Fiorano Tasting and Lunch with Alessia Antinori

Every time I am in Rome, which is often, I try to visit Fattoria di Fiorano. Alessia Antinori, the owner, invited me there for the first time several years ago while it was still under construction. It is only a 20 minute cab ride from the center of Rome and it is across the road from the  Ciampino Airport.

Alessia inherited the winery from her grandfather Alberico Boncompagni Ludovisi, Prince of Venosa. Her mother, Francesca, is the daughter of the Prince and her father is Piero Antinori.

When Alessia told me she would be in NYC in May I invited her to come for a “Fiorano” lunch at our apartment. This is a tradition that has gone on for many years but was interrupted  because of the Pandemic.

My guests and I asked a lot of questions about the estate.  She said it is not only a winery.  Part of the property is now a country retreat for anyone seeking a day out of the city during the warmer months. It’s especially popular with Romans.  Visitors can come for lunch or dinner on Thursday, Friday, Saturday, or Sunday. The guests can pick their own vegetables that they want to eat from the large organic garden and the chef will cook it for them or they can choose to eat at the restaurant, L’Orto di Alberico (Alberico’s Vegetable Garden), named in honor of her grandfather Alberico. He had taken very good care of the land and believed in organic farming.  Alessia said she was following in her grandfather’s footsteps. 

The wines

Alberico Lazio DOC Vino Bianco  2016 100% Sémillon, Fattoria di Fiorano.  After a careful manual selection, the best grapes were destemmed and soft pressed. Fermentation in casks and the wine completed its six months of aging in puncheons. These are oak barrels of 500 liters. They are used for wines that are do not need a high oak extraction.  The wine was aged in bottle for a minimum of 24 months. This is an exceptional balanced wine with complex aromas of subtle tropical fruit, hints of citrus fruit, and a slight touch of vanilla with a very pleasing finish and a long aftertaste. It is a very special wine. Alessia said it is a white wine that will age and I agreed. In fact I told her it was a white wine as good as the Sémillon or the Malvasia di Candia that her grandfather made!  

Both the Fiorano Bianco and Rosso are now named Alberico in honor of her grandfather.

Our first course was Basil Ricotta Gnocchi with Tomato Sauce — The recipe is from Michele’s book, The Italian Vegetable Cookbook

The Fiorano Rosso is a balanced, elegant and stylish wine with the dominating aromas and flavors of black cherry and leather with a touch of cassis and a note of blackberries. On the palate it is smooth, with fruit, lovely balance and a long pure finish.

Vino Rosso Fiorano 2010 Fattoria di Fiorano, Rome. Alessia said she found on the estate eight vine rows of two red grape varieties, four of Merlot and four of Cabernet Sauvignon, that were planted over half a century ago by her grandfather and farmed organically. These are the vines which produced the legendary Fiorano Rosso.  By propagating these vines, Alessia is able to make wines as her grandfather once did. After harvesting, the two varieties are separated, the grapes destemmed and the juice fermented in temperature-controlled cement tanks. Alessia said this was to fully bring out their aromas and flavors. After being run off the skins, the wine goes into large oak casks for a minimum of 12 months. She said this is done to assist the full expression of the exceptional character conferred by the old vines of her grandfather, and by the singular volcanic soils created by an ancient lava flow. The wine completed its 24 months of oak aging in puncheon oak barrels and was then bottled before completing the process with a period of bottle aging, which lasts over two years. Alessia, like her grandfather, numbers the bottles. The 2010 is #243 of 510 bottles produced. Both the fruit and the leather were here but to a lesser extent. I believe the wine needs more time and am very happy that Alessia is following in her  grandfather’s footsteps.

The vegetables — Gratin of zucchini, potatoes and tomatoes.  

Fiorano Rosso 1997 Vino da Tavola Boncompagni Ludovisi  Alberico Boncompagni Ludovisi, Principe di Venosa

Many believe that 1995 was his last vintage. Alessia said the last vintage was 2000. However, the last 3 vintages were not as good as her grandfather was very old at the time. This bottle was missing the portion of the label with the bottle number. Leather was the dominating aroma and flavor in the 1997 with the fruit in the background.

