To celebrate 30 years of Villa Gemma Rosso, the unique Montepulciano d'Abruzzo launched by Gianni Masciarelli, the company has given a new look to the labels of the whole line, which also includes Villa Gemma Bianco and Villa Gemma Cerasuolo d’Abruzzo.
It has been 30 years since Gianni Masciarelli produced the first vintage of Villa Gemma Rosso based on a powerful dream: transforming Abruzzo native vintages – and, in particular, the Montepulciano d’Abruzzo – into great wines, worthy to enter the winemaking world map.
“Since then, the Villa Gemma line has come a long way and is now our flagship range. That’s why we are working to promote it”, says Marina Cvetic Masciarelli, who continues the great work started by her husband Gianni in 2008 with the same commitment and passion.
The Masciarelli flagship line also includes Villa Gemma Bianco IGT Colline Teatine and Villa Gemma Cerasuolo d’Abruzzo DOC and takes name from “Villa Gemma”, the family house that Gianni inherited and turned into a winery at the start of his winemaking adventures.
Made with a selection of the best Montepulciano grapes produced in the “Cave” vineyard (350 m a.s.l.), Villa Gemma Rosso has become recognized as one of Italy’s greatest red wines. Cave is located in the beautiful countryside of San Martino Sulla Marrucina, a little hill village in the province of Chieti, half way from the Adriatic Sea and the Majella massif (about 2.790 m a.s.l.). Thanks to this unique position, the vineyard benefits from an ideal temperature range, between 10° and 15 °C. Fermentation takes place in large wooden vats; followed by an ageing period of 18 months in French oak barrels and a minimum of 3-years maturation in bottle. The result is a wine with great character, an extraordinary ageing capacity, great concentration, colour and complexity.
“Combining continuity with tradition, we have chosen an attractive modern look, while remaining tied to the values that have always guided us: quality, respect for the territory and artisanal production – these are our touchstones”, says Marina Cvetic Masciarelli. In fact, the new vintages will be soon available in the UK with a brand new packaging: an deep gold and black label for Villa Gemma Rosso 2008, a silver label for Villa Gemma Bianco 2014 and a glamorous ruby label for Villa Gemma Cerasuolo 2014.
Villa Gemma Rosso is the crowning glory of the range. For the third consecutive year, this is the only wine from the region selected by Opera Wine, the exclusive inaugural tasting at Vinitaly where 100 top Italian present their wines. One of these is Villa Gemma Rosso from the great 2004 vintage.
Written by eleanor douglas
