Gaglioppo Wine Guide

Vigneti della cantina Senatore Gaglioppo is a vine that dates back to the times of Magna Graecia, when Cirò Marina, north of Crotone, was called Cremissa. And Cremissa wine, called Krimisa, was the prize for the winners of the Olympics, a rare privilege not just an iced coke for the time. So this area, Calabria, was the remarkable Enotria? The famous land of wine?

Yes.

And still today this extraordinary red wine is the flagship of Calabria, it has body, structure, great charm and roundness, a warm fruit, but it always maintains a certain “basic austerity”. The influence of the sea is perceived in the sapidity of the wine, the aromas are fine and mottled. It is not a super alcoholic bomb, certainly, it is a powerful wine thanks to the clay soils where the vine grows, but Gaglioppo is one the most interesting red wines thanks to its extreme elegance.

The balsamic charm, the aromas of undergrowth, eucalyptus, iodine, and Mediterranean scrub add depth, grace and a thousand nuances to be enjoyed through the rocky veil of tannins.

Today this splendid hilly area, kissed by the sun and lashed by the sea breezes, has become one of the most important DOC of Calabria, the DOC Cirò, which can be red, white or rosé.

When making Cirò Rosso very often it is preferred monovarietal Gaglioppo, but it is allowed the addition of a small percentage of Trebbiano Toscano or Greco Bianco, the two vines used for white Cirò. A technique also used in many other parts of Italy to add a more delicate appeal. Just on an aromatic level, because wine is always very structured and tannic. Adding 5% of Trebbiano doesn’t make Gaglioppo less virile…

The wood aging takes place both in large and small barrels and the minimum period is 7 months for Rosso and Rosso Classico. Cirò Riserva needs to age in wood for 26 months.

The history of Gaglioppo: Wineland

As already mentioned, Gaglioppo seems to have been born here, near the Ionian sea. On the hills of Cremissa at the time of the splendor of Magna Graecia, when nearby Sibari was one of the world wine capitals. The wine was such a business that some kind of aqueduct of wine (wineduct?) were in function to bring the wine from the hills to the port of the city, where it was then sent throughout all the Mediterranean.

The name Gaglioppo is obviously of Greek origin and is due to the shape of the bunch, which resembles a well-turned foot, from the word, Kalos Pedos, “beautiful foot”.

Today the vinification and cultivation of the vine have changed, the vines are very dense and cover the hills with a forest of saplings, but the sun, the land, and the sea are always the same and make this ancient wine unique.

We talked about Gaglioppo in its most suitable area, where it was born, but it is practically cultivated in every corner of Calabria.

Organoleptic characteristics of Gaglioppo, Cirò Rosso

The Gaglioppo bouquet is very broad, fruity and mature, but austere: never over-ripe, no dripping jam of blueberry. From the fruit we pass to infinite perfumes of herbs, flowers, then earthy traces of licorice and marine and balsamic suggestions. The undergrowth is always present and ready to add thickness. Don’t expect a plum jam, in short.

What does Gaglioppo wine taste like?

On the palate, Gaglioppo is a structured and strong wine. Very tannic and in fact the aging to which it is subjected is long and often made in French oak barriques. But it’s normal, it’s a kind of Cabernet Sauvignon wine and so for a wine so rich in extract you need very incisive oxygenation. And over the years it develops ethereal notes, spices, the fruit softens, leaving room for incredible tertiary notes.

Gaglioppo-Cirò red wine food pairings

Obviously grilled meat and all barbecue dishes starting from ribs with barbecue sauce, grilled lamb leg, pulled pork, grilled fillet with porcini mushrooms, brisket, but it is also excellent with canederli, lamb kebabs, gnocchi with Bolognese, hamburgers, baked lasagna, truffle risotto, pasta Amatriciana, bigoli with duck sauce.