2022 ICARO Friccica Ancestrale Frizzante

WINEMAKER: Rocco, Luca, Gianmarco & Fabio
REGION: Lazio, IT
VARIETY: Malvasia, Bellone
VITICULTURE: Organic/Biodynamic

“Once upon a time there was a dream called Romanella , the Castelli champagne, a magical bubble. Forgotten, or worse, destroyed in recent decades, it is a symbol of everything there is to rebuild in the world of Castelli Romani wine. And we decided to try. Friccica is our ancestral sparkling wine from Bellone and Malvasia grapes directly pressed in steel. We bottle it with a little residual sugar to complete, with the first warm ones, its natural refermentation in the bottle. Friccica is a spark, a light shock that pervades the soul, a fresh, immediate, decisive bubble. No opulence, essential. Just monstrous drinkability.”

ICARO Vino is a small but immensely exciting project by friends Rocco, Luca, Gianmarco and Fabio. Their mission statement is to revitalise and reintroduce the world to the wines of Romani Castelli (Roman Castles). The region was once where the nobility of Rome would holiday and where a great deal of wine was once produced and enjoyed by the Roman population. The wines were a favourite of the Poet Horace (65-8BC) and he even stated that they were so extraordinary that they loosened the statesman Cato’s (234-149BC) rigid and otherwise unwavering moral feelings.

The site itself is one of sheer beauty, a single vineyard near Velletri, surrounded by a 250 Ha natural monument of wild forest, huge oaks, maples and cyclamen. The soil is volcanic, composed of clay and a small percentage of sand (pozzolana), in an area particularly rich in tuff. In the vineyard, homeopathic treatments such as propolis and molasses are used to attract insects that carry yeasts. Farming is organic and everything from grape to bottle is done by hand. The little-known indigenous grape ‘Nero Buono’ is the hero here, with the white wine being made from Malvasia di Candia and Trebbiano.