Wine Blog

Enjoying Syrah Cortona with friends

Aperitivo, tasting Syrah from Cortona

Enjoying a bottle of Syrah 2011 by Stefano Amerighi together with friends the other night, made me think about sharing the special traits of DOC Cortona. As often at our weekly aperitivo evenings, we hang out at Le volpi e l’uva, a wine bar close to Palazzo Pitti in the center of Florence. They have a good selection of very interesting wines, mostly Italian and French wines. For example, you can sip at a Vermentino di Sardegna or a Gewürtztraminer from Alto Adige, or a Bourdeaux Claret or a Brunello di Montalcino, and enjoy a selection of Italian and French cheeses. Or, why not, one of their crostoni with spicy ‘Nduja.

Cortona-from-above

(pic by www.balloningintuscany.com)

Cortona

Syrah from Cortona is part of the DOC Cortona. The small town Cortona is situated on a hill in the south east corner of Tuscany, in the province of Arezzo. Wine has been cultivated on the hills around Cortona, close to the Trasimeno lake, since the Etruscan era. During the early middle ages there was a longer break in the production of wine due to the fact that the valley of Valdichiana below Cortona, transformed into a swampland. The area recovered only after the 16th century. During the Napoleonic occupation in the early 19th century, more international vine varieties were introduced in the area (Syrah, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, etc.).

cortona2

(pic by www.discovertuscany.com)

Syrah di Stefano Amerighi

syrah1

Stefano Amerighi is a small wine producer in Poggiobello di Farneta, close to Cortona. He is embracing the concept of biodynamic agriculture and natural viticulture. Thus, not using neither corrective nor chemical products in the vinification process. Stefano Amerighi is advocating the production of a high quality wine, and on the website he describes how he is aiming at an alternative agriculture, producing not only Syrah, but also cultivating for ex. cereals, vegetables, and fruit. His Syrah wine is refined in wood or cement barrels for 14 months, and then bottled without being further filtered or treated.

syrah2

This Syrah of Stefano Amerighi has a ruby red colour, aromas of blackberry and mature cherries, juniper, as well as a slight note of cinnamon and coffee. The taste is fresh, full-bodied, and elegant, with a rich note of tannins.

Have you tried a Syrah from Cortona? Have you ever been to Le volpi e l’uva? What’s your story about this wine?

Katarina Andersson

Seen often at wine events streaming live, Katarina is a wine writer, wine educator, social media strategist, and translator. She is the founder of WinesOfItaly LiveStream. She has been a guest at The Cellar, hosted by Richard Glover, at Wine Two Five, a podcast hosted by Stephanie Davis and Valerie Caruso, and at the Twitter chat #WiningHourChat founded by Li Valentine.

28 thoughts on “Enjoying Syrah Cortona with friends”

  1. Amerighi is a fantastic producer and I love Cortona Syrah – one of Tuscany’s last “hidden gems”, I’d say!
    Have you tried Tenimenti d’Alessandro Il Bosco Cortona Syrah? It’s amazing, too. Cheers!

    Reply
  2. This is one of the very best Syrah overall, definitely a world class. Luckily, greatly underappreciated ๐Ÿ™‚

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  3. Thanks for this blog post! It reminds me of my wonderful time in Italy years ago, and the books of Frances Mayes. The photos make me want to go again! Beautiful photos!

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  4. What a beautiful place with such a delicious treat. I am a total wino living vicariously through you!

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    • Thanks :-)…you should…a friend yesterday, proposed a skype live wine tasting…perhaps that would be a cool initiative, to discuss wine together over skype or on a hangout… What do you think about that? Not as nice as a wine bar… Although, one could perhaps organize it from a wine bar…hmmm…

      Reply
  5. Just yesterday I was talking to my husband about planning our next trip, which will be to Italy. I don’t know anything about wines & don’t drink, but I would love to know enough so that I can be confident when bringing a bottle of wine as a gift. This is so helpful

    Reply

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