Albana is an ancient white grape indigenous to the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy. The earliest documented writings mentioning Albana date back to the early 14th century. The name is thought to be either linked to the Alban Hills, located south of Rome, or from ‘alba’, Latin for white. Albana has been shown to have a close relation to Garganega, a white grape from Veneto used in the production of Soave. Albana is known to be a neutral grape with thin skins. These features make it a good base grape for a wide range of wine styles. It can be dried on the vine or after harvesting. It is susceptible to botrytis (noble rot), which can increase complexity. Both of these methods of concentrating juice can be used to produce sweeter styles of wine. Some winemakers are also using the grape to make Albana Spumante (sparkling) wines. Albana DOCG became the first white wine DOCG appellation in Italy when it was designated in 1986. It came as a surprise to many outside of the region because it was a small, relatively unknown area and grape at the time. Many still consider it to be under-appreciated when compared to the other prominent white grape appellations.
This week, I drank a 2021 Maria Galassi La Sgnora Romagna Albana DOCG. On the back label, it does state this wine is secco (dry). Wine from this region can be labeled with a range of sweetness, secco, amabile, dolce, passito, and passito riserva, with secco being driest and passito riserva being the sweetest. This wine is a viscous medium brassy gold. It has muted aromas of dried hay, lemon peel, apricot, wet stone, and white pear. On the palate, this fuller bodied dry wine has a sharp acidity and a moderate level of alcohol. If there is any residual sugar, it is well balanced by the acidity. The citrus and stone fruit notes combine with a minerality, which provide a significant savory component to the flavor profile and persist on the long finish. This white wine with some weight would pair well with blue cheese or lighter white meats. I successfully paired it with my ‘breakfast for dinner’ meal consisting of scrambled eggs with prosciutto, asparagus and mascarpone.
-TheLooseTannin
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