Marche

Castelli di Jesi Verdicchio Classico: lemon, green apple and a bitter-almond finish.

The region's big white, from hills around Jesi near the sea. Usually unoaked, dry and crisp with almond on the finish. Drink young and fresh, or take a Superiore from a good producer to age a few years.

The region's big white, from hills around Jesi near the sea. Usually unoaked, dry and crisp with almond on the finish. Drink young and fresh, or take a Superiore from a good producer to age a few years.

Verdicchio: lemony, almondy and built to age.

Marche's signature white grape. Green apple, citrus and fennel with a bitter-almond finish and high acidity. The best gain honey and toasted-nut depth for a decade or more.

Marche's signature white grape. Green apple, citrus and fennel with a bitter-almond finish and high acidity. The best gain honey and toasted-nut depth for a decade or more.

Moscioli (wild Conero mussels), fritto misto and grilled fish with Verdicchio Classico.

The coastal match: Verdicchio's lemony acid cuts fried batter and lifts mussels and fish.

The coastal match: Verdicchio's lemony acid cuts fried batter and lifts mussels and fish.

Conero DOCG Riserva: oak-aged Montepulciano, the age-worthy top red of Marche.

Denser and spicier than Rosso Conero, with tobacco, morello cherry and a long finish. Four names to know: Umani Ronchi Cùmaro, Le Terrazze Sassi Neri, Garofoli Grosso Agontano, Moroder Dorico.

Conero DOCG is the top red of Marche, made from Montepulciano (a little Sangiovese is allowed but rarely used) on the slopes of Monte Conero, a 572-metre limestone headland just south of Ancona where the mountain meets the Adriatic. The soils are chalky marine clay, and sea breezes plus cool nights keep acidity fresh. Where the Rosso Conero DOC is the fresher, fruitier everyday wine, the DOCG is aged longer in wood before release, so expect denser, spicier wine with tobacco and dark-cherry notes, firm tannin and a long dry finish. These are the Marche reds to age for a decade or more. Four names are worth knowing: Umani Ronchi's Cùmaro, Fattoria Le Terrazze's Sassi Neri, Garofoli's Grosso Agontano and Moroder's Dorico Riserva. Montepulciano here is the grape, not the Tuscan town, and Conero versions are generally seen as more elegant than Abruzzo's.

The other colour: a Conero red, Moroder, Le Terrazze or Umani Ronchi.

Rosso Conero for dinner now, or Cùmaro or Sassi Neri to keep.

Rosso Conero for dinner now, or Cùmaro or Sassi Neri to keep.

Lacrima di Morro d'Alba: an unusual red that smells of roses and violets.

A rare local grape from around Morro d'Alba. Dry, light to medium bodied and low in tannin, with an intense floral scent and wild-strawberry fruit. Lovely lightly chilled with cured meats.

A rare local grape from around Morro d'Alba. Dry, light to medium bodied and low in tannin, with an intense floral scent and wild-strawberry fruit. Lovely lightly chilled with cured meats.

Offida Pecorino: a fresh white of flowers, stone fruit and sage from the south.

Not the cheese: Pecorino is a white grape from southern Marche, rescued from near-extinction. Dry and mineral, with pineapple, anise and sage. Good with fried olives and seafood.

Not the cheese: Pecorino is a white grape from southern Marche, rescued from near-extinction. Dry and mineral, with pineapple, anise and sage. Good with fried olives and seafood.

Lacrima: a rare red that smells of roses and violets.

A local grape with thin skin and a floral scent, grown almost only around Morro d'Alba. Its wines are soft, juicy and low in tannin.

A local grape with thin skin and a floral scent, grown almost only around Morro d'Alba. Its wines are soft, juicy and low in tannin.

Verdicchio di Matelica: Verdicchio from a cool inland valley, tighter and more mineral.

Smaller and less known than Jesi but often the more serious: higher vineyards, cool nights and limestone make a lean, long-lived white. The Riserva is a DOCG.

Smaller and less known than Jesi but often the more serious: higher vineyards, cool nights and limestone make a lean, long-lived white. The Riserva is a DOCG.

Most Jesi Verdicchio is labelled Classico, so look for Superiore or Riserva.

Classico covers the bulk of the Castelli di Jesi zone, so on its own it does not guarantee a hillside wine. Classico Superiore, from lower yields, or Riserva plus a good producer name is the better signal.

