Wine and Montepulciano: in a unique word, Nobile

 Montepulciano’s history has always been closely linked to its famous vines and wine, as demonstrated by the centuries-old cellars in the town’s old centre (the only ones in Italy and the rest of the world). Further confirmation of this historical link is provided by documents from 790 AD which register the donation of a
vineyard to the church, and Repetti’s mention of a document in 1350 (in his “Historical and Geographical dictionary of Tuscany”) which drew up the terms for trade and exportation of Vino Nobile di Montepulciano. Sante Lancerio (1530), cellarman to Pope Paul III, defined Montepulciano’s wine as “vino perfectissimo” while Francesco Redi is famous for writing “Montepulciano d’ogni vino è Re” (“Montepulciano is of all wines the king”) in his “Bacco in Toscana” (1685). In his “Candide” (1759), Voltaire mentioned “maccheroni, Lombardy partridge and Montepulciano wine”. Recent research has shown that the official name of Vino Nobile di Montepulciano dates back to 1787, and was used in a “nota spese” (expenses account) by Giovan Filippo Neri (Governor of the Regio Ritiro di S. Girolamo, a historical Montepulciano institution) for a trip to Siena.

The production area is limited to a small portion of land in the municipal area which is specifically suited to winegrowing, and the wine made here owes its quality to the geological features of the vineyards situated between 250m and 600m a.s.l. There are 1.300 hectares of vineyards registered for Vino Nobile di Montepulciano and about 550 for Rosso di Montepulciano.

The Denominazione di Origine Controllata, or Controlled Designation of Origin: the Vino Nobile di Montepulciano DOC arrived on the market for the first time in the spring of 1966, one year after the inauguration of the Consorzi.. The prestigious Tuscan wine became one of the first ten wines in Italy to bear this new guarantee of quality. Fifty years have passed since that first milestone was reached, and the esteem the denomination is held in has only increased over that period. In 1980 the Vino Nobile di Montepulciano went on to become the first wine in Italy to be awarded the country’s highest recognition of quality: the DOCG.

Since 1st July 1980 the “Nobile”has enjoyed the more important recognition of Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita (DOCG.) which places it alongside the most prestigious wines in Italy. The first series of ministerial neck stickers (from n.1 to n.50) is still kept at the Consorzio. The current production Regulations (Ministerial Decree of 9th November 2010), set Sangiovese (called “Prugnolo Gentile”in
Montepulciano) in a minimum of 70% and it may be joined up to 30% by other varieties authorized for the Tuscany Region.
The maximum permitted yield per hectare is 80 quintals with an effective yield in wine of 70%.
The wine can only be sold after ageing for two years (three for Riserva) after passing a series of chemical and organoleptic tests carried out by a ministerial board. Vinification and ageing must by law take place in themunicipal area of Montepulciano.

 The Consorzio del Vino Nobile di Montepulciano was founded in 1965 with the aim of protecting and promoting the image of Vino Nobile di Montepulciano (and later, Rosso di Montepulciano and Vin Santo) in Italy and the rest of the world. There are currently c.a. 270 members of the consortium (of which 76bottlers) representing almost the totality of the vineyards. The Consorzio also carries out the role of managing the appellation, of monitoring the wines on the market, of legal guardianship of the brand in Italy and around the world, of promoting and improving the whole appellation.
With the “erga omnes” legislation, the Agriculture, Food and Forestry Ministry made consortiums responsible for safeguarding, overseeing and promoting entire wine classifications. The statutory “erga omnes” (Latin for “towards all”) obligations were enforced by law in 2010, in line with the new EU OCM wine rules. The Consorzio del Vino Nobile di Montepulciano was been one of the first consortium in Italy to receive the Ministerial mandate, obliging all producers of DOCG Vino Nobile (including non-members) to contribute to the safeguarding, control and promotion of the classification.

The wines produced are:

• Vino Nobile di Montepulciano DOCG
• Vino Nobile di Montepulciano Riserva DOCG
• Rosso di Montepulciano DOC
• Vin Santo di Montepulciano DOC

Nobile wine Consortium