Bianchello, the Marche’s hidden secret

Agile and pleasing, Bianchello del Metauro is very easy to drink and available at a truly affordable price.

Bianchello del Metauro is the white wine of Fano, in the northern part of the Marche that is already influenced by the neighboring Romagna region. It is a wine that is not only historically a regional icon with an extremely loyal market niche but was also the favorite Marche wine of Italy’s greatest enologist, Giacomo Tachis.

Bianchello is a simple white wine, at least when young, but it is anything but commonplace. It is made mostly from the Biancame or Bianchello varietal which is part of the Trebbiano Toscano family and is fermented and matured in stainless steel.

There are also excellent versions made employing cold pre-fermentation and those matured in wood, while the potential using amphorae still has to be fully explored, even if the first attempts are most promising.

Over the past 15 years, Bianchello has unfortunately suffered, in regard to image, from the media spotlight being focused primarily on Verdicchio, from both Jesi and Matelica, and Pecorino Piceno.

While it may be true that the wine has a little less to offer than the Jesi and Matelicaones, it is also true that is easy to drink, thanks to its notes of medicinal herbs and citron, and has particularly agile and, above all delicate, flavor.

The wine not only ages well in the bottle, it can at times even improve significantly developing intriguing notes of wild mint and flint. This was evident at a tasting for the press organized by the Omnia agency of Fano, which included many of the best producers of the appellation.

A good drop at a good price: an excellent bottle of the Marche most delicate white wine costs less than you would imagine.

(Text by Franco Annibali, wine evaluations by Daniele Cernilli)

Bianchello del Metauro Lubàc 2017 Bruscia

90/100 -  € 12 

Made from Bianchello grapes in stainless steel with 20% maturing on the lees in barriques for a year. The wine has an intense, straw-yellow color and aromas of citron followed by notes of spice and flint. The composed mouthfeel is warm and saline and has a nice persistence.

Bianchello del Metauro Superiore Superbo Ancestrale 2017 Cignano

90/100 - € 38

Made from Bianchello grapes and matured in amphorae for seven months. A bright, straw-yellow color and a very original bouquet with scents of medlar, citron, medicinal herbs, orange peel and notes of beeswax.  The mouthfeel is very expressive, saline and even slightly rippling with its polyphenolic accents. The finish is warm and persistent.

Bianchello del Metauro Superiore San Leone 2017 Cignano

88/100 - € 14

Made from Bianchello grapes with 80% maturing in stainless steel and 20% in barriques for six months. The wine has a bright straw-yellow color with green hues and a very typical aroma with notes of medicinal herbs and yellow citrus fruit up front. The mouthfeel is saline, pleasing and wrapping with an excellent body.

Bianchello del Metauro Superiore Brecce di Tufo 2017 Conventino

91/100 - € 16

Made from Bianchello grapes and matured in barrels for ten months. A bright, golden-yellow color with green hues and notes of flint, citron and grapefruit creating a bouquet with an excellent complexity. The full mouthfeel is saline and warm, well-structured and pleasing.

Bianchello del Metauro Superiore Giglio 2018 Di Sante

92/100 -  € 10 Q/P

Made from Bianchello grapes and matured on the lees in stainless steel for six months. The wine has an intense, greenish-yellow color and an aroma of honey and yellow plum followed by hints of candied citrus creating a fragrant and slightly unusual bouquet. The mouthfeel has excellent body and is saline, warm and wrapping with a finish with excellent persistent.

Bianchello del Metauro Gazza 2018 Di Sante

90/100 - € 7 Q/P

Bianchello grapes and matured in stainless steel for four months. The color is a clear, straw-yellow and the aroma fragrant and intact with notes of citron and hints of fermentation. The mouthfeel is saline, agile, simple and taut with a delicious drinkability.

Bianchello del Metauro Albaspino 2018 Fattoria Villa Ligi

88/100 - € 8,50 Q/P

Made from Bianchello grapes and matured in stainless steel and cement vats for four months. A clear, straw-yellow color and a mouthfeel that is at first fruity and fragrant with notes of yellow plum and white peach. The mouthfeel is saline, pleasing, subtle and taut.

Bianchello del Metauro Superiore Andy 2017 Fiorini

94/100 - € 12,00 Q/P

Bianchello grapes, matured in cement vats and barrels for eight months. A greenish, golden-yellow color and a multifarious and intriguing aroma with scents of citron, yellow plum, wet chalk and medicinal herbs. A full and rich mouthfeel that is wrapping and composed, warm yet agile and saline with an excellent persistence.

Bianchello del Metauro Superiore Tenuta Campioli 2018 Fiorini

92/100 - € 9,00 Q/P

Made from Bianchello grapes and matured on the lees in stainless steel for seven months. An intense, yellow-green color and a wrapping, fruity aroma with very precise and intact notes of citron with a hint of flint in the background. The mouthfeel is agile, pleasing and saline with a delicious drinkability.

Bianchello del Metauro S.Ilario 2018 Fiorini

88/100 - € 7, 00 Q/P

Made from Bianchello grapes and matured on the lees in stainless steel for five months. A bright, yellow-green color and a fragrant and fermented aroma with notes of citron, medicinal herbs and chamomile flowers. A fresh, delicate and taut mouthfeel making to pleasing and easy to drink.

Bianchello del Metauro Piandeifiori 2015 Mariotti

93/100 - € 10,00 Q/P

Made from Bianchello grapes and matured on the lees in stainless steel for a year. A golden, yellow-green color and an intense and complex aroma with notes of citron, wet chalk and medicinal herbs. The mouthfeel is full, rich, warm, very saline and wrapping with a surprising persistence. Truly interesting.

Bianchello del Metauro Superiore Borgo Torre 2017 Morelli

91/100 - € 13,00 Q/P

Made from Bianchello grapes and matured on the lees in stainless steel for eight months. An intense, green-yellow color and a very citrusy aroma with notes of citron and grapefruit followed by hints of flint. The warm mouthfeel is full-bodied yet balanced, saline and taut with an excellent persistence.

Bianchello del Metauro La Vigna delle Terrazze 2018 Morelli

89/100 - € 10,00

Made in stainless steel from Bianchello grapes and matured on the lees for six months. A bright, yellow-green color and aromas of wild flowers and yellow citrus with fragrant and fruity notes. The mouthfeel is very saline, full, warm and wrapping.

Bianchello del Metauro Superiore Campodarchi 2016 Terracruda

91/100 - € 9,00 Q/P

Made in stainless steel from late-harvest Bianchello grapes. A yellow-green color and wrapping aromas of yellow plum and white peach with hints of fresh almond and wild flowers. The mouthfeel is warm, saline and bold with an excellent persistence.

Bianchello del Metauro Boccalino 2018 Terracruda

88/100 - € 6,50 Q/P

Made in stainless steel from Bianchello grapes. A bright, straw-yellow color and a delicately fruity aroma with notes of citron, fermentative hints and scents of chamomile flower. The agile and fresh mouthfeel is very saline and has a delicious drinkability.