Our main course was Roasted Rack of Lamb with Rosemary, the Gratin of Vegetables, and Sauteed Spinach. The perfect combination with Fiorano Rosso

Fiorano Rosso 1988 Vino da Tavola Boncompagni Ludovisi  Alberico Boncompagni Ludovisi, Principe di Venosa

Both the 1997 and 1988 were aged in large numbered barrels. Of the 1249 of the bottles produced in 1988, this was #30. The fruit dominated here with the leather in the background

The Fiorano Group: Michele Scicolone, Maurizio di Rosa (owner of Locanda Borboni in Brooklyn) Gino Composto, someone-me- that had too much Fiorano, and Alessia Antinori. Photo taken by Lauretta Socci.

The wines were excellent and we all enjoyed them.  It’s always a pleasure to see Alessia Antinori and taste her wines.

 

Celebrating My Birthday

Michele and I had plans for my birthday but things do not always work out as planned. We have been trying to have our apartment painted for months and a few days before my birthday the painter said he was ready to begin. We needed to find some place to stay.

So off we went to spend a week in NJ with our friend Ernie. We had invited Ernie to go out with us for my birthday but he said no. Instead, his son Jason and his wife Deb invited us to their home for my birthday dinner and I was very happy that they did.

We started with Roses de Jeanne Champagne “Côte de Béchalin”–100% Pinot Noir from the 1.5-hectare lieu-dit of Val Vilaine. The production is very limited. Cedric Bouchard. This is a single-vineyard, single varietal, and single-vintage, zero dosage Champagne, organic farming, low yields and harvesting at the right moment. Only free run juice is used and fermentation is in stainless steel with indigenous yeast. There is no filtering, fining or cold stabilization. The wines are bottled with no dosage under less pressure. This is full-bodied Champagne with hints of fruit, spice, lively acidity, a touch of pear and ginger, a note of dried flowers and a long and lingering finish.

All the food was prepared by Jason and Debbie

Roasted Peppers Salad

Eggplant Mousse

Two different breads.  The seeded bread is made by Jason

Fiorano Bianco 1996 Boncompagni Ludovisi Principe di Venosa made from 100% Malvasia Candia.  The Prince’s few acres of vines are planted along the Appian Way about 20 kilometers southwest of the center of Rome and very close to Roman’s second airport, Ciampino. This is the first time I had the 1996 and it was the last vintage the Prince produced before he died a few years later. There is a slight touch of oxidation with aromas of melon, honey and  wax.  It has  slight mineral notes with lots of flesh, good acidity and a medium long finish.

Pasta with locally grown cherry tomatoes, garlic scapes and Parmigiano Reggiano.

Grilled marinated organic chicken breasts

Mixed Salad with fennel, oranges, pine nuts and radishes

The plate

Chianti Classico Riserva DOCG 1997 “Berardenga”Felsina made from 100% Sangiovese located in Castelnuovo Berardenga with mostly southern exposure between 320 and 420 meters (the soil here is rock quartz and calcareous alberese mixed with alluvial pebbles). The vineyards are on different slopes. There are about 5,400 vines per hectare. The training system is bilateral cordon and simple guyot with a maximum of 5 to 8 buds per vine. Harvest is staged due to different altitudes of the vineyards the first three weeks of October. The clusters are de-stemmed and pressed and the must is fermented in temperature controlled stainless steel tanks. Programmed punch downs and daily pumpovers take place. In March/April the wine goes into medium sized Slavonian oak barrels and French barriques of second and third passage. After 12/16 months of aging the final blend is assembled. The wine remains is glass for 2 to 6 months. The wine has notes of red and black berries with a touch of spice and mineral tones. It was drinking very nicely. I had this wine two weeks ago and it was just a wonderful then as it was now.

TChocolate Layer Cake — Deb is a fantastic baker.

