Tasting précis by John on Thursday, September 9, 2010.
The Wine
Verdicchio di Matelica – Fuso – Marches, Italy
The Place
Marches is one of Italian provinces. Located on the eastern coast of Italy to the north of Abruzzi and to the south of Emilia-Romagna, Marches is the home of some of the most unsung wines in all of Italy. The local white grape of choice is Verdicchio. Regarded as the lesser of the two Verdicchio DOCs in Marche (the other being Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jeis) Virdicchio di Matelica. Situated inland on the hilly areas of Marches, Matelica is an old sea bed that is rich in iron and mineral salts.
The Producer
Fuso is not the producer. Rather it is the name of the private label made for the importer PortoVino. Cantine Belisario is in fact the producer and like so many other winemakers around the world, they help source and produce wines under private labels for importers and distributors. If there is a positive that comes out of the recession is that there is a lot of high quality juice being produced out there and importers such as PortoVino figure out a way to get it to wine lovers at aggressive prices. According to the back label, “Fuso is our play on words from Italian FUSO meaning ‘out of it’ or ‘out of sorts’ and SFUSO, Italian table wine.”
What Does it Taste Like?
This wine is the epitome of thirst quencher. Bright green apple, under ripe citrus fruit and a touch of saltiness (it couldn’t be the terroir) are the dominant notes. The acidity is high, but not too angular for enjoyment. Instead, for $12.99 this wine is a very suitable food wine. There was a touch of petillance, or a touch of spritz, when I first opened the bottle, but it quickly blew off. The fruit bordered on candied Smarties-fruit, but the fruit never went over the line into the cloying fruit category. Overall, very juicy and balanced – well worth the money.
How Much Does it Cost?
I picked this little ditty up for $12.99 today in Hoboken. Give or take a dollar each way, this should be the going rate in most stores in Northern Jersey. PortoVino is out of upstate New York, so I am not sure if you will see this in the more southerly reaches of Jersey.
*Disclaimer - I bought this bottle in Hoboken with a crisp 20.
