Within 3 months from the date of this publication, the authorities of a Member State or of a third country, or a natural or legal person having a legitimate interest and established or resident in a third country, may lodge, in accordance with Article 17 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1143 of the European Parliament and of the Council (1), an opposition with the Commission.

SINGLE DOCUMENT

‘Casauria’

PDO-IT-02972

Date of application: 7.7.2023

1.   Name to be registered

Casauria

2.   Geographical indication type

PDO – Protected Designation of Origin

3.   Categories of grapevine products

1.

Wine

3.1.   Combined nomenclature code

—	22 – BEVERAGES, SPIRITS AND VINEGAR 2204 – Wine of fresh grapes, including fortified wines; grape must other than that of heading 2009

4.   Description of the wine(s)

Casauria and Casauria ‘Riserva’

BRIEF WRITTEN DESCRIPTION

Colour: deep ruby red with subtle purplish tints, shading to garnet with age;

Aromas: ripe red fruit and spices, intense, complex;

Taste: dry, full, robust, harmonious, nicely tannic, can be flavourful; as it develops, the wine acquires greater complexity and becomes softer;

Minimum total alcoholic strength by volume: 13,00 %; with the term ‘Riserva’: 13,50 %;

Minimum sugar-free extract: 24 grams per litre; with the term ‘Riserva’: 26 grams per litre.

Where the wine has spent time, or has been stored, in wooden vessels, there may be subtle aromas of wood.

Any analytical parameters not shown in the table below comply with the limits laid down in national and EU legislation.

General analytical characteristics

—	Maximum total alcoholic strength (in % volume): —

—	Minimum actual alcoholic strength (in % volume): —

—	Minimum total acidity: 4,5 grams per litre expressed as tartaric acid

—	Maximum volatile acidity (in milliequivalents per litre): —

—	Maximum total sulphur dioxide (in milligrams per litre): —

5.   Wine making practices

5.1.   Specific oenological practices

1.   Wine-growing rules - Natural environmental conditions

Cultivation practice

Vineyards dedicated to producing wine with the ‘Casauria’ PDO must be planted in areas of hills or plateaux. They must be located at an elevation of no more than 500 metres above sea level, except in the case of vineyards exposed to midday sunshine, where the maximum elevation is 600 metres. Areas of land that do not receive sufficient sunshine or are in damp lower valleys are not suitable.

2.   Protected traditional term ‘Riserva’

Specific oenological practice

Wine with the protected designation of origin ‘Casauria’ and the traditional term ‘Riserva’ must undergo a mandatory ageing period of at least 24 months. The ageing period begins on 1 November of the year in which the grapes are harvested.

3.   Mandatory ageing for Casauria

Specific oenological practice

Wine with the Casauria protected designation of origin must undergo a mandatory ageing period of at least 18 months.

4.   Planting density in the vineyard

Cultivation practice

Planting density must not be less than 3 500 plants per hectare, with vines as the sole crop. There is an exception in the case of vines planted, or replanted, for pergola training, for which the minimum density is 3 200 plants per hectare.

5.   Grape-to-wine yield percentage

Specific oenological practice

The maximum grape-to-wine yield is 70 %.

5.2.   Maximum yields:

1.   Casauria and Casauria ‘Riserva’

63 hectolitres per hectare

2.   Casauria and Casauria ‘Riserva’

9 000 kilograms of grapes per hectare

6.   Demarcated geographical area

The production area for the ‘Casauria’ PDO comprises the entire administrative territory of the following municipalities in the province of Pescara: Bolognano, Castiglione a Casauria, Cugnoli, Pietranico, Scafa, San Valentino in Abruzzo Citeriore, Torre de’ Passeri and Turrivalignani; and parts of the administrative territories of the following municipalities in the province of Pescara: Alanno, Bussi sul Tirino, Brittoli, Corvara, Lettomanoppello, Manoppello, Pescosansonesco, Popoli, Serramonacesca and Tocco da Casauria.

7.   Wine grapes variety(ies)

Montepulciano N

8.   Description of the link(s)

8.1.   A) Details of the geographical area

1)   Natural factors relevant to the link:

The geographical area of the Casauria designation is located in an area with geomorphological, soil and climate conditions that are very different from those of the surrounding region. This is due especially to its particular terrain and proximity to sizeable mountain massifs.

The demarcated geographical area includes the inland hilly strip and foothills of the province of Pescara, bordered to the south-west by the Maiella massif, and to the north-west by the Gran Sasso massif. The Abruzzo mountains are part of the central and southern Apennine range and form the section where the Apennines reach their maximum width, altitude and density. Vine and olive cultivation takes place on hilly formations made up of Plio-Pleistocene deposits that filled the Periadriatic basin during a marine sedimentary cycle between the late Tertiary and early Quaternary. These form a border around the sandy-clay flood plains formed by the Pescara river. These hills create an undulating landscape, with broad, almost flat mounds, and slopes that are gentle and rounded. Almost invariably, the soil has the appropriate level of fertility to regulate yields. In addition, it is characterised by an even distribution of material forming soils with a sandy-clay structure, but also quite stony, generally sufficiently loose, and of varying depth depending on the gradient and aspect.

