Jewel of Vicenza - Tocai (now Tai) Rosso

Italy really is fascinating to say the least. With over 2,000 indigenous grape varieties and a fiercely proud regionality you can be almost sure of finding an interesting speciality wherever you go.

Cursory research into the region around Vicenza gave the impression of a lesser outpost of Verona and driving from Venice, there is not a vine to be seen. We had vaguely heard about the Colli Berici . The Oxford Companion to Wine has no entry for that or even Vicenza and only a passing mention (with no cross-references) of these under “Veneto”.

So we had no great hopes of anything interesting turning up on our visit to Vicenza this week. Indeed, despite brown/gold signposts in the town to 'Colli Berici', in restaurants and bars the only local wines seemed to be ‘Cabernet’ which as we know could be Sauvignon, Franc (more likely) or even Carmenere..

After these desultory and disappointing enquiries though, we struck gold – Tocai Rosso. What was that? We had to try it.

Ca’ Bruzzo. Tocai Rosso. Rosso del Veneto (13%)

This was seriously good. An immediate purchase of a case or two would have been in order had we not been standing in a wine shop rather than a bar. The colour was dark, the taste unlike anything obviously familiar. Characterful in the best possible way. The bottle specially uncorked for us was slightly chilled but still there was a magnificent fruit-burst and good finish. The wine was last, hence most expensive on a list of 4 or 5 wines by the glass (€4.30 or thereabouts).

On the back label, it was stated that Tocai Rosso was none other than Grenache. Fighting back a certain disappointment, we were nonetheless delighted to have discovered this wine. After all Grenache is rarely found in Italy outside Sardinia (where it is known as Cannonau) and as with so many international varieties, the Italians know how to make them their own. If this was Grenache, it was unlike others of our acquaintance.

Back at the ranch, we Googled Tocai Rosso, now to be called Tai Rosso following objections from Hungary to the use of the name Tokaji in Alsace and Italy) and came up with the makings of a decent controversy. Is it really Grenache or an indigenous variety? There are many different shades of opinion:

Indigenous variety

Tocai Rosso has no certain information about its origin, some believe has been introduced into Italy from Hungary for the first time in the area of Berici overlooking the city of Vicenza, in the days when these territories were under the domination of Mary Theresa of Austria. Even today, red Tocai is its range of production and Berici election just over the hills in the Veneto region, where land is cultivated by choosing quite strong, deep and well fertilized.
The cluster is squat, truncated pyramid shape with one or two wings very obvious. The berry is large, with thick skin, pruinose but fragile. Blue-violet irregular. Juicy pulp, colorless, sweet
Some experts liken to the Sardinian Cannonau, but the controversy has not yet been fully resolved.
Synonyms. Red Traminer, Pinot Grigio (sic)
www.enotime.it

“…distant cousin…”

A delightfully light and fruity distant cousin to Grenache. Frizzante. NV Montedelma Franciacorta, Lombardy ...
Cucinavivace.com

“…brothers, not the same grape…”

And with the Tocai Rosso (sorry, tai) - Cannonau - Grenache - Garnacha - Alicante - Vernaccia di Serrapetrona - in short, call it what you want, you are brothers.
Yes, they are brothers, not the same grape. Is the time of Professor Attilio Scienza, Professor of Viticulture at the University of Milan. A vine, a collective name, in fact. Some of them are more similar, others differ greatly: this is because it gave its name to grapes for the market value which had (from vernaccia vernaculus of place, for example) and are often similar in name, very different in phenology .

“some experts maintain”…

Amongst the local wines produced, there is one that requires some
explanation: the Tocai rosso, which has nothing to do with the Tocai
produced in Friuli. On the contrary, some experts maintain it is more closely
related to the Sardinian Cannonau.
Barilla.com

“alcun dato certo sulla sua origine”

Il Tocai Rosso non ha alcun dato certo sulla sua origine. Gli esperti lo assimilano al sardo Cannonau. Coltivato sui colli Berici (Vicenza) e nel Veneto Orientale. Nelle zone in cui si coltiva, i terreni sono piuttosto forti, profondi, ben concimati.
Il grappolo è tozzo, di forma tronco-piramidale con una o due ali molto evidenti.
(And this from a producer – Moletti!)

“origin…Grenache”

“…which origin was identified in the grape that takes the name of Grenache in South-east of France, Cannonau in Sardinia (Italy), Alicante and Garnacha in Spain. Tocai Rosso (that was the name) is mainly produced in Colli Berici, a small and hilly area, 60 km. west of Venice. Here you can find nice and light wines, with very interesting quality-price ratios. But pay attention, do not search for Tocai, their labels are now converted to Tai Rosso
Snooth

“…affinity…”

Recent studies showed its affinity with the French variety Grenache and the Sardinian variety Cannonau.
www.vinoparlante.it

The same as Grenache

Sinonimi: Cannonao, Cannonaddu, Alicante di Spagna, Cannonadu, Granaccia, Uva di Spagna. In Spagna: Garnacha, Tinta, Tintilla. In Francia: Grenache, Tinto Aragons, Grenachè de Alicante.

