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News Analysis |
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| June 12th 2007 |
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| Five for Italy |
by Michèle Shah
”Italy is a country with many ‘heads’ and many ideas”, says Angelo Gaja. It prides itself on individualism, which is treated as if it were a national sport. Every one has a different opinion, especially about politics – even wine politics, observes Michèle Shah.
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Each country has its own slate of wine journalists and almost all producing countrieshave numerous guides that review the local producers and their latest releases on a yearly basis. Some have but a limited following, even in their domestic markets; others have an impact far beyond their borders. In Italy there are five socalled wine “bibles” – the main guides that influence a market made up of wine enthusiasts, restaurants, wine bars and shops. These include, in order of number of copies sold: Gambero Rosso (180,000), DuemilaVini (70,000), I Vini D’Italia from L’Espresso (30,000), I Vini di Veronelli (20.000) and the Guida dei Vini Italiani from Luca Maroni (20,000). The updated publications of these guides begin to make their long-awaited debuts in October, during which time much debate takes place on who achieved what, if they really deserved it, and the ‘politics’ behind the awards and scores.
Italy is still a country of highly individualistic views. In the most recent edition of those five guides, only two wines – Monte vetrano 2004 (Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot Aglianico) from Campania and Galatrona 2004 (Merlot) from Petrolo in Tuscany – were unanimously awarded top scores by all five publications. Both are made, at least in part, from international varietals. Fragmentation of views In total, 1,600 wines were awarded top scores by at least one of the five 2007 guides. While this figure includes 88 more wines than in 2006, the scores are very fragmented in their distribution across regions and estates. In spite of the recent renaissance of native grape varieties, it is of interest to note that most of the top scoring wines are produced from ‘international’ rather than ‘indigenous’ varieties. For the latter, not surprisingly, Nebbiolo and Sangiovese take the lead, followed by Corvina and Montepulciano.
The sheer fragmentation in the judges’ assessments is further substantiated by the fact that only 23 wines received excellent merits from any four guides. While three guides, although not always the same ones, were unanimous in awarding 57 wines from 14 regions their highest marks, only 220 wines obtained a vote of excellence from any two guides. That means that a total 1,380 of the 1,600 wines were thought to be excellent by one of the guides, but not by any of the others. In this light, the Guida dei Vini Italiani from Luca Maroni is the most individualist of the guides. He gave top marks to 563 wines that received no such accolades from his colleagues. In general, though, as Francesca Planeta from Planeta in Sicily notes, the “differences and incongruence of the wine guides is not altogether negative.”
Of the 23 estates awarded top scores by four guides out of five, it comes as quite a surprise that Piedmont, Italy’s classic region, received only two commendations. Moreover, these were not for ‘iconic’ producers such as Angelo Gaja or Bruno Giacosa. In fact, many of |
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Italy’s ‘benchmark’ producers were missing from this table. One would have expected Masciarelli or Valentini in Abruzzo, but instead we see Medoro and Valle Reale. For Umbria we see Antinori with Cervaro della Sala, but what about a Sagrantino, Umbria’s cult wine? And surely Antinori should have been classified with a top Tuscan wine? Nonetheless, Tuscany is perhaps the most linear and predictable region, with awards going to established names such as Felsina, Tenuta San Guido (Sassicaia) and Castello di Ama, but, strangely, no Ornellaia!
Many top awards appear to have been given to small niche estates, producing only 2,000–10,000 bottles of their finest wine, which is why Civiltà del Bere drew a list to portray ‘blue chip’ labels among the 57 that were awarded top commendations from at least three of the guides and also produce between 50,000–100,000 bottles. 18 out of 33 wineries in this list are Tuscan. According to Angelo Gaja, the “Gambero Rosso is the most influential of the Italian wine guides.” Although often critical, he sees that “the advent of such guides has been responsible for revolutionizing the market, which until then had been dominated by the wine industry through a powerful network of sales and publicity campaigns.
The guides have not only been responsible for opening up a whole new market that favours smaller producers, but also fostering a higher standard quality.” His two majors qualms are that “the bottles are supplied by the producers rather than being purchased on the market and that the sale of publicity in wine magazines, often owned by the same guides, can often create a dangerous complicity between producer, wine writer and publisher, interfering with the overall objectivity.” Similarly, Lamberto Frescobaldi of Marchesi de’ Frescobaldi adds that “there is no perfect wine guide, as these are written by people who express subjective opinions”. More and more, though, the impact of the five Italian wine guides is being challenged by English speaking magazines such as Decanter, The Wine Advocate and The Wine Spectator – and many Italians are loathe to see that Americans are framing the debate about what an Italian wine should be. The Wine Spectator is the most serious competitor. With its European office headed by James Suckling, the magazine gives priority to those exported to the United States. As their scores are also published not only online, but also used as a marketing tool in shops, their influence on the all important American market is huge.
Among professional wines buyers, the Wine Advocate enjoys a much stronger following. However, Robert Parker himself no longer covers Italy. That job was left from 2003 until 2006 to Daniel Thomases, the American who is responsible for the Veronelli guide. Since then the pieces have been penned by Antonio Galloni, an American of Italian extraction who lived in Piedmont for four years. He has been given high marks |
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for his serious work, but passing the baton from Parker to Thomases to Galloni in such a short period of time has left some doubts about the coherency of the Advocate’s coverage over the past decade.
Although not nearly as strong outside Great Britain, the English magazine Decanter has also begun moving, as editor Guy Woodward states, “into a market where a certain consumer is looking for a different type of wine and coverage. Further, the Far East, which is a growing for us, is more susceptible to our Chinese editions.”
With its ready understanding of English, the Indian market is more open to English publications. “We are familiar with the Gambero Rosso, but Italian guides don’t have any significant influence on our market,” says Sanjay Menon, the president of Sansula. “It’s the American publications that are quoted for any significant sales pitch.” All English publications are loved by those who gain high scores and criticized by those who don’t get what they feel they deserve. According to Angelo Gaja, “The Wine Spectator and The Wine Advocate are the two most important.
Both have recognized Italy’s potential and have had a major influence on the sale of Italian wines globally.” Marco Pallanti, the winemaker at Castello di Ama, has a more nuanced observation. “Whereas those two are more influential with producers in Italy, abroad they greatly influence the consumers. “However,” he adds, “The Wine Spectator is too commercial and The Wine Advocate is too individualistic”.
What they do the best, according to Francesca Planeta, “ is highlighting the Best Buys among those wines that are easily available.” For the finest wines, Renzo Cotarella of Antinori in Tuscany sees their influence waning. “They do influence the general public, but not as much as they used to. Consumers and trade have a better knowledge of Italian wines today than some years ago.”
Still, neither the ‘04 Montevetrano nor Galatrona has yet been reviewed by the Wine Advocate. The Wine Spectator gave 97 points to the latter, but 98 to Redigaffi from Tua Rita, taking wind out the former’s sails. Both high scores, but nothing compared to the 100 points for the 2001 Cerrealto from Casanova de Neri, which according to Nino Visco of Riunite “creates a phenomena of collective hysteria.” That may not be what the Italians
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