RuvidaMente
The Colli Lanuvini wines are produced in the communal territories of Genzano and Lanuvio in the heart of the Castelli Romani district. In the area, winemaking is such an integral part of the inhabitants' daily lives that it was once customary for the men to observe that a woman was worth a determined number of casks of wine.
The expression had nothing to do with her looks but to the fact that anyone marrying her would receive in dowry a vineyard that would provide the stipulated number of
casks of wine annually. The expression was also linked to the habitual use of small barrels of chestnut, the wood of the local forests, in fining the wine. The standard capacity of the casks was
1,000 liters.
The Colli Lanuvini wine is produced from the classic varieties of the Castelli Romani: Malvasia Bianca and Puntinata, Trebbiano
Verde and Giallo. The Trebbiano family, which is widely diffused in Latium and provides the base for a major part of the white wines of central Italy, was probably
developed through a selection process carried out by the Etruscans, who made a significant contribution to the spread of viticulture in the areas they controlled.
As in the case of the other wines of the Roman countryside, the Colli Lanuvini has had its cultured devotees since the days of ancient Rome and many of them
have engaged in bouts of a literary nature over which of the Castelli wines is superior to all others.
The Latin writers Horace, Pliny and Martial were among the commentators on the vineyards' output, while the Baroque poet Pietro Metastasio discussed the wine at the time when the papal court reached the peak of its splendor.
Map of the production area
GO TO CENTRAL ITALY REGIONAL WINES
OR MOVE TO THE OTHER MACRO-AREAS
SEARCH THE SITE
