The wine that wasn’t there yesterday is Dorico by Alessandro Moroder! Yes, that’s right, a Conero Rosso Riserva (Red Reserve) DOCG is the label I’d like to submit to the readers of this blog. The name Moroder should tip you off right away that we’re talking about a Northern Italian family. In fact, this Marche company was founded in 1873 by the Moroder from Val Gardena (South Tyrol), who bought agricultural land in the Monte Conero area, near Ancona, which is the capital of the Marche region; South Tyrol being the northernmost region of Italy, while the Marche are located in the center of the Peninsula, overlooking the Adriatic Sea.
The cultivation of the vine was handed down through the centuries until the 80’s, when Alessandro Moroder, with his wife Serenella, decided to give a new impetus to their work in the vineyard, a bona fide winemaking revolution. Today, their sons Marco and Mattia represent the present and the future, with the eighth generation of Moroder.
The estate, which stretches for 52 hectares, lies within the Natural Park of the Conero: 28 hectares are occupied by vineyards that enjoy the particular microclimate of the riviera, due to their favorable position just over a kilometer from the sea. Thanks to the sea breeze and the particular calcareous soil, this area has become the home of the Montepulciano vine from which the Conero Rosso Riserva DOCG wines originate. The vines that are grown here can be as old as 70, with low yields per hectare.
The Moroder have chosen to work in full respect of the environment and land: the grapes are biologically certified, and so are the resulting wines.
In the cellar, large wine barrels of Slavonia and French barriques are used for the aging of wine. I can assure you that the Moroder wines are all of a very high level and that their company has become a safe reference point for enology in the Marche.
The wine of the week I’m about to present is truly representative of the territory from which it comes and deserves to be told and – above all – drunk!
It is the Dorico 2005 Conero Riserva Docg from pure Montepulciano grapes. I want to talk about it because the first harvest to have ever been bottled was the 1987 vintage, exactly 30 years ago. I found the 2005 vintage truly great. Garnet red in color, it diffuses an articulated and varied bouquet with dark tones, including dark chocolate, sour cherry jam, sweet tobacco, leather and coffee beans. When drinking it, you can appreciate the intensity and the perfect concentration of the fruit, accompanied by a note of iodine, softness, freshness and good sapidity. Rest assured: when you drink it, you will feel like you’re breathing in the sea and the hill.
Some technical data: 25 days of maceration on the skins followed by slow fermentation for 30 days and malolactic fermentation completed. Aging for 36 months in barrique and other 18 months in bottle.
It is a red wine that can be combined with seasoned cheeses or spicy, seasoned roasts – it will leave an impression!
Organic wine
Retail price: € 26 – $ 29; My ratring: 90/100