Italian wines (and not only) seen from Germany: at WineNews, Stephan Reinhardt (The Wine Advocate)

To understand the perception that the world has of Italian wine, sometimes, it is also useful to probe the vision of those who know the wine production of Italy, but do not deal with it in depth and daily. Such as Stephan Reinhardt, the signature of the prestigious “The Wine Advocate”, for whom he follows the wines of Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Hungary, Alsace and the Loire Valley, interviewed by WineNews in a comparative tasting on the Alto Adige and Alsatian Gewurztraminer, in the Tramin Winery, one of the most important realities of South Tyrol. Although he does not have a very detailed and precise vision of Italian wine, he confesses his passion for it “and not only for the wines of South Tyrol that I know best, because I have lived for a long time in Munich, which is not so far away. I love the wide range of native grapes and the different styles that Italy produces, and traveling for example in the Marche, Umbria, Abruzzo, as well as being fascinated by the landscapes, tasting the wines I think they are underestimated. I remember fantastic wines like Montepulciano d’Abruzzo, for example, which is not very well known abroad. And I also like wines from the north, especially from Piedmont, Nebbiolo. But it is difficult to generalize, because the territories must be placed in their climatic context. Of course I can say that, for example, in a Mediterranean territory like Etna, in Sicily, I have found a freshness that perhaps in many “hot” regions you have lost a bit as sometimes, while expressing great wines of international blend, which the market requires, has somewhat lost the link with the territory. But I repeat, speaking of Italy, with all its differences, it is difficult to generalize. I’m used to German wines, fresh, elegant, with great acidity, and now I'm interested in Switzerland, which for example shares the influence of the Alps with the productions of Austria or South Tyrol, and for this reason maybe we can make comparisons”. And, speaking of “alpine influence”, one wonders whether, also because of the climate change, precisely the countries that touch the Alps, from Switzerland to Austria, and obviously with Northern Italy, can not be born a new great “macro-region” of European wine.
“Considering that we are all fighting against climate change and warming temperatures, countries such as Switzerland or Austria, for example, can be interesting. The wines of the North, including those of South Tyrol, are becoming more and more interesting, they never get bored, these wines are lively, and digestible. And then it is emerging that even aromatic wines can age well, and not early as I had the opportunity to verify, with disappointment, with some wines from Burgundy, even very famous and expensive. In northern Italy, you can drink wines that are 20 years old and they are always brilliant. This is something I consider fantastic. For this reason, I believe that wines from the Alps, Switzerland, Austria, but also from territories like Alsace, and central Europe in general, are becoming more and more interesting”.