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LA VALENTINA

ABRUZZO

LA VALENTINA

ABRUZZO



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ABOUT THE WINERY

La Valentina is a leading example of the modern renaissance of winemaking in Abruzzo. The region has a history as a source of inexpensive bulk wine production, but a new generation of winemakers have dedicated themselves to harnessing the excellent terroir to produce high quality rather than high quantity—and La Valentina is at the forefront of this movement. 

Rather than turning to international grape varieties or varieties that are more at home in other regions, the Di Properzio brothers remain true to the traditional varieties associated with Abruzzo: Montepulciano and Trebbiano Abruzzese, along with a time-honored but almost forgotten variety, Pecorino. The shift in focus is not in the grapes but in the way they are grown and vinified. 

It all starts with the land, and in addition to vineyards close to the winery, La Valentina has acquired several vineyard sites that are located at higher elevations in the foothills of the Apennines, near a national park in pristine conditions. In all their vineyards, the Di Properzios have made a strong commitment to sustainability—avoiding the use of artificial or chemical products, ensuring maximum biodiversity, and relying on minimal intervention in the land’s natural processes. To this end, all the estate vineyards have been certified organic since 2016.  

La Valentina’s winemaking is managed by consulting enologist Luca D’Attoma, who joined the winery team in 1998. The winery’s philosophy is to intervene as little as possible in the natural wine growing processes, adhering to the concept that high-quality wine “has the mark of the vine on its grapes.” By ensuring that the land remains highly fertile and keeping the plants healthy, they are able to fight off parasites and disease on their own and express themselves fully and produce the healthiest possible grapes of the absolute highest quality. The emphasis on sustainability continues in the winery where they use electricity only from renewable sources and practicing water-saving procedures.

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WINERY LOCATION: Spoltore (Pescara province), Abruzzo
REGION: Montepulciano d’abruzzo DOC, Cerasuolo d’abruzzo DOC, Trebbiano d’abruzzo DOC, IGT Colline Pescaresi
VINEYARD LAND: 98 acres (40 ha)
FARMING PRACTICES: Sustainable & Practicing Organic
GRAPE VARIETIES: Montepulciano d'Abruzzo, Trebbiano d'Abruzzo, Pecorino and a small amount of Fiano
WINE STYLES: Dry red; dry rosato; dry white
TOTAL WINE PRODUCTION: 350,000 bottles (260,000 liters)
YEAR FOUNDED: 1990
OWNER(S): Sabatino, Roberto, and Andrea Di Properzio
WINEMAKER(S): Luca D’Attoma

WINES

LA VALENTINA MONTEPULCIANO D’ABRUZZO DOC

La Valentina Montepulciano d’Abruzzo is an excellent example of the Abruzzo region’s most characteristic wine—a hearty red wine made from 100% Montepulciano grapes. This is the red entry in La Valentina’s Classica line, which showcases the traditional wines of Abruzzo at their best.

LA VALENTINA “SPELT” MONTEPULCIANO D’ABRUZZO RISERVA DOC

The Spelt Montepulciano d’Abruzzo represents a fuller-bodied version of this traditional wine compared with La Valentina’s Montepulciano d’Abruzzo in the Classica line. It is made with the first selection of Montepulciano grapes from the vineyards. In addition, all of the wine for Spelt is aged in wood, for a total of 18 months. The result is a more robust and complex wine. The name Spelt refers to a type of wheat (faro in Italian) that once grew where the La Valentina winery and village of Spoltore (whose name itself derives from spelt) are now located.

LA VALENTINA “BELLOVEDERE” MONTEPULCIANO D’ABRUZZO TERRE DEI VESTINI RISERVA DOC

La Valentina’s Bellovedere is the winery’s highest expression of Montepulciano d’Abruzzo. It is a single-vineyard wine from the subzone of Terre dei Vestini, in the rolling hills near the Abruzzo coast and the city of Pescara. The Bellovedere is intended to demonstrate the great possibilities of Montepulciano d’Abruzzo, and as such the wine is produced only in the years with great weather conditions and fully mature grapes. The Bellovedere vineyard takes its name from a park in the center of Spoltore with a view of the vineyards and the ridgeline of the Gran Sasso peaks behind, as shown on the label.

LA VALENTINA PECORINO COLLINE PESCARESI IGT

Pecorino is one of the most exciting native white grape varieties to have been "rediscovered" in Italy in recent years and Abruzzo is the source for many of the best. La Valentina’s Pecorino is a delicious white wine made from 100% Pecorino from the Colline Pescaresi (hills of Pescara). A bit of aging on the lees adds complexity and weight to this wine.  The name Pecorino is derived from Uve delle Pecora, a reference to the sheepherders who ate the grapes while accompanying their flocks across the hills and valleys of Abruzzo and the Marche.  

