November 1998
The Quarterly Review of Wines - Umani Ronchi
In discussing a tasting of Italian wines, this publication singles out the Umani Ronchi Pelago. "…Pelago is a name you should know. It's unrounded and young just now, but has great weight and viscosity, with spice and licorice and big berry notes in the bouquet and finish (At the London International Wine Challenge, 300 tasters ranked it the world's best red!)…"
The Wine Enthusiast - Rivera
Nicholas Belfrage Writes About the "Next Big Thing" (Puglia) in the Wine Enthusiast. Rivera's Il Falcone Riserva Singled Out
"Formerly synonymous with mass-produced bulk wine, Puglia is now the Italian wine region that has the likes of Robert Parker excited", reports Nicholas Belfrage MW. Belfrage writes that Puglia's ascendance is due to several factors having to do with plentiful sunshine, terrain of clay-marl or sand on a substratum of gravel or broken calcareous rock, viticulture with the prevalent use of the "alberello" method of grape growing, which ensures good light distribution to leaves and plant and low to moderate production.
Belfrage goes on to say the Uva di Troia grape is the "principal variety of middle Puglia…and at least one wine, Rivera's Il Falcone…demonstrates its capacity to produce a complex wine of good ageability". The Il Falcone is an "artful blend of 70% Uva di Troia and 30% Montepulciano. This is a wine that needs a few years in bottle to round out the sometimes firm tannins and develop the quite complex bouquet and mellow taste of which it is capable."
The Seattle Times - Umani Ronchi
Tom Stockley, the veteran Seattle food and wine critic, writes about the ABC's of wine (Anything But Chardonnay) and reminds readers that there are other wines out there, such as Verdicchio. He says that Verdicchio is"…dry, flavorful, and intriguing…full of personality and Italian sassiness…Verdicchio mostly comes from the Marches (northeast of Rome, is dry, harmonious, and know throughout the world as the "fish" wine." He describes the Umani Ronchi CaSal di Serra Verdicchio Classico Superiore as"…intense, aromatic nose, nice fruit and is very rounded with hints of oak an hazelnut. One of the best I tasted"
Riccardo Falchini named founding member of the "Titolati"
Riccardo Falchini is a founding member of the "Titolati", an association of classical estates in Tuscany whose primary goal is to indentify and classify the traditional sources of the products, the vineyards. The word "Titolati" on the bottle, therefore, indicates to the consumer that the product has a distinguished pedigree and integrates the highest characteristics of that category. In addition, the association members regulate themselves more strictly even than the appellation laws, beginning with the ripening of the grapes and the vinification process. One of the best examples of the "Titolati" from Falchini is the Chianti Colli Senesi, "Titolato Colombaia".
Wines And Spirits - Umani Ronchi
In an article by Tom Maresca on pairing Italian specialty dishes with Italian wine, the Umani Ronchi Rosso Conero "San Lorenzo" is paired with Spaghetti all'Amatriciana. The tasting notes state that the "Aroma of San Lorenzo gives tasters a lot to work with: plums and cherries, moss, mushrooms, earth, and leather…wood and anise. The flavor follows through on the promise of the nose: e.g. warm, nutty, mouth filling, round, supple. Apples, berries, and cherries suggest themselves, as well as abundant but soft tannins…"
