From the ancient Greeks to the present day, the perception of passito wine has changed over the centuries, as has its production which we find, transversally, throughout the country.

The pleasure of a moment of meditation, the sweet end of a meal or simply a treat you want to give yourself. These are some of the pleasant aspects that a passito can give us.

Born in the time of the Greeks and Romans, passito wine has crossed history adapting to the tastes of the moment and current times. Today, after a profound cultural revolution also in production methods, it constitutes a significant reality in the food and wine panorama. Passito wine must certainly be considered a universe apart. In Italy there are just over a hundred registered ones and, in addition to diversifying them, we Italians are very good at producing them, probably the best in the world.

In addition to the various passito wines from Pantelleria , the Moscato passito from Lipari , the Moscato Rosa from Alto Adige , the Sagrantino passito from Umbria, among the various types we can mention the Recioto della Valpolicella , the Sicilian Marsala , the Tuscan Vin Santo , the Ramandolo from Friuli and many others that we could name. A transversal production from the South to the North of the Italian boot in which we are recognized and undisputed masters at a global level.

The history of passito

Created at the time of the Greeks and Romans, therefore, in the past they reflected what was the taste of the time: among other things, dry wines were not considered fine wines and this is probably because they were not yet at all refined, nor particularly good. In the past, in fact, the existence of yeasts was not known (we have to wait for Pasteur after the mid-nineteenth century) and blocking the fermentation or letting it take place completely was not a simple thing. In fact, the wines were often sweet, not completely dry (for example, Barolo was sweet and Champagne was born sweet and became dry when the transformation of sugars was mastered).

Furthermore, wine had the problem of being preserved during transport (legend had it that “Barolo would not reach Savona before it turned to vinegar…”): only with sulphiting, in fact, was it possible to preserve the wine and at the same time, thanks to it, eliminate the yeasts. In the past and up until the post-fascist period, sweet wines were not very well known, only Marsala (how could we not mention the legendary Cantine Florio) and Tuscan Vin Santo were known, they tasted of caramel and were sticky or oxidized.

The acidity of wine is in fact only a concept of recent years and initially only the residual sugar was given importance: in reality, acidity also plays a decisive role in balancing the sugar content, lowering its perception. Therefore, a passito wine that is not cloying, needs to maintain acidity but, still in the 70s , passito wines were on average poor, typically oxidized and with many structural defects, low acidity and very sweet.

Then we arrive in the 90s where we witness a reversal of the trend with which, for example, the harvests for grapes intended for raisin wines are brought forward compared to the past: the aim is to reduce the fresh grapes to raisin to arrive at the over-ripening of the grapes either directly on the plant or in closed but ventilated environments, hung or on racks, mats, straw, crates so as to concentrate all the sugars: after drying, the grapes undergo a very slow fermentation and for quite a long time.

Pairings at the table

We must also consider an aspect that over time has characterized the use of passito beyond what was highlighted at the beginning of this study, not only, that is, pure pleasure in wanting to treat yourself, but also an excellent companion for various foods.

Passito wines are exceptional when paired with desserts such as dry pastries in general, biscuits, tarts and fruit-based cakes, especially dried fruit. The typical sweetness of all these products will be enhanced by that of the wine which, in turn, will enhance that of the nectar.

The combination with chocolate is also very fascinating and sophisticated: passito wines, in fact, are one of the few types of wine capable of holding their own against the aromatic power of this dessert and the secret lies in pairing the various types of chocolate with a passito wine that balances, in terms of structure and aroma, the cocoa content.

Passito wines can also be drunk with blue cheeses , such as the legendary Gorgonzola, which is aged for a long time: if these foods are served at the end of a meal or are the main or only course of the meal, passito wine is in fact an excellent pairing thanks to its structure, softness and olfactory intensity that make them ideal companions for these courses. We close by highlighting the transversality of this product that not only offers us a worthy end to the meal with its sweet tendency, the much sought-after “dulcis in fundo”, but can accompany us at the table, giving us an exciting and unexpected pairing for fine palates that time has transformed into a true experiential refinement.

Written by Carlo Attisano for mangiaebevi.it