adventure in Italy:
- Find the controversial winemaker Frank Cornelissen’s sulfur free Magna wines from Mount Etna in Sicily: Right on the water in a perfect little bay is the Belmond Villa Sant’Andrea. For a tour to the beautiful volcano in a classic Ape Calessino and a day spent with the vintner on the sunny slopes the hotel’s “Dolce Vita Sicilia” combination is idyllic. belmond.com/villa-sant-andrea-taormina-mare
- Indulge in Cenatiempo with their philosophy of sea and volcanic beauty in Ischia: Easily accessible by boat or (helicopter from Naples) the Regina Isabella is where Hollywood greats like Liz Taylor came to hide away and enjoy wine. Besides for all the volcanic wine exploration the thermal spa holds equal value. reginaisabella.com
- Explore the producers Pieropan, Pra, Suavia, Ca’ Rugate and Monte Tondo around Soave: Just outside Romeo and Juliet’s romantic city of Verona is the Byblos Art Hotel Villa Amista in perfect boutique splendor. With daily tours into the Soave region and access to the best vintners and vintages this is Utopia. byblosarthotel.com
I did the Franschhoek Wine Tram in Cape Town precisely one year ago. The while drunk ride to the next estate scene after was beautiful.