Classico covers the bulk of the Castelli di Jesi zone, so on its own it does not guarantee a hillside wine. Classico Superiore, from lower yields, or Riserva plus a good producer name is the better signal.

Belisario: the valley's co-operative; Cambrugiano Riserva is the benchmark.

The big Matelica house, reliable and good value. Cambrugiano Riserva has been made since 1988.

The big Matelica house, reliable and good value. Cambrugiano Riserva has been made since 1988.

Verdicchio Riserva (Jesi): richer, longer-aged Verdicchio with honey and toasted almond.

The top tier of Castelli di Jesi: late-picked, often from the best sites, aged longer before release. Fuller and creamier than Classico, with enough acidity to age for years.

The top tier of Castelli di Jesi: late-picked, often from the best sites, aged longer before release. Fuller and creamier than Classico, with enough acidity to age for years.

Verdicchio Riserva is a DOCG; plain Classico and Superiore are DOC.

Both Castelli di Jesi and Matelica have a separate Riserva DOCG at the top of their range. Riserva means more ageing before release, so expect a deeper, richer Verdicchio with honey and almond notes.

Both Castelli di Jesi and Matelica have a separate Riserva DOCG at the top of their range. Riserva means more ageing before release, so expect a deeper, richer Verdicchio with honey and almond notes.

Conero Riserva is aged in oak, often small French barrels, for vanilla and spice.

Barrique ageing adds tobacco, vanilla and smoother tannin, so the DOCG reds taste rounder and spicier than the fresh Rosso Conero.

Barrique ageing adds tobacco, vanilla and smoother tannin, so the DOCG reds taste rounder and spicier than the fresh Rosso Conero.

Organic and biodynamic farming is unusually common, and low-intervention is growing.

Organic farming boomed after local government incentives in the 1990s, and a few estates such as Pievalta and La Staffa go biodynamic. Terroir Marche groups organic producers.

Organic farming boomed after local government incentives in the 1990s, and a few estates such as Pievalta and La Staffa go biodynamic. Terroir Marche groups organic producers.

La Staffa: biodynamic Classico aged in concrete, with pure, herbal, mineral fruit.

A small biodynamic estate founded by Riccardo Baldi, part of the move to concrete and low intervention.

A small biodynamic estate founded by Riccardo Baldi, part of the move to concrete and low intervention.

Matelica is cooler and more inland than Jesi, giving tighter, longer-lived Verdicchio.

Matelica sits in a closed upper valley 300 to 450 metres up, with big day-night swings. Its Verdicchio is more linear and mineral than the rounder Jesi style.

Verdicchio di Matelica sits in the upper Esino valley, a north-south valley shut off from the sea by hills, with vineyards roughly 300 to 450 metres up on calcareous clay over limestone. The climate is continental: summer days are warm, but nights are cool, and the day-night swing can reach about 15 degrees against about 5 on the coastal side of Castelli di Jesi. Cool nights hold acidity, so Matelica wines are tighter, more mineral and more linear, while Jesi wines tend to be rounder and fruitier under the Adriatic breeze. Both are Verdicchio and both can age, but a good-vintage Matelica Riserva is the one to keep for a decade or more, turning to honey, toasted almond and dried citrus. Jesi is the bigger, better-known zone with more producers and easier-to-find bottles. Taste one of each from the same year side by side and the difference is clear within a sip.

Bisci: organic family estate; the Fogliano single vineyard is the star.

A small organic estate whose Fogliano vineyard wine is among the region's best.

Bisci is a family estate founded in 1972, farming its vineyards organically in Matelica at up to roughly 370 metres. Its vineyards sit in the cool, high valley that gives Matelica its tight, mineral style. The wine to seek is the single-vineyard Fogliano, which collects the best of the estate's fruit and shows what Matelica Verdicchio can do with age: concentration, bright acidity and a long, almondy finish. The regular Classico is the cheaper way in, with green apple, mint and a clean, smooth palate. Bisci also offers cellar and vineyard visits, which makes it one of the more accessible stops in the valley. For anyone building a Matelica tasting, pair it with Collestefano and Belisario to see the range from classic co-op to organic specialist.

Villa Bucci: Ampelio Bucci's estate; the Riserva is the region's benchmark Verdicchio.

The Riserva is long, structured and built to age. Bucci is the name collectors look for.

