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The Timorasso Grape


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About Timorasso

(Synonyms: Derthona, Dolce Verde, Morasso, Timuassa, Timoraccio, Timorazza, and Timorosso.)

Background

Map showing the Piedmont region of Italy

Timorasso is a white-wine grape originating and still chiefly grown in the Piedmont region of Italy (see map at left).

Timorasso is yet another in that seemingly endless parade of fine Italian varieties that nearly went extinct but was rescued in modern times by the dedicated work of one winery or, often, one man—in this case, Walter Massa of Vigneti Massa. So a grape that nearly went extinct owing to the greedy lust for cash that growing the so-called “international varieties” is now a grape frequently called by experts Italy’s finest white-wine grape.

Timorasso styles are still developing as more and more winemakers jump on the bandwagon, but typically Timorasso is a big, full-bodied white with an exotic fruit/floral nose and a matching palate with good fruit and acid balance. With age—and they age very, very well—they acquire even more depth, often with an emerging mineral quality. As you will see from the numerous and lengthy quotations below, Timorasso seems on its way to being a really big player on the world’s wine stage.

To clarify terminology: Timorasso is the grape variety; DOC Colli Tortonesi Timorasso is the legally approved regional designation for the wines made from the grape in that region (and we don’t believe it is made anywhere else); Derthona is a so-far unofficial but widely used designation for the wines (it is the local rendition of the name of the town Tortona)—a regional identity much like Chianti or Barolo; and Tortona Timorasso is a proposed and likely new official designation.

Also noteworthy is that there is now a Timorasso collective of a couple of hundred or so winemakers (of whom so far perhaps five dozen actually bottle Timorasso) working together to help one another learn techniques and to promote the wines. And their intention is to limit production to perhaps 200 to 250 hectares of vineyards circa 500 to 600 acres—less than a square mile). That is to avoid an influx of poorer, cheaper Timorasso as its popularity continues to grow; the collective wants it to remain a niche wine (akin, some have said, the Hermitage blanc).

Factoid: Timorasso is an ancient grape, known since at least the 15th century. Leonardo da Vinci liked it, as did Pope Paul III; and it was served at the wedding (well, at least one of the weddings) of Isabella of Aragon.

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Some Descriptions of Timorasso Wines

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Some Timorassos to Try

(About this list.)
Price-wise, Timorasso is certainly not a cheap wine. But that was to be expected, wasn’t it? Excellent wine is rarely cheap.
    — Per and Britt Karlsson, Forbes

All this stuff, care, elegance and finesse are paid for. Do not think that Timorasso is cheap wine…
    — Wine Dharma

Because Timorasso has skyrocketed in esteem, the better specimens are already by and large outside our self-imposed upper price limit of $20. In sad fact, we could only find one decent specimen in that price range (and notice that Massa, the winery, have expressly labelled it Piccolo Derthona, signifying that it is a lesser, “entry-level” Timorasso. Alas.


Massa “Piccolo Derthona” Timorasso
(The “little brother” to their upmarket Derthona bottling. It has also been labelled “Petit Derthona”.)

• This wine’s Wine Searcher “Reviews” page.
• This wine’s CellarTracker review pages.
• Retail offers of this wine listed by Wine Searcher.
• Retail offers of this wine listed by 1000 Corks.

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For a Splurge

Our nomination is the Vietti “Derthona” Timorasso, which retails for from about $30 to $37.

• This wine’s Wine Searcher “Reviews” page.
• This wine’s CellarTracker review pages.
• Retail offers of this wine listed by Wine Searcher.
• Retail offers of this wine listed by 1000 Corks.

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This page was last modified on Monday, 8 November 2021, at 12:25 am Pacific Time.