The Wines Of Terziere Superiore

The geographical position of Valtellina between Morbegno and Tirano which winds off in the east-west direction, protected all around by a mountainous wall, has relegated the vineyards on limited zones of the sunny coast, sometimes planted up to a height of 800m. The scene of the terraces obtained with the soil from the bottom of the valley and held together by walls made of stones is spectacular. The vitigno grapes produce the typical Valtellinese wines and the “Nebbiolo”. The wine of Valtellina started circulating through the Grigioni in all the European markets as from the beginning of the XV century. In 1968 the Controlled Denomination of Origin has been acknowledged to it, subdividing the production in two types of principal wines: the Valtellina and the Valtellina Superiore, better known with its traditional denominations Maroggia, Sassella, Grumello, Inferno and Valgella. The Valtellina, whose area of production extends from Ardenno to Tirano, involves the vineyards with deeper ground, therefore with a more production, the Valtellina Superiore occupies, within the geographic area of Valtellina, the rocky spurs which jut out towards the centre of the Valley at Sondrio, Teglio and Tirano, and on which vineyards of small dimensions clamber, with little land, and which give a better-bodied wine and with a longer maturation. The top product of the oenology of Valtellina is the Sforzato or "Sfursat", a wine obtained from grapes left to wither on trellis, dry, highly alcoholic (14,5°), a wine for meditation which blends with the well-seasoned mountain cheeses. From 1998 the Valtellina Superiore and the Sforzato have been honoured with the Controlled and Guaranteed Denomination of Origin, a prestigious acknowledgment for the quality of the wines which render Valtellina as the only Italian oenological area which can boast of two DOCG. The Consortium for the Protection of the Valtellina Wines is the Guarantor and active since 1976.