With the arrival of the new season, the desire to explore Umbria through outdoor activities reawakens. Trails, landscapes, and moments of flavor and history fully express the heart of this region: its nature as a perfect place for itineraries combining nature, culture, and food and wine.
Thanks to all the elements that make this land unique, Umbria outdoors proves to be an experience to be enjoyed year-round. Whether you are a nature lover or an incurable romantic looking for new horizons, the Green Heart of Italy invites you to discover its ever-changing landscapes.
A “Married” Vine
Trebbiano Spoletino is a very ancient white grape variety that is making a magnificent comeback, not only in its production and enhancement but also in its communication and promotion abroad.
Historically, the vines were cultivated in the alberata (tree-trained) system, meaning they were joined, or “married,” to elm and maple trees. This allowed them to develop as climbing plants and made them less susceptible to insect and animal threats, while also providing a solution for soil humidity during the cold hours of the day. It was a fascinating, archaic system of agriculture where multiple crops grew together (promiscuità), but also a method to optimize land and space for planting trees and vines.
With mechanization, agricultural technologies, machinery, and modernity, the remaining “married” Trebbiano Spoletino vines are now rare, giving way to extensive cultivation that, at the same time, creates fascinating landscapes of neat rows and clusters.
Trebbiano Spoletino is an indigenous, late-harvest vine that nonetheless tends to maintain high acidity, making it versatile in its many forms: still, sparkling, sweet, passito (raisin wine), vinsanto, long skin macerations, and wood aging.
A Name, A Grape, A Wine
In Italy, there are several types of “Trebbiano” grapes which, very often, have no genetic relationship, so to speak.
One only has to think of Trebbiano Toscano, Trebbiano d’Abruzzo, Trebbiano Romagnolo, Trebbiano Modenese, Trebbiano Giallo, Trebbiano di Soave… And there are even “Trebbiani” outside Italian borders, such as in Bulgaria or even South Africa.
For this reason, a solution proposed by the Consortia could be to recognize it solely by the name Spoletino, separating it from Trebbiano and allowing it to stand out for its elegant organoleptic characteristics.
The “Homeland” of Trebbiano
While the vine was registered in the National Register of Vine Varieties (n. 243) in 1970, its recognition as a DOC (Controlled Designation of Origin) is not so “long-lived,” dating back instead to November 30, 2011.
The Spoleto DOC covers an area of about 24,000 hectares between 200 and 600 meters of altitude and today includes parts of the Municipalities of Spoleto, Montefalco, Castel Ritaldi, Foligno, Campello sul Clitunno, and Trevi, while also including Municipalities where Trebbiano can be vinified, such as Giano dell’Umbria.
