UMBRIA is for #WINELOVERS , a Major Wine Festival on 14-17 February 2013

Umbria is for #WINELOVERS by Philip S. Kampe

The patron Saint of Umbria is Saint Valentine’s.
This year, for the first time, the province of Umbria is celebrating Saint Valentine’s Day with a four day wine festival that kicks off in Terni, the southern provinces most populated city, on Valentine’s day and will last through Sunday, the 17^th of February.

Founding members of the festival include Fausto Proietti, my long time friend from Umbria and my writing associate, Luiz Alberto, founder of The Wine Hub (www.thewinehub.com).
The Wine Hub is  where  I started my wine writing career.
Both Fausto and Luiz have been working diligently, together, for the past year to  establish the festivals guidelines and activities.
The four day schedule includes blind Umbrian wine tastings, wine education classes, seminars, panel discussions, vineyard visits, wine dinners and much more, including a visit to the grave of the Patron Saint of Umbria, Saint Valentines.

Umbria, the only land locked province in Italy is very famous for its wines. In fact, Marco Caprai, winemaker and proprietor of Umbria’s Arnaldo-Caprai winery was just named Wine Enthusiasts ‘European Winery of the Year’.
Marco Caprai is widely credited with the revival of Sagrantino di Montefalco.

Umbria is known for its white wines using the Trebbiano grape, also known as the Procanico grape.
Orvieto is the star wine using the grape.
The Trebbiano grape can be made in stainless steel and is fresh, crisp and alive. When marrying the grape with oak, the result is often sophisticated, elegant and special.
When made as a dessert wine or ‘abbocato style’, sweetness dominates.
Another popular white is Chardonnay blended with Grechetto. Numerous other white varieties are grown in Umbria, including the international grapes: Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Blanc and Gewurztraminer.

Regarding reds, as mentioned earlier, the new ‘King of Reds’ is Sagrantino di Montefalco. This DOCG wine is complex, tannic, austere and made for aging. Its younger brother is Rosso di Montalciono, a DOC wine. The younger sister is a dessert wine named ‘Passito’. All are made with a minimum of 95% Sagrantino grapes.

The other dominant red grape is Sangiovese, best known in the Lake Trasimeno area. Sangiovese is a wonderful blending grape, resulting in a DOCG wine, Torgiano Rosso Reserva

Besides wine, Umbria is known for its great cities, including Assisi, the home of Saint Frances of Assisi.
 Other important towns include Perugia, Spoletto, Todi, Gubbio and Narni.
Umbria is often called ‘green heart’, for its nature parks.
There are many Etruscan sites and medieval hill towns.

Orvierto is known for its magnificent cathedral (duomo) .with its mosaic façade.

The Saint Frances Basilica in Assisi holds the tomb of Saint Frances of Assisi and is a popular pilgrimage destination.
Perugia is Umbria’s capital and largest town.
Spoleto is a walled town known for its world famous ‘Festival dei due Mondi’ and the Ponte delle Torri or Bridge of Towers.
Todi is a picturesque walled village with beautiful views of the countryside.

Gubbio is a well preserved Medieval town built on gray limestone.

Narni is considered the geographical center of Italy.

If you are unable to visit Umbria for the Festival, consider buying a bottle of Umbrian wine for Valentine’s Day and ‘Celebrate’ on your own.

Feel free to e-mail my friend, Fausto Proietti for a complete festival schedule.

His e-mail is: FaustoProietti@gmail.com

PHILIP S. KAMPE