A white wine, with a golden yellow color and a sweet taste, the flagship of the winemaking tradition of Breganze, a small Venetian town close to the Asiago plateau, in the province of Vicenza. Let's talk about the Torcolato, which will be celebrated on Sunday 19 January with the 25th edition of the Prima del Torcolato. The party dedicated to pressing of the first withered bunches of Vespaiola grapes, conferred by all the cellars of the Consorzio Tutela Vini Doc Breganze, will be held from 14,30 to 17 in the main square of the town. The folkloristic ritual will be presided over by the "Magnificent Fraglia del Torcolato", and will see the investiture of the new brothers of the Fraglia and the appointment of the Torcolato Ambassador. This year the honor goes to Alessandra Viero, television journalist from Vicenza. To celebrate the twenty-five anniversary of the party, the ceremony in the square will be enriched by the cut of a large Torcolato panettone to be enjoyed all together.
But let's revisit the history of this fascinating sweet passito wine, once considered highly prized. In fact, Torcolato was once upon a time accessible only to the nobility and the lucky winegrower who managed to put aside at least one bottle kept it jealously as if it were a priceless treasure. And one certainly could not blame him: that precious nectar, in fact, was not only pleasant on the palate, but was considered also a real cure-all able to cure numerous pathologies such as asthma, cough, heart disease, intestinal problems and depression. Today Torcolato is accessible to everyone, but it undoubtedly remains a very precious wine, so much so that it can be considered a sort of “pure gold” of Breganze.
In this territory, located between the Astico and Brenta rivers and which takes the name of Pedemontana Vicentina, the first DOC of the province of Vicenza was born in 1969, and it took its name from the town which has a scarce 9.000 inhabitants. Torcolato, whose name appears for the first time in 1754, is part of this denomination together with a wide range of other white, red and sparkling wines from native and international grapes. This is an area suited to viticulture due to its poor alluvial soils and volcanic origin, but also for the favorable climate characterized by hot but not muggy summers and with a good temperature range. Soil and climate give precise characteristics to the wines, all united by a great olfactory finesse and a pleasant minerality on the palate.
The grape used for the production of Torcolato Breganze DOC takes the name of Vespaiola and is a native white grape variety of uncertain origin, but which here has found the ideal terrain and climate to express itself at its best. Its name derives from the strong attraction that wasps have for the particularly fragrant and sugary must that is produced from this grape. The plant gives small bunches with medium-sized and thick-skinned berries that are harvested in September. The ripe grapes retain a marked acidity, perfect for the vinification of Torcolato passito, but also for its sparkling and still version that go well with local dishes such as the tasty Vicenza-style bacalà: a rich dish with a fatty tendency, conferred by the use of milk and cheese in cooking stockfish.