LA VALENTINA "SPELT" TREBBIANO D'ABRUZZO DOC SUPERIORE

Trebbiano is a white grape variety planted throughout Italy but is most famous in the region of Abruzzo. Trebbiano d'Abruzzo is known for its crisp acidity and is often made in a light-bodied, easy-drinking style. With "Spelt" Trebbiano d'Abruzzo DOC Superiore La Valentina is hoping to enhance the typicity of this classic Abruzzo white wine, while offering something more complex. Made from 100% Trebbiano from three hectares of 30 year-old-vines located on the estate in Spoltore. Fermented in stainless steel, the wine spends four months on the lees, with a year of aging in concrete tanks. Bottled 15 months after the harvest, unfiltered and unfined.

LA VALENTINA TREBBIANO D’ABRUZZO DOC

The white entry in La Valentina’s Classica line is this Trebbiano d’Abruzzo, made from mostly Trebbiano Abruzzese grapes—a superior type of Trebbiano.

LA VALENTINA CERASUOLO D’ABRUZZO DOC

La Valentina Cerasuolo d’Abruzzo is a versatile rosé wine made from the same grapes as the winery’s Montepulciano d’Abruzzo. Shortly after the grapes begin their cold maceration, a portion of the juice—at this point, only lightly colored—is drawn off to be fermented like a white wine. Abruzzo is recognized as one of Italy’s best sources for rosato wine, or cerasuolo as it is known in this region. Being made from 100% Montepulciano grapes, this rosé entry in La Valentina’s Classica line has more body than the usual rosé, allowing it to pair well with a wide range of foods.

LOCATION


WINERY:
Spoltore (Pescara province), Abruzzo

VINEYARD:
Pescara province, Abruzzo

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NEWS AND REVIEWS FROM OUR FRIENDS IN THE INDUSTRY



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92
MAY 2023
La Valentina Pecorino Colline Pescaresi IGT 2022

Pleasant blend of ripe yellow citrus and savory notes on the nose. Medium-bodied with the same balance on the palate, adding a bitter lemon note as the palate progresses, making for a savory finish. Salt and marsiglia in the aftertaste. Lots going on. From organically grown grapes. If you don’t know pecorino whites, here’s a good place to start. Enjoy now.

OCTOBER 2023
La Valentina “Bellovedere” Montepulciano d’Abruzzo Terre dei Vestini Riserva DOC 2020
89
MAY 2024
La Valentina Cerasuolo d’Abruzzo DOC 2023

The 2023 Cerasuolo d'Abruzzo presents a translucent cherry-red hue in the glass. Savory and floral on the nose, it unfolds with rose petals, leather, tea leaves, strawberry and cherry aromas. Zippy and energetic in the mouth, a chiseled, bracing phenolic structure gives the wine shape and form. The 2023 finishes clean and refreshing, if a hair short—a particularly vinous style of Rosé that would certainly be at home on the dinner table.

89
APRIL 2021
La Valentina Montepulciano d’Abruzzo DOC 2018

The 2018 Montepulciano d'Abruzzo is incredibly pretty with its display of crushed violets, mint, wild strawberries and wet stone. It’s a soft and fleshy effort that keeps the energy high, as zesty acids usher in a pure display of red and blue fruits. Hints of tannin mix with sweet spices and minerals to create a pleasantly tactile feel, as this tapers off fresh and slightly savory.

91
AUGUST 2022
La Valentina Montepulciano d’Abruzzo DOC 2020

Aromas of fresh red cherry, earl grey tea and thyme. Medium-bodied with bright acidity. Nicely layered chocolate and dried-herb character atop the bed of black fruit. Generous, with a fresh finish. Drink now.

94
AUGUST 2022
La Valentina Cerasuolo d’Abruzzo DOC 2021

The intense, dark cherry color of this wine suggests you’re in a new territory for Rosé, or in this case Rosato wine.  The color comes from the highly pigmented Montepulciano grape grown in the Abruzzo region of Italy.  The appellation regulations allow 85 percent of this grape to be blended with other local grapes including whites.  However, brothers Sabatino, Roberto, and Andrea Di Properzio use only Montepuciano grapes.  They use a traditional process called saignée or tank bleeding.  They monitor the fermenting grapes and remove a portion of the juice when it has reached the desired color, flavors, and body for Rosato.  The remaining juice continues fermenting to become a red wine.  The resulting Rosato is an intense and tightly structured wine with red cherry, pomegranate, red plum flavors with a bit of orange zest, mouthwatering acidity and light supple tannins.  Its body and structure make it a perfect partner for barbecued ribs, roast chicken or a sausage pizza.    

92
AUGUST 2020
La Valentina Pecorino Colline Pescaresi IGT 2019

Lemon curd and light green apples with blanched almonds on the nose, following through to a full body with round, savory flavors and hints of salt and minerals. Drink now.

89
FEBRUARY 2024
La Valentina “Spelt” Montepulciano d’Abruzzo Riserva DOC 2020

Dark and tangy, with a lush core of blackberry, mulberry and boysenberry fruit flavors, revealing accents of oolong tea leaf and spiced orange peel. Shows taut, fine tannins that impart a tightly meshed feel, but this is silky and balanced overall, opening nicely on the palate and in the glass. Drink now through 2029. 11,500 cases made, 5,000 cases imported.