Montepulciano d'Abruzzo Inferi Riserva 1994

We have already written about the Abruzzo winery Marramiero. We did so by recounting an extraordinary Trebbiano d'Abruzzo Altare aged 18 years, an incredible wine for its aromas and vibrancy, with a still surprising acidity and remarkable gustolfactory persistence perceived after swallowing.
We thought it was a splendid exception, almost a fluke, a stroke of luck, an isolated episode. Evidently we were wrong. Not because bottles with similar longevity do not exist in our wine landscape – although, especially for white wines, these are not so common – but rather because it seemed impossible to us that the same estate could count, among its own creations, another monumental wine. Monumental and long-lived.

So we return to Marramiero. We stopped by to see them at Vinitaly to congratulate them in person on the Trebbiano Altare, after having written about it on Wine at Wine. Here we are welcomed with warmth and professionalism, we taste the main wines produced which we will not recount, and... already the first surprise: they open for us another Trebbiano d'Abruzzo Altare from 1996. I will not dwell on this unforeseeable event, nor on the emotions experienced.
While tasting the estate's wines, we had already tried two vintages of Montepulciano d'Abruzzo Inferi Riserva: the 2010, currently on the market, dark, powerful, fruity, very young with an enormous acidity and tannin; and the surprising 2003, which, despite having been produced in one of the worst vintages anyone can remember (due to the hellish summer heat that compromised the harvest across vast areas of the country), was not jammy, but maintained an austere profile, still very fresh and lively.

We could truly have said we were already satisfied, but the Marramiero family – and here the second surprise – not content with the positive appreciation received for the previous 2010 and 2003 samples, present us with a bottle of Inferi 1994. The wine is opened, poured into a decanter and, while waiting for it to breathe a little, its story is told to us....

The grapes are grown using the pergola abruzzese system in the vineyards located at Masseria Sant'Andrea di Rosciano. Old vines, over forty years old, with an optimal south-east facing exposure. The yield per hectare does not exceed 70 quintals and the harvest is typically late, at the end of October, as in the tradition of Montepulciano.
In the winery, fermentation on the skins takes place at a controlled temperature between 25 and 30°C for around twelve days. After racking, ageing begins, first in stainless steel containers for 18 months, then continuing in barrique for a further 18 months. The now-ready wine is then bottled and stabilises in the bottle for at least 6 months before being introduced into commercial channels. At least... indeed! And it appears that over these twenty years the way of producing the wine, from vineyard to cellar, has not changed particularly.

The wine is finally served to us in wide glasses, so that oxygenation is encouraged during the tasting as well, following its passage through the decanter. We immediately notice that the time was insufficient. The Montepulciano is still too closed: we wait, conversing and nervously repeating the olfactory assessments in the glass.
It presents itself with a dark appearance; the anthocyanins after twenty years are still in their place. Certainly the hues shift towards brick, but the compactness of the colour is intact, as is the beautiful luminosity. Swirling the wine in the glass, dense and thick arches form, a clear sign of a fine structure, to which the 14% alcohol certainly contributes. Gradually, aromas open up – first dark, earthy, of graphite, peat and ink. Aromas that to describe as tertiarised is almost an understatement. Then we discover some very interesting spiced notes. Not the vanilla of wood, which is now entirely absent, but pepper, cloves, star anise. Then surprising fruity hints, traces of small red fruit jam and a dried violet.
We then move to the sip. After the first, which serves to "prime" our palate, comes a second and then a third. We are frankly surprised by the beautiful freshness, which makes this twenty-year-old wine feel remarkably alive. Freshness well balanced by the alcohol and the great softness. With a tannin that to call silky is almost an understatement. But what leaves us truly astonished is the length of the wine, with returning notes of pepper and balsamic eucalyptus.

We could, and perhaps should, have waited longer to enjoy this oenological marvel, but time, even at Vinitaly, is always a tyrant and we are forced to bid farewell to our gracious hosts. Taking with us the conviction that the very next day that same glass would have had new splendid emotions in store for us.