The specific geographical area is characterised by particular climatic conditions that are closely linked to the geological development and shape of the landscape. This is characterised by broad hills exposed to sunshine and wind and the dominant presence of the mountain massifs of Gran Sasso and Maiella. These mountains protect the area from cold westerly winds and cause the marked differences in temperature between day and night.

Vines are cultivated at elevations of between 200 and 600 metres above sea level, of varying gradient and aspect depending on the slopes. Land on the damp valley floor and with unsuitable aspects is not used for winegrowing.

Total precipitation is around 800 millimetres per year on average. The rainiest period is between November and January, over 80 millimetres per month, while the month with the absolute minimum rainfall is July: around 30 to 40 millimetres.

The climate is temperate, with average annual temperatures ranging from 12 °C in April to 16 °C in October, but tending to hot and arid in July and August, with average temperatures of 24 to 25 °C. The Winkler thermal index, i.e. the average active temperature in the period from April to October, depending on the slopes and aspect, is between 1 800 and 2 200 degree days.

8.2.   2) Human factors relevant to the link

The geographical area has an historical link to the place-name Casauria thanks to the presence of a magnificent Romanesque abbey, San Clemente a Casauria, which has given its name to the area. The most reliable historical source is the ‘Chronicon Casauriense’ which shows how the great fertility of the places encircled within the meander of the Pescara river made the Abbey and its holdings appear a golden house, in Italian ‘Casa Aurea’, hence Casauria. It was a true paradise of delights, including wine, worthy to receive and guard the relics of the martyr Clemente, according to Carlo Tedeschi in the publication Bullettino dell’Istituto Storico Italiano per il Medioevo, in his essay ‘Insula Piscariae paradisi floridus ortus’ in 2019.

The earliest evidence of the great wine-growing tradition of the Casauria area are the Palmenti di Pietranico, ancient basins hollowed out of huge rocky outcrops scattered throughout the area. Created with great skill, and probably of Italic origin, they were used as basins for turning the grapes into wine on the land where they were grown. Subsequently, during the Middle Ages, vine-growing and winemaking became associated with the tireless work of the Benedictine fathers in the various abbeys in the area, including the aforementioned Abbey of San Clemente a Casauria, and the Abbey of Santa Maria d’Arabona in Manoppello, dating from 1209.

Franco Cercone (1935-2020) states in one of his numerous writings, ‘undoubtedly we are indebted to the Mazara and Tabassi families who, at the end of 1700, extended the area in which the Montepulciano grape variety was cultivated. The reason is that, while these families owned extensive properties in Sulmona and the neighbouring areas, they set their sights on the fertile lands beyond the gorges of Popoli and along the Valle Pescara’.

The climate conditions and geological characteristics of the upper Val Pescara are especially favourable for winegrowing. They are the reason why members of the Sulmona nobility were persuaded to extend their possessions in the area. It is likely that various grape varieties, including Montepulciano, were taken from Mazara to be planted in Torre de Passeri. Also, the specific grape variety Montepulciano N has long been present in this area with its specific conditions, on small and medium sized holdings with the vines often gobelet-trained in the 19th century. The result was significant experience of cultivation and winemaking which, while traditional, nevertheless produced wines that have always been considered excellent quality. This is shown by documents dated 1821 concerning the sale of grapes and wines produced in Tocco da Casauria.

Therefore, human factors play a crucial role. Over time, some winegrowers identified specific strains that are more responsive to quality factors. These were used in the selection of reproductive material. Thanks to the development and improvement of certain wine-growing and oenological practices, which form an integral and essential part of the product specification, the products obtained today have distinct and typical characteristics.

For these reasons, in 2007, Vivai Rauscedo, the main Italian nursery, approved clone VCR 456, the Casauria biotype. It is distinguished specifically by its ability to produce wines that are the most pleasing, most flavoursome and most aromatic among all approved Montepulciano clones. This clone was selected from plants which historically have proved perfectly adapted to the Casauria area.

The current production conditions have therefore enabled operators in the Casauria area to take advantage of all the theoretical and technical knowledge to improve the production processes. In the field, there is knowledge and selection of the best vineyards and the best clones of the Montepulciano grape. In the winery, the fermentation temperature can be perfectly regulated, which improves the quality of the soaking process as part of fermentation. This is a key stage in extracting the typical sensory profile of Casauria wine. The maturing techniques and the level of control possible in the area’s modern wineries ensure the authenticity of the product and its great longevity.

8.3.   B) Details of the quality or characteristics of the product essentially or exclusively attributable to the geographical environment

Casauria wines produced in the traditional way are an intense ruby red colour, with subtle violet tints which turn garnet with long ageing. The typical aroma in younger wines is ripe red fruit, with spices, intense, complex. When the wine is matured in oak barrels, the flavours and aromas may have subtle notes of wood.

The taste is dry, nicely tannic and harmonious. Over time the wine evolves, gaining greater complexity and softness.

This sensory profile is typically associated with the influence from the micro-climate of the production area on the Montepulciano grape, a variety perfectly suited to the Casauria area.