Cake with ice cream.  Moist and chocolatey, the cake brought back many fond memories of the cakes I enjoyed from the great Ebinger’s Bakery when I was growing up in Brooklyn.

This was a birthday to remember, thanks to good friends.

An Almost Roman Lunch

Last year at this time Michele and I were in Rome with a friend. We had to leave earlier than planned because of the pandemic. Now we are all missing Rome, so our friend suggested we come to his home and have a lunch like we would have if we were in Rome. Almost.

The tasting notes that follow are by Jason De Salvo and edited by me. I have great respect for Jason’s palate.

Blanc of Cabernet Franc 2019 Halcyon. Made from 100% Cabernet Franc from Contra Costa County on a breezy night in August (according to the label). The grapes arrived at the winery cool to the touch and barely reaching 20 Brix sugar. The clusters were whole pressed and watched to see that the “color” remained clear. This was a surprise wine and it was tasted blind. Because the color was so clear everyone believed it was made from white grapes. The wine is lively with hints of bell pepper, grass, herbs, quince, pears, white flowers and citrus (lime) rind. It is a bit flabby. It is a good summer quaffer. Jason said it would last until 2025 and gave it a 90.

We started with two kinds of crostini, one topped with homemade roasted peppers and mozzarella and the other with mozzarella and anchovies.

Fiorano Bianco 1995 Boncompagni Ludovisi Principe di Verosa made from 100% Malvasia Candia. I have had this wine a number of times and this was one of the best bottles I have tasted. There is a slight touch of oxidation with aromas of melon, honey wax and Queen Ann cherries. On the palate there are slight mineral notes with lots of flesh, good acidity and a medium long finish. Jason gave it a 92. I gave it 88 but after having it with food I gave it a 90. Jason said it would last until 2030.

For more information on Fiorano Bianco and Rosso see Fiorano Visit

Sauce for pasta cooking

Montesecondo IGT Toscana 2019 Silvio Messana made from 100% Sangiovese from two different biodynamical properties in the San Casciano zone of Chianti Classico. The original (Montesecondo) is lower, warmer with heavy clay soil in the town of Cerbaia. Vignano (village) vineyard is at 500 meters and much cooler and rich in limestone. The grapes come from younger vines and are picked early. Harvest is by hand most but not all of the bunches are destemmed. Varying proportions of whole bunches layered with whole berries go into concrete fermentation tanks. Fermentation takes place with natural yeasts and no sulfur is added. Maceration is short and there are no punch downs or other extractive measures. Aging is in concrete tanks for about a year. The wine has aromas of light red cherries, dried cranberries and herbs. This is a medium bodied wine with nice acidity. Jason gave it a 92.

For our first course, we had Bucatini alla Matriciana, one of Rome’s classic pastas and my favorite. It is made with guanciale (cured pork cheek), onion, tomatoes and a little hot pepper.

Our main course was rack of lamb with a Parmigiano-Reggiano crust. Here it is ready for the oven

The lamb ready to serve

On the plate

Homemade seeded sourdough bread made by Jason De Salvo

Fiorano Rosso 1985 Vino da Tavola Boncompagni Ludovisi  Alberigo Boncompagni Ludovisi, Principe di Venosa made with Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon grapes.  Burton Anderson, in his landmark book Vino, called Fiorano Rosso “the noblest Roman of them all”.  The Prince’s few acres of vines are planted along the Appian Way about 20 kilometers southwest of the center of Rome and almost right next to Roman’s second airport, Ciampino. It is the best cabernet/merlot blend made in Italy and one of the best in the world!  In my opinion–and I am in the minority here–one of the best places in the world to grow Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot is in Lazio close to Rome. The wine has aromas of black cherry, blackberries, and saddle leather, with subtle hints of VA. On the palate it is smooth, with pure fruit, lovely balance and a long pure finish. What a pleasure. Jason gave the wine a 95 and believed it would last until 2050. I gave it a 98 it was more than wonderful.

