Tasting Report: Tenuta Musone – Wine from Italy´s Marche region

One of the great things about wine is that, no matter how much wine you drink, how many books about wine you read and how strong you try to understand wine in its entirety, there are always new and interesting wines to discover.
It was one of those discoveries in a recent tasting by Tenuta Musone, an in 2011 re-established and improved winery, from Italy´s underrated and lesser known Marche region.
Tenuta Musone cultivates 30 hectares of hillside vineyards (some up to 1400m/ 4600ft), which are all dedicated to the region´s signature grapes Verdicchio and Montepulciano.
Whereas the Marche region has had a certain winemaking tradition, it experienced a real renaissance – especially with sparkling wine and its distinct and autochthonous varietals such as Verdicchio – over the last years.

Here are my brief tasting notes of Tenuta Musone´s most appealing wines:

Musa Verde – Vino Spumante Millesimato Metodo Charmat
Fine, Yellow Fruit aromatics come with Florals. Very vital!
Freshness and dancing acidity carry beautiful fruit flavors on the palate.
Good length and depth.
A fresh, soft and very drinkable sparkling wine!

Via Condotto – Verdicchio Dei Castelli Di Jesi DOC Classico
Bright yellow, greenish in the glass.
Fresh scents of Citrus and Florals. White and Yellow Fruit.
Light-weight and precise with mostly Citrus and Fruit on the palate.
Finishes medium-long with drive and distinct bitterness.
Clean, crisp and filigree! Typical Verdicchio.

Labieno – Castelli Di Jesi Verdicchio DOCG Classico Reserva
Rich aromas of White and Yellow Fruits. Decent Ripeness.
Harmonious and present mouthfeel with essence of Ripe Yellow Fruit.
Traces of Dried Herbs. Broader and more powerful on the finish.
A balanced, yet rich, but harmonious and medium-complex wine!

Ghiffa – Verdicchio Dei Castelli Di Jesi DOC Classico Superiore
Yellow colored with green reflexes.
Inviting Floral (!) and Yellow Fruit aromatics.
Beautifully balanced and harmonious on the palate.
Very approachable and smooth with delicious Fruit, fascinating Minerality and traces of Bitterness.
A very present wine! Intense, fresh and drinkable.

Buraco – Marche IGT Rosso
Bright, Ruby and purple in the glass.
Youthful and Focused scents of Dark Berries and Black Cherries. Traces of Perfume, Petrol and Leaf.
Concentrated and powerful.
Powerful and dynamic mouthfeel. Flavors of Ripe, Dark Fruit and Fruit in Rum.
Herbal Spiciness, Green characters and present Alcohol.
This 100% Montepulciano shows potential, but still needs time to develop and soften.

Cingulum – 2009 Verdicchio Dei Castelli Di Jesi DOC Passito
Made from 100% fully matured (overripe) and dried Verdicchio grapes,
this desert wine shines golden yellow in the glass.
Concentrated aromas of Exotic and Tropical Fruits. Freshness meets richness!
Soft and syrupy on the palate with more rich, ripe Yellow and Tropical Fruit.
Fascinating play of bitterness, present acidity and finely integrated sweetness.
Harmony and fascination in (alleged) contradictory wine with potential!

Today, the Marche region, with its signature grapes Verdicchio and Montepulciano, still flies under the radar of most consumers, but I recommend to keep your eyes open for wines from this part of Italy and particular producers, as Tenuta Musone, who take wine quality to a new level and, furthermore, deliver great value for money.