Cenni Storici: Introdotto in Sardegna durante la dominazione spagnola dal XV al XVIII sec.
Attraverso ricerche genetico molecolari, che il Cannonao, l'Alicante e il Tocai Rosso sono un unico vitigno. Anche la Vernaccia di Serrapetrona sembrerebbe far parte della stessa famiglia.
E' del 1612 la prima citazione di un vino prodotto con vitigno Cannonau sardo inviato a re FilippoI.
Diffuso in tutta la Sardegna, è presente anche nel Friuli, e in Italia Centro-settentrionale.
www.vinoinrete.it

“è la Garnacha …[aka] Gamay Perugino, Ranaccio…”

Vitigno coltivato sui Colli Berici fin dall’800; è la Garnacha tinta spagnola e
il Grenache francese. È uno dei vitigni più diffusi nel Mondo. In Italia, dove
è stato importato probabilmente dagli Spagnoli, si trova coltivato anche in
Sardegna come Cannonao, in Umbria come Gamay perugino, in Sicilia come
Alicante o Ranaccio, ecc.
www.VenetoAgricoltura.org


So there is hope that Tocai Rosso is at least a mutation of Grenache. Interesting that Venaccia di Serrapetrona is also included in the list as belonging to this family. Perhaps our Vernaccia Nera (Slotovino runner-up to Best Red Wine Discovery of 2009) is also a Grenache…?

Despite the characteristic low profile in bars and restaurants in Vicenza, there exists a 'Strada del Tocai Rosso' in the Colli Berici apparently, so someone knows what a treasure lies there. Does someone have to make another 'Sideways' - this time extolling Tocai Rosso instead of Pinot noir to give this hidden jewel its deserved place in the crown of Italian wine? We hope not.

Chapter and verse (?)

Sinonimi: Tocai di Barbarano, Cannonau, Cannonao, Cannonatu, Cannonaddu, Cannonazo, Grenache, Alicante, Alicante di Spagna, Alicante Roussillon, Roussillon, Garnacha, Garnacha tinta, Granaxa, Grénache, Alicantina, Tinta, Tintoria, Uva di Spagna, Vernaccia di Serrapetrona, Retagliadu nieddu, Vernaccia nera.
Vitigno ad uva nera, molto diffuso in Europa con diverse denominazioni ma che nel Veneto è coltivato esclusivamente nel Vicentino e, in particolare, sui Colli Berici e nelle basse valli dei Lessini orientali.
In effetti, il vitigno che nel Vicentino è chiamato Tocai rosso è del tutto identico dal punto di vista ampelografico, isoenzimatico e chimico a uno sciame di cultivar comprendente la Garnacha tinta o Granaxa spagnola, la Grenache francese e il Cannonau sardo, come confermato nel 1983 dall’Istituto Sperimentale per la Viticoltura (Calò, Costacurta, 2004).
La sua origine è molto probabilmente spagnola (Aragona); dalla Penisola Iberica si diffuse nella Francia meridionale (Vaucluse, Var, Languedoc) probabilmente alla fine del ‘700 e in Sardegna, dove fu descritto per la prima volta da Manca nel 1780 (Costacurta, Cancellier, 1999), benché le prime citazioni del nome Cannonao risalgano al periodo a cavallo tra il ‘500 e il ‘600 (Calò, Costacurta, 2004) o forse addirittura nel ‘400 (Pollini, 2006).
Per quanto riguarda la sua introduzione nel Veneto, la prima notizia di un vitigno denominato Tokai rosso venne pubblicata nel Catalogo ed illustrazione dei prodotti primitivi del suolo e delle industrie della Provincia di Vicenza offerte alla pubblica mostra nel Palazzo del Museo Civico il 25 agosto 1855. Secondo la tradizione, il vitigno sarebbe stato importato poco prima della metà del XIX secolo da un nativo di Nanto (VI) il quale, avendo prestato servizio nell’esercito austro-ungarico, avrebbe riportato al congedo alcune talee. L’uva era dapprima detta del Marangon per il mestiere svolto dal congedato, poi venne chiamata col nome del presunto luogo d’origine (Calò, Costacurta, 2004).
In seguito, Montanari e Ceccarelli (1950) furono i primi a usare il nome Tocai di Barbarano per il vitigno presente nel Vicentino e fondamentale per il vino di questa zona, dove copre circa 200 ha.
Nel secondo dopoguerra Cosmo (1947-49) raccomandò il Tocai Rosso come varietà fondamentale per i Colli Berici. Il regolamento CEE 2005/70 raccomanda il Tocai rosso per la provincia di Vicenza, mentre il 3800/81 ne autorizzò la coltivazione anche in provincia di Venezia. È inoltre da pochi decenni coltivato anche nel Trevigiano (Calò, Costacurta, 2004).
È registrato col n° 236 nel Registro Nazionale delle Varietà di Vite, dove però si specifica trattarsi di un sinonimo di Alicante (n° 10) e Cannonao (n° 51): la differenziazione è ai fini della designazione dei vari DOC: nelle province di Vicenza, Treviso e Venezia come Tocai rosso, di Cagliari, Nuoro e Oristano come Cannonao, di Ancona, Ascoli Piceno, Catania, Grosseto, Pesaro, Messina, Perugia, Rieti, Rimini e Savona come Alicante (a Perugia anche come Gamay perugino, in Sicilia anche come Ranaccio). È inoltre presente in Val d’Aosta (Grenache).
Come Tocai Rosso è fondamentale (85-100%) nell’omonima DOC dei Colli Berici. Se la gradazione arriva a 11,5° può essere denominato Tocai rosso di Barbarano o Barbarano. Le denominazioni dovranno però essere cambiate dal 1 aprile 2007 a causa della controversia legale provocata dell’omonimia con i noti vitigni ungheresi.


