Rare Wines. In the name of Pecorino and Verdicchio

In recent decades, Le Marche has transformed into a mainly white-loving region. If Verdicchio has always dominated the scene in the provinces of Ancona and Macerata, in this case in the Castelli di Jesi and Matelica, it is in the Piceno that there has been the most evident change with Montepulciano. Vintage after vintage it has left room for pecorino. And an actual Verdicchio and a Pecorino are the protagonists of this week's column.

They are the Riserva Selva di Sotto '19 by La Staffa; and the Falerio Pecorino Aspralama, same vintage, by Pantaleone. The hills of Staffolo, a "cru" usually considered warm among those in the Castelli di Jesi area, produce a wine of rare elegance: thanks also to a particular vineyard among those cultivated by Riccardo, placed in a higher position than those of the area and surrounded by forests.

Sort of the same situation in which Federica and Francesca Pantaloni find themselves with their rows from which they create Aspralama, breathing the cold streams born between the gorges of Ascensione, the mountain that dominates Ascoli Piceno from the north. Different grapes, different areas but the same search for balance between finesse and expression, a combination that is perceived now in these two labels, but will be even more evident in a few years.

Rare Wines: a Verdicchio and a Pecorino to discover