A New Year's toast with Calabrian sparkling wines
3 minutes
Known as the Ancient Greek Enotria (from the Greek ôinos, wine), Calabria is the "Land of Wine" by definition. Not only classic wines, in red, white, and rosé varieties, but also fine sparkling wines, with a long or more recent tradition.
What better occasion than New Year's Eve in Calabria to discover the distinctive traits of Calabrian sparkling wines and their production areas, from the north to the south of the region?
Let's set off on a fascinating end-of-year wine tourism itinerary and look forward to toasting with a flute of Calabrian bubbles.
Discovering Calabrian sparkling wines
A sun-kissed land, Calabria has historically been devoted to viticulture, so much so that it boasts nine DOC (Controlled Designation of Origin) and ten IGT (Typical Geographical Indication) wines among its agricultural and food specialities, as well as several Slow Food Praesidia dessert wines and unmissable sparkling wines. Calabrian sparkling wine is a relatively recent product, but it has already received many awards and international recognition. The historic brand Cirò DOC, from the Cirò area in the province of Crotone, offers an excellent traditional-method sparkling wine made from native Gaglioppo grapes. The brut rosé variety is ideal for a romantic toast.
The Lametino area, in the province of Catanzaro, is no less impressive. Equally award-winning Calabrian sparkling wines (Lametia DOC wine) are produced in the hills surrounding the city of Lamezia Terme. Another excellent traditional-method Calabrian sparkling wine comes from the Locride district in the province of Reggio Calabria: a fragrant expression of the Costa dei Gelsomini, made exclusively from the native Mantonico grape. Naturally fermented from the region's signature grapes, the great Calabrian sparkling wines release floral and berry aromas, maintaining a fine and persistent perlage, and a full flavour. Ideal for both apéritifs and after-dinner toasts, they are now the freshest expression of Mediterranean sparkling wines.
What to see in the Calabrian sparkling wine-making districts
The Calabrian sparkling wine tour is a superb sensory experience for your Christmas holidays in Calabria. Starting from the lush territory of the Cirò hills, the province of Crotone is experienced through a glass of sparkling wine produced in the town of the same name, Cirò, and in its surroundings, from Melissa to Crucoli, whose historic villages overlooking the Ionian Sea evoke a boundless charm. Sights not to be missed? The imposing structure of Castello Carafa in Cirò, home of the Cirò-born mathematician and astronomer Luigi Lilio, inventor of the Gregorian calendar, the Aragonese circular bastion of Torre Melissa (in the marina of the municipality of Melissa), and the extraordinary fortress by the sea at Le Castella, in the Isola Capo Rizzuto Marine Protected Area.
On Catanzaro's Tyrrhenian coast, Lamezia Terme, the "City of Wine", offers visitors the beauty of the historic centre of Nicastro, where they can visit the city's symbolic sites: the Cathedral of Saints Peter and Paul, the Monumental Complex of San Domenico, the Lametino Archaeological Museum and the House of the Ancient Book, as well as the remains of the Norman-Swabian Castle, which tower over the city from the hilltop. Enjoying Locride's fine sparkling wine is the perfect way to discover one of the most important cities of Magna Graecia. Locri and the Locri Epizefiri National Archaeological Park represent the ancient heart of Ionian Calabria.