Villa Bucci is the Verdicchio estate most often named as the region's benchmark. Ampelio Bucci founded it in 1983, and in 2024 the Veronesi family took over, so it is worth checking the current release before you buy in quantity. The wine to seek is the Riserva, a Castelli di Jesi Classico Riserva that pairs depth with tight, lasting acidity and a creamy, almondy finish. It is not a quick-drinking white. In good years it shows almond pastry and orange peel when young and develops honey and toasted nut notes over a decade or more. Serve it cool but not ice cold, and match it to richer dishes: baked or stewed fish, white meats, or aged cheese. For a younger, cheaper way into the house style, ask about the estate's other Verdicchio bottlings.

Umani Ronchi Cùmaro: the Conero Riserva most people meet first.

The estate's flagship Conero, first made in 1985 and aged in small French barrels.

Cùmaro is the Conero Riserva that most visitors meet first, and it is a good benchmark for the DOCG. Umani Ronchi first made it in 1985, and the wine is aged in 225-litre barriques, which is where its vanilla, tobacco and spice come from. Underneath the oak is the Conero signature: ripe dark cherry, firm tannin and good acidity from the sea-cooled limestone slopes of Monte Conero. It is more structured than the Rosso Conero DOC, and it needs a few years in bottle or a decant to show well. Umani Ronchi is the Marche estate with the widest reach, and it also makes the Verdicchios Casal di Serra and Plenio, so a visit gives you the white and the red in one place. Cùmaro is a good bottle for grilled lamb, aged cheese and a slow dinner.

Moroder Dorico: the Conero Riserva that put the zone on the map.

A family estate dating from 1837, certified organic since 2010; Dorico is its flagship Montepulciano.

Moroder is a family estate in Montacuto with roots going back to 1837, and it has been certified organic since 2010. Its Dorico is the wine that raised the profile of Conero reds, and the 1988 vintage is credited as Marche's first top-rated red in the Gambero Rosso guide. Today Dorico is a Montepulciano Riserva with dark cherry, spice and a firm, long finish, balanced between the elegance of Conero and the grape's natural weight. It is a good example of how the zone's reds have moved from rustic to polished while keeping their acidity. Compare it with Cùmaro and Sassi Neri to see three house styles from the same hillside. Like all serious Conero, it likes food, especially roast meat, mushrooms and aged pecorino cheese.

Pievalta: Demeter-certified biodynamic estate; San Paolo is its Riserva.

A biodynamic Jesi estate with a modern, precise style; San Paolo Verdicchio Riserva is the flagship.

Pievalta is the clearest example of the biodynamic side of Marche. The estate's wines are Demeter certified, and the story begins in 2002, when the Barone Pizzini group, known as the first organic winery in Franciacorta, moved into the Castelli di Jesi and began buying land. Vineyards are spread across two sites, one in the chalky clay around the cellar at Maiolati Spontini and another on Monte Follonica at San Paolo di Jesi, so wines from each show different soil and climate. The flagship is San Paolo, a Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi Classico Riserva, riper and more structured than the regular bottling. Biodynamic farming remains unusual in the region, so Pievalta is worth tasting if you want to see how far Verdicchio can go with minimal intervention. Treat it as a modern, precise alternative to the traditional Jesi houses.

Collestefano: small organic estate and a cult name in Matelica.

Fabio Marchionni's organic estate, founded in 1998 and a favourite among Verdicchio enthusiasts.

Collestefano is a small organic estate in Matelica founded in 1998 by Fabio Marchionni, working its vineyards organically. It has become a favourite of people who follow Verdicchio closely. The 2013 showed golden apple, cinnamon and mango, a richer, riper side of the grape that still kept the valley's acid backbone. That is the point of tasting here: Matelica's cool nights give structure, while careful organic farming and low intervention let the fruit speak. The wine is not as widely exported as Belisario's, so it is a good one to buy at the winery or from a specialist shop. If you like Verdicchio with more texture and a savoury, spicy edge, it is a good place to start. Serve it cool, not cold, and give it time in the glass.

Sea breezes from the Adriatic keep the hills fresh and the grapes healthy.

Vineyards sit on hills between the coast and the Apennines, where valley winds and sea air cool the vines. That keeps Marche whites crisp, with lively acidity even in warm years.

Vineyards sit on hills between the coast and the Apennines, where valley winds and sea air cool the vines. That keeps Marche whites crisp, with lively acidity even in warm years.

In the glass: Fresh acidity, clean fruit, healthy grapes

Limestone-rich clay soils give Verdicchio its tension and almond edge.

Both Jesi and Matelica vineyards sit on clay-and-limestone soils. These soils drain well and add a chalky, mineral grip to Verdicchio that is behind its long ageing.