Casauria wines should be served at a temperature between 16 and 18 °C in large glasses to enable maximum expression of the wine’s complexity.

8.4.   C) Description of the causal interaction between the details referred to in point A and those referred to in point B.

The combination of climate and human factors are linked, on the one hand, to the soil and climate conditions of cultivation and the strongly viticultural nature [of the area], and on the other to the increasingly skilful development of the wine culture. These factors are key in producing quality grapes which are the basis of the Casauria wines with their significant, distinctive and recognisable characteristics.

The soil and climate conditions are perfectly suited to the late ripening of Montepulciano, which needs around 2 000 degree days to achieve the best phenological state. This need for prolonged hours of sunshine means that the vines greatly benefit from the marked differences in temperature between day and night during phenological ripening. These differences create optimal conditions for the precious aromatic components to accumulate in the grape bunches, allowing individual grapes and their seeds to ripen fully. The seeds are a source of the tannins which are important in ensuring the great ageing potential of Casauria wines.

The Montepulciano grape variety is used to produce Casauria wine in the inland area of Pescara province, in other words, the area of Casauria. The above description shows that this grape has been able express its full potential, with its characteristic features linked to its aromas and flavours. In this context, the adaptability of the grape variety to the specific soil and climate environment has facilitated spontaneous mutations. These have given rise to specific morphological and phenological functions that are useful for the production of excellent grapes.

The quality and characteristics of Casauria wines are also closely linked to the human factors described in part A) 2.

Centuries of grape cultivation and wine production have always characterised the production area of the Casauria wines.

A new-found economic sustainability has combined the qualities of the landscape and the efforts of the many producers. These successfully grasped the historic opportunity afforded by great improvements in production techniques and scientific knowledge, both in the field and in the winery, maximising the potential of the wines produced.

The culture of vineyard sustainability allowed the cultivation of the Montepulciano grape to be optimised. Indeed, agricultural practices are increasingly focused on caring for vineyard ecology, to the benefit of the soil, of biodiversity, of the operators and, above all, of the grapes produced. This has led to a direct improvement in the quality and organoleptic characteristics of Casauria wine.

Today, operators can greatly benefit from the much improved production conditions in the winery. The industry has technology and equipment for every stage of winemaking, while fully respecting the excellent grapes produced.

Thanks to the talent of the area and the efforts of producers, in 2006 the place-name Casauria became synonymous with the wines produced in the area outlined in this specification. They are heirs to centuries of history ready to be presented to an increasingly interested market. Their story is told through the quality of Casauria wines which, compared with other wines produced from Montepulciano in other areas, are an expression of distinctive characteristics resulting from the harmonious interaction of human activity and the sum of environmental factors.

9.   Essential further conditions

Derogation on the production in the demarcated geographical area

Legal framework:

EU legislation

Type of further condition:

Derogation on the production in the demarcated geographical area

Description of the condition:

Pursuant to Article 5(1)(b) of Regulation (EC) No 2019/33, wines with the ‘Casauria’ PDO may be made and matured anywhere in the administrative territory of the municipalities in the production area, as well as throughout the administrative territory of the province of Pescara provided that the operators involved demonstrate that, prior to the date of publication of the decision conferring protection on the name ‘Casauria’, they had made and matured wines in ‘Casauria’, a pre-existing sub-area of the ‘Montepulciano d’Abruzzo’ protected designation of origin, for at least two viticultural years, and that such wines are made from grapes from vineyards managed by those same operators.

The following municipalities of the province of Pescara not included in the specification at Article 3 (Grape production area) may carry out operations relating to production:

—	Abbateggio

—	Cappelle sul Tavo

—	Caramanico Terme

—	Carpineto della Nora

—

Catignano

—

Cepagatti

—	Città Sant’Angelo

—	Civitaquana

—	Civitella Casanova

—	Collecorvino

—

Elice

—

Farindola

—	Loreto Aprutino

—	Montebello di Bertona

—	Montesilvano

—

Moscufo

—

Nocciano

—

Penne

—

Pescara

—

Pianella

—

Picciano

—	Roccamorice

—

Rosciano

—

Salle

—	Sant’Eufemia a Majella

—

Spoltore

—

Vicoli

—	Villa Celiera

Bottling within the demarcated geographical area

Legal framework:

EU legislation

Type of further condition:

Bottling within the demarcated geographical area

Description of the condition:

In order to preserve the quality and reputation of the wines, to guarantee their origin and to ensure the effectiveness of controls by strengthening the control of their particular characteristics and quality, there is a protection measure for the designation of origin which benefits all the operators concerned: bottling must take place within the same area as vinification and maturing in accordance with the relevant EU legislation.

In addition, transportation and bottling outside the production area can compromise the quality of Casauria wine, exposing it to redox reactions, sudden changes in temperature and microbiological contamination. This can have negative effects on physical and chemical characteristics, such as minimum total acidity or minimum sugar-free extract, and on organoleptic characteristics such as colour, aroma and taste.

These risks increase as more distance is covered. Conversely, bottling in the area of origin ensures that the batches of wine remain in place or that movement is kept to a minimum, which allows the characteristics and qualities of the product to be preserved. These aspects, linked to the