Born in the early 900s, from a recipe by Dr. Giuseppe Polchi, a pharmacist from the Umbrian town of Pietralunga, in the upper Val Tiberina, Sollucchero, a fortified wine with sour cherries with an alcohol content of just 15 degrees, celebrates 100 years this year of life and a new youth. The name already says a lot.
In the Treccani dictionary under the entry Solluchero we read: "Feeling of great satisfaction and deep satisfaction for something that flatters one's vanity and responds to one's aspirations and ambitions". And the grandson of the pharmacist who recovered his grandfather's recipe by starting the production of the liqueur on a large scale had no hesitation in patenting it with this name.
Extremely appropriate term for its hybrid character, poised between wine and liqueur, and for the particularity of its main ingredient: the sour cherry.
Ruby red in colour, very intense and clear, it has a fruity flavour, with hints of balsamic vinegar, cedar, resin, cinnamon, pepper, nutmeg, licorice, cloves and dark spices. On the palate it is a very warm liqueur, full, sweet, fresh, round, rightly tannic. Closer to a fortified wine than a liqueur, Sollucchero is a 'meditation liqueur' which releases pleasant sensations.
The wine with cherries is strongly rooted in the historical-cultural and oenological tradition of Umbria-Marche, since the time of the Duke of Urbino who wanted his tables never to be without it, as reported in the Annals.
Sollucchero today comes from organic cherries grown in the lands of the company of Nicola Polchi and Fabrizia Gargano, in Umbria, in the Carpina Valley, in the riverbed of the Upper Tiber Valley. A fascinating place, with exuberant and never the same vegetation, the cradle of unique sites of our historical and cultural heritage.
A small detour from the Via Francigena leads to the farm, about 800 meters above sea level, where it is also possible to stay and from which you can enjoy a spectacular view. Scatter your visciolo visciolo plants here and there.
After forty years of abandonment, in 1996 Monte Valentino produced nothing but berries from wild plants. In love with this hill, Fabrizia and Nicola Polchi convinced themselves that Monte Valentino could go back to being a farm. And so it was.
Today the company covers about 40 hectares, including woods, fields and orchards. Firewood is obtained from the woods and cereals, fodder, vegetables and legumes are obtained from the fields. But agriculture in mountain areas does not allow small businesses to be competitive, unless they focus on alternative productions. The fundamental choice at the basis of the project was therefore the biological orientation and, then, the planting of particular orchards, the visciole orchards. Visciolo is a variety of sour cherry (prunus cerasus) which finds a congenial habitat in the Pietralunga area and is therefore very widespread. With commitment and patience, the two producers explored the area in search of spontaneous seedlings, to then plant them on their own fields.
There are now about 500 trees in production, the new heart of Monte Valentino. As for the liqueur, Fabrizio and Nicola explain: "It is obvious that we have adapted the production process in some detail to our needs, different from those of Nonno Peppe, who packaged ten bottles a year for family use: we do not pit cherries like then one by one, nor do we filter the mixture by squeezing it with a linen cloth… But our production is nonetheless, and we want it to remain, decidedly artisanal. Only in this way do we feel we can guarantee its quality.”
Among other things, cherries have remarkable nutritional properties: as confirmed by recent studies, they contain antioxidants protecting the body from oxidative stress, they fight insomnia thanks to the melatonin content and are rich in vitamins A, C, potassium, magnesium, iron , folate and fiber.
For researchers at the University of Michigan, a diet enriched with sour cherries causes a reduction in cholesterol, triglycerides, diabetes as well as a decrease in weight and in the level of inflammation, and therefore in cardiovascular risk factors. Finally, according to some, sour cherries also have marked aphrodisiac properties.
The path from the fruit to the liqueur passes through the maceration in steel drums of the sour cherries, a variety of sour cherries harvested by hand in July, in the Rosso d'Orvieto wine – blends of Ciliegiolo, Canaiolo and Sangiovese – and in the syrup. Subsequent cellar practices include pressing, pressing and finally filtering. The filtered liquid is finally bottled for ageing, also in barriques in the case of the "Riserva", the latter suitable for the company of cheeses, especially if blue. Completely natural, the liqueur contains no additives and has been selected several times for the Merano Wine Festival.
Among old and new enthusiasts, the resulting liqueur has also established itself abroad, where it is appreciated for its originality and link with tradition.
Because it is a liqueur that has a history, traditionally used to round off a meal all year round, or at Christmas for its combination with traditional sweets, while at Easter it goes well with chocolate, preferably dark.
But for some time Sollucchero has been experiencing new gastronomic adventures, in some cases it is the secret ingredient of ice creams and sorbets. The creativity of the chefs has employed it in various reductions both typically sweet, such as jellies, and suitable for seasoning elaborate savory entrées. And a new spring has opened in mixology.
In recent years there has been a strong search for original products both in liqueurs and in the use of ingredients from the plant world, using culinary techniques based on physical-chemical knowledge. New techniques for the infusion and extraction of sugars, alcoholic and hydroalcoholic solutions, drying, home-made bitters and tinctures, flavorings with siphons, carbonation, use of hydrocolloids, airs and velvets, smoking and clarifications. Many bartenders who with genius and passion have made it possible to redefine and revitalize this sector.
Sollucchero has also tickled the imagination of some of them, who have translated it into icy blends with champagne and bubbles, cocktails capable of meeting the taste of the youngest and which go alongside the traditional use of Sollucchero as a liqueur after a meal .
Sollucchero of Monte Valentino
Monte Valentino Agricultural Society of Nicola Polchi and Fabrizia Gargano ss
Voice. Monte Valentino / 90126 – Pietralunga (PG)
Tel. / Fax: 075 9462092 – e-mail: info@sollucchero.it