Both Jesi and Matelica vineyards sit on clay-and-limestone soils. These soils drain well and add a chalky, mineral grip to Verdicchio that is behind its long ageing.

In the glass: Tight, mineral structure; bitter-almond finish

Matelica is cooler and more inland than Jesi, giving tighter, longer-lived Verdicchio.

Matelica sits in a closed upper valley 300 to 450 metres up, with big day-night swings. Its Verdicchio is more linear and mineral than the rounder Jesi style.

Verdicchio di Matelica sits in the upper Esino valley, a north-south valley shut off from the sea by hills, with vineyards roughly 300 to 450 metres up on calcareous clay over limestone. The climate is continental: summer days are warm, but nights are cool, and the day-night swing can reach about 15 degrees against about 5 on the coastal side of Castelli di Jesi. Cool nights hold acidity, so Matelica wines are tighter, more mineral and more linear, while Jesi wines tend to be rounder and fruitier under the Adriatic breeze. Both are Verdicchio and both can age, but a good-vintage Matelica Riserva is the one to keep for a decade or more, turning to honey, toasted almond and dried citrus. Jesi is the bigger, better-known zone with more producers and easier-to-find bottles. Taste one of each from the same year side by side and the difference is clear within a sip.

In the glass: Higher acidity, tighter mineral structure, long ageing

Monte Conero's sea-facing limestone slopes give Montepulciano freshness and a salty edge.

The 572-metre headland south of Ancona meets the sea on chalky marine clay. Sea breezes and cool nights keep acidity in the grapes, so Conero reds are more elegant than many Montepulciano.

The 572-metre headland south of Ancona meets the sea on chalky marine clay. Sea breezes and cool nights keep acidity in the grapes, so Conero reds are more elegant than many Montepulciano.

In the glass: Dark cherry fruit with fresh acidity and a saline edge

Two local grapes, Lacrima and Pecorino, were nearly lost and are now revived.

Both almost vanished in the 20th century and were rescued by a handful of growers. They are now the region's most distinctive wines, and few people abroad know them.

Both almost vanished in the 20th century and were rescued by a handful of growers. They are now the region's most distinctive wines, and few people abroad know them.

In the glass: Unique aromas: rose and violet in Lacrima; sage, stone fruit and flowers in Pecorino

Most Verdicchio is fermented cool in steel or concrete to keep it fresh.

The classic style is unoaked, to keep lemon, apple and almond to the front. Concrete tanks are making a comeback for Verdicchio and Pecorino, adding texture without oak flavour.

The classic style is unoaked, to keep lemon, apple and almond to the front. Concrete tanks are making a comeback for Verdicchio and Pecorino, adding texture without oak flavour.

In the glass: Fresh citrus, clean fruit, a little more texture from concrete

Conero Riserva is aged in oak, often small French barrels, for vanilla and spice.

Barrique ageing adds tobacco, vanilla and smoother tannin, so the DOCG reds taste rounder and spicier than the fresh Rosso Conero.

Barrique ageing adds tobacco, vanilla and smoother tannin, so the DOCG reds taste rounder and spicier than the fresh Rosso Conero.

In the glass: Vanilla, tobacco, spice and smoother tannin

Riserva Verdicchio spends longer on its lees or in cask before release.

Longer ageing, in steel, concrete or sometimes oak, adds creaminess and depth. Oak is optional, so some Riservas are lean and mineral, others rounder.

Longer ageing, in steel, concrete or sometimes oak, adds creaminess and depth. Oak is optional, so some Riservas are lean and mineral, others rounder.

In the glass: Creamy texture, honey and toasted almond with time

Organic and biodynamic farming is unusually common, and low-intervention is growing.

Organic farming boomed after local government incentives in the 1990s, and a few estates such as Pievalta and La Staffa go biodynamic. Terroir Marche groups organic producers.

Organic farming boomed after local government incentives in the 1990s, and a few estates such as Pievalta and La Staffa go biodynamic. Terroir Marche groups organic producers.

In the glass: Purer fruit and more texture; no major change in the core style

Verdicchio also makes sparkling wine, from tank and bottle-fermented.

Spumante is made by tank or by the traditional method; Colonnara's Ubaldo Rosi Brut Metodo Classico is the local example.

Spumante is made by tank or by the traditional method; Colonnara's Ubaldo Rosi Brut Metodo Classico is the local example.

In the glass: Crisp apple and citrus with almond notes