Bibliografia
CALÒ A., COSTACURTA A., 2004 – Dei vitigni italici ovvero delle loro storie, caratteri e valorizzazione. Matteo Ed., Dosson di Casier (TV).
CATALOGO ed illustrazione dei prodotti primitivi del suolo e delle industrie della Provincia di Vicenza offerte alla pubblica mostra nel Palazzo del Museo Civico il 25 agosto 1855. Tip. Eredi Paroni, Vicenza.
COSMO I., 1947-49 – Indagine sulla viticoltura e l’enologia delle Venezie. Ann. Staz. Sperim. Vitic. Enol. Conegliano, v. 13.
COSTACURTA A., CANCELLIER S., 1999 – I vitigni dei Berici. CCIAA Vicenza.
MONTANARI V., CECCARELLI G., 1950 - La viticoltura e l’enologia nelle Tre Venezie, Longo e Zoppelli, Treviso.
POLLINI L., 2006: Viaggio attraverso i vitigni autoctoni italiani. Alsaba ed.
http://www.biodiversitaveneto.it/


Ca' Bruzzo

Via M. Cavallo, 38
S.germano Dei Berici, Vicenza 36040
Italy
Phone: 0444868040 Fax: 00390444868040
Winery Established: 1985
Wine Production: 1500 cases
Winemaker(s): Alan Bruzzo
Wine Region: Veneto - Vicenza
The Ca' Bruzzo Organic Vineyards produce high quality and complex barrique matured wines. The winery located in the Vicenza Province of northeastern Italy, equidistant from Venice and Verona, in the beautiful Colli Berici Hills. Five varieties of grapes are grown on these lush hillside vineyards for a total production of no more than 20,000 bottles of wine. The Bruzzo's carry out all aspects of winemaking personally. Aldo, his wife Sarah Wallace and son Alan began operating this small organic farm in 1985.

The character of these wines is created in the fields where each vine is hand trimmed by Aldo Bruzzo, lending his personal vision to the development of the fruit. This is the core philosophy of the Ca' Bruzzo vineyard tradition. The personel tending of the the vines, along with the particular "terroir", give these wines their unique character. The yields are kept very low, eco-compatible organic farming methods are used throughout the vineyards, ( Ca' Bruzzo is certified for organic production through I.C.E.A. Veneto (www.icea.info) with operator code E 1182 ). The microclimate is ideal, the hills are part of the pre-alps at the edge of the Po plain where ascending currents create windy conditions, maintaining the leaves dry and the grapes healthy. No irrigation is used; as a result the roots are forced to grow deep to find moisture, adding to the character of the wine.

The Berici Hills

Ancient seismic events create an ideal vineyard soil.
The Colli Berici is a range of hills located in the central part of the Veneto region of Italy, situated roughly between the Lessinian mountains and the Prealpi. These lush Italian slopes were formed due to an ancient geological event called a bradyseism. A bradyseism is a very slow seismic movement that traps superheated gas under the soil creating a ridge rather than a volcano. The resulting 'terrarossa' soil is rich in minerals and elements such as iron oxide, making it ideal for producing dark red wines. This particular soil encourages an optimal production of desirable compounds in the berries during ripening which include colour, flavour, and a perfect acid/tannin balance. In fact the Colli Berici is the earliest D.O.C. for Cabernet and Merlot in Italy.
The grape has been cultivated here for many centuries. In fact, grape pips indicating primitive forms of grape pressing have been found here dating back to the Bronze Age over three thousand years ago.

The first rules for growing vines in the area were handed down to the Adige civilization by the Etruscans and became widespread between 950 and 500 B.C. Subsequently it was the Romans, being already experienced in agricultural technology, who systematically launched the production of vines for making wine. But the first written evidence of wines in the Colli Berici comes to us from a Greek sophist, Atheneus, who lived in Rome between the 2nd and 3rd centuries and pointed out their perceptible merits, judging them to be palatable and pleasing wines.