Chateauneuf du Pape 2004 Domaine du Pegau made from 85% Grenache, 9% Syrah and 4% Mourvedre, Counoise and others. They have 21 hectares of vines in Chateauneuf du Pape. 19.5 hectares are red grapes. The vineyards are located In many different areas. The oldest and best in the plateau of La Crau. The grapes are not destemmed, only natural yeasts are used. The grapes are whole cluster fermented in traditional cement vats. The wine is aged for about 24 months in a wide range of different old wood foudres. The oldest is about 90 years of age and was made from wood imported from Russia. Others come from many different places ranging from Eastern Europe to France. They range in size from 27 to 60 hectoliters. On the palate, the wine is spicy, meaty, and tastes of dark berries, and black pepper. This wine was also tasted blind. The type of wine was guessed but not the producer. The wine has aromas of dried cherries, blackberries, cranberries, pipe tobacco, and cloves. This is a full bodied wine with extracted fruit and a very long finish. Jason gave the wine 94 points.

It was Valentine’s Day and so Deb De Salvo made us a glorious dessert—a chocolate soufflé pie in a chocolate crust. I ate two slices and it was hard to stop there.

With ice cream

Thanksgiving 2020

Like most of us this year, our Thanksgiving plans were curtailed by Covid concerns.  Michele had been planning a non-traditional yet all-American menu, but when friends decided not to join us for health reasons, the elaborate menu no longer made sense.  She simplified the menu to suit just four diners.

It was just last week that I wrote that we rarely eat steak at home.  But having enjoyed that one, we decided it would be a good choice for our main course for four.

The Wines

We started with Selosse Initial Blanc de Blancs, a classic Avize Brut. The soil is chalky marls. There is a long aging in bottle before and after disgorgement. It is an assemblage of three successive vintages from lower slope sites. It is released an average of five years after the most recent harvest in the blend. The dosage is 5g/l. Disgorged Oct. 2008. This is a complex Champagne with hints of melons, dried citrus fruits and a touch of white flowers and brioche. The role oxygen plays is very important and all of the Selosse wines have the trademark oxidation which adds more complexity to the wine. A few weeks ago at a friend’s home I attended a Zoom tasting of the wines of Anselme and Guillaume Selosse. I enjoyed the wines and was happy to taste one of them again.

After a stormy start, Thanksgiving afternoon was sunny and bright and we were able to begin our celebration with a festive toast outdoors on our terrace.  To go with the Champagne we had warm gougeres, parmesan cheese puffs.

Fiorano Bianco Vino da Tavola 1980 Azienda Agricola Boncompagni   made from 100% Semillon. My favorite red wine may just be the Fiorano Rosso (those produced before 1996).  The Bianco I always had trouble with and this bottle, while drinkable, was not showing very well.

Trebbiano d’Abruzzo 1990 Edoardo Valentini made from 100% Trebbiano d’Abruzzo. This is a great white wine but this bottle was showing its age and  seemed to have off aromas and flavors.

Meursalt-1990 “Perrieres”   Pierre Matrot made from 100% Chardonnay. I do not know how this wine was produced since the winery changed its way of making wine in 2000. This is a full-bodied white wine with hints of peach, apricot and a touch of honey. It has a wonderful finish and a long aftertaste.

The Table

Our first course was a chestnut soup with whipped cream and grappa, a recipe from Chef Fabio Trabocchi.  Because it was so rich and flavorful, Michele served it in small cups.  We would definitely enjoy having this soup again.

Mazia-Chambertin 1990 Domaine Maume made from 100% Pinot Noir from 75-year-old vines. The vineyard is .64 ha and the soil is clay limestone. There is a separate vinification of individual parcels. The clusters are 100% de-stemmed. The wine is aged for 18 to 20 months in mostly older barrels and bottled without fining or filtration. This wine was not ready to drink. It was too young and more thean half the bottle was left. Michele and I drank it for lunch the next day and it was wonderful.

Michele’s original menu included a prime rib roast, but with just two guests, she downsized the menu to two thick Angus beef strip loin steaks.  With them we had roasted carrots and brussels sprouts, as well as extra-buttery mashed potatoes.

Chianti Classico 1970 Fattoria Santa Cristina- L& P Antinori. I believe the grapes were Sangiovese, with some Cannaiolo, and a small amount of white grapes, most likely Trebbiano. The wine had great color and was drinking like traditional Chianti, with hints of red fruit, cherries, blueberries, leather and a touch of violets. We all agreed it was a wonderful wine and was the wine of the evening.

Cheese course consisted of La Tur, Alta Badia and Sardinian pecorino.

Rather than pie, Michele made 3 Fruit Crisp, with apples, pears and cranberries, baked under a crunchy oatmeal and brown sugar topping.  The tangy fruit was complemented by the pumpkin pie and 4 flavors of ice cream supplied by our guests.

Dessert ready to be served

Chianti Classico 1960 Villa Antinori made from Sangiovese with Cannaiolo and Colorino and the white grapes Trebbiano and Malvasia. They may have also used the governo method (drying 10% of the grapes). The wine was showing its age and was not drinking well.

We finished, as always, with espresso and grappa.

Fiorano: A visit to Azienda Agricola Boncompagni Ludovisi

Alessia Fiorano Rosso Azienda Agricola Boncompagni Ludovisi.

On a June day in Rome last year, the temperature was over 100 degrees as we waited outside the city records hall for Alessia Antinori to pick us up and take us to her winery. Not one of her father, Piero Antinori’s wineries, but to the winery of the late Boncompagni Ludovisi Principe di Venosa, her grandfather.  I was finally going to see where Fiorano, my favorite red wine, was made.

When the Principe died a few years ago, he left half of the estate to his daughter, who is Piero Antinori’s wife and mother of Alessia.  She then gave her share of the estate to her three daughters.  Alessia lives in Rome and since the winery is only twenty minutes away, just across from the Ciampino Airport, Alessia took over the management of the estate.

The other half of the Boncompagni Ludovisi estate was left to a distant cousin of the Principe who has released a 2006 Fiorano Rosso with the original Fiorano label under his own name, Principe Alessandro Jacopo Boncompagni Ludovisi. He also made a white Fiorano, but is using different grapes than the original.  Alessia said that she hoped they could come to some agreement about the label without going to court.

Restored Tank

As we were driving to the winery Alessia told us that she was making a number of improvements since her part of the winery was in disrepair. It fact there was not much left and Alessia has undertaken a major restoration.

I asked her about the vines and she said that the people who had worked for her grandfather told her that he ordered them covered with dirt but then a few years later ordered them to be uncovered. In an interview with the late Italian wine writer Luigi Veronelli, Alessias Grandfather said that he would destroy all the vines so that his son-in-law would not get them because Piero did not make wine the way he did. I guess he changed his mind.

Alessia said that her first vintage was going to come from the vines that were uncovered.  Later, when new vineyards are planted, there will be a massal selection of old vines.  She said that the winery was almost ready for its first harvest.  Alessia said that she and her sisters hope to continue the legacy of their grandfather and of the Estate.  This is very good news.

The 1985

Despite the very hot day, when Alessia offered to open a bottle of the 1988 Fiorano Rosso, I could not refuse the offer. As I sipped the wine I did not think about the heat only of the well-structured, elegant and smooth wine with aromas of cherry and leather, the long finish and the wonderful lingering aftertaste. This is a great wine!

The 1995

A few months later Alessia was in New York and came to dinner at my apartment along with her husband. She brought with her a bottle of the 1995 Fiorano Bianco and a bottle of a 2010 red, which she had made. She said that this wine will be the second wine of the Tenuta di Fiorano and a label and name had not yet been chosen.

 In Rome I had bought a bottle of the 2006 Firoano Rosso made by the new Principe to compare.  It was an easy-drinking wine in a modern style and did not bear any resemblance to the original Fiorano Rosso.  Alessia’s wine was a much bigger, more complex wine with good fruit, but since it was a 2010 it was difficult to judge and needs time to develop.

I also opened a 1994 Fiorano Rosso (made by the grandfather) and it needed at least 10 more years to be ready to drink.   I believe Alessia said that the last vintage made by her grandfather was 1995.

Next time:  the story continues with a visit to the winery in May of 2013 and the improvements Alessia has made.

The Fiorano Rosso Dinners

The idea for the Fiorano dinners started when I saw an article with the title by Eric Asimov entitled An Italian Prince and His Magic Cellar in the New York Times. In his magic cellar, Boncompagni Ludovisi, Principe di Venosa, had two white wines one made from Malvasia di Candia and the other from Semillon.  Both were called Fiorano.  What the magic cellar used to contain, but no longer did, was the Fiorano Rosso made from Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot.

 Mr. Asimov praised the Fiorano Bianco, and rightly so. They are unique wines that can last 30 years or more. When I visited Rome I would drink Fiorano Bianco and even today it can still be found in Roman restaurants as well as in restaurants and wine stores in NYC.  There were 14,000 bottles of Fiorano Bianco in the cellar but all of the Fiorano Rosso was gone.  I like the Fiorano Bianco, but I love the Fiorano Rosso and would drink it and buy it whenever I could! 

 After reading the article I realized that Mr. Asimov had never tasted the Rosso. Once when I was invited to the Times to take part in the tasting panel, I told him that I had a few bottles of Rosso and would like him to come for dinner so that he could taste them.  It took two years before we could arrange our first dinner.  Eric wrote about the first dinner in an article entitled Mysteries With a Menu in the Times’ Diners Journal and another dinner in the same column in an article entitled Bygone Bottles.

 Altogether there have been four dinners, the last taking place in April.  As far as I know the last vintage of white or red Fiorano was 1995. The elderly prince has since passed away.  There was much speculation about what would happen to the property.  Luigi Veronelli, a well-known wine and food writer, who had interviewed the prince before his death quoted him as saying that he rather would pull up all the vines than see his son-in-law Piero Antinori get them. When he asked the prince about Piero’s daughters, his granddaughters, inheriting the property, he replied, “they follow their father and not me.” There was talk of building apartment buildings on the property because it was so close to Rome.

 All hope was lost – there was no more rosso to be found.  In December of last year, Mr.  Asimov wrote A Family Gets Back to Their Roots.  In the article he wrote,

“Now, though, the deed is done. The estate has been divided among various members of the Antinori family, and the 25 acres or so where the vineyard was planted is now in the hands of the three daughters of Piero and Francesca Antinori. They plan to replant the vineyard. Turns out that when the prince pulled up the vineyard he didn’t destroy it entirely. Some of the vines, which are by nature tenacious and tough, managed to survive. Using cuttings from the surviving vines, the three Antinoris, along with Renzo Cotarella, the Antinori wine director, hope to replant the original vineyard little by little beginning in 2011.” 

Two months ago I was invited to a tasting of Antinori wines given by Renzo Cotarella at Eataly. When Renzo walked in the room and saw me, he walked over and said “We have to talk about Fiorano”. I had to wait until the class was over before we could talk. Renzo said that they were able to find a few vines for the red grapes on the property and had produced a 2010. He said that I had more experience with Fiorano Rosso than anyone else. We agreed that we liked the red better than the white. I believe the only bottles of the red that he had in his possession were from 1988. I had a number of questions about how the made wine was made and would it be the same. Renzo said that he would be back in October and I immediately began planning our next Fiorano dinner so we could continue our discussion.

 In my opinion, Fiorano Rosso is a unique wine. At the dinner last year we had a 1967 that was given to me by a man from Holland. The wine was 43 years old, the fill was almost to the top, and the wine was fantastic showing no signs of age.  The big question for me is, will the Antinori daughters and Renzo Cotarella make a wine that is like other wines, or will they make Fiorano Rosso.