The Pecorino white wine of Le Marche

Pecorino white wine is found mainly in the Le Marche region of eastern Italy though a small amount is also found in Abruzzo, Umbria and Lazio and the grape was nearly extinct by the late 1970s when a few forgotten vines were discovered by a Signor Griffoni. The grape variety is now cultivated in small amounts in the southern area of Le Marche and in some parts of Abruzzo, but is till considered a typical Marche white wine along with Passerina, Falerio and the very well known Verdicchio.
The main area of cultivation is in the area around the town of Offida in southern Le Marche and in the plains close to the Adriatic coast.
The small artisan organic wine producer Vini Centanni  near Montefiore in Le Marche works closely with Vinitours to promote their organic white wines in the UK and their organic Pecorino wine has proved very popular at wine tastings and events in London and Norwich in 2012


Pecorino grapes are thin skinned and so quite difficult to cultivate and this was thought to be one of the main reasons that this variety fell out of favour with growers and producers. The grapes are now grown by dedicated artisan producers and in a lot of cases they are only grown by organic methods, this is leading to a revival in their popularity with wine drinkers both in Italy and now in the UK.
The wines are medium bodied with medium to high acidity, spicy on the nose and has hints of melon, pear and also a slight nutty flavour, it goes well with fish but is even better suited to accompany chicken, pork and veal. Vinitours offers visits to the vineyards and areas where this lovely wine in now produced and tutored tastings and educational tours are available at our partners in southern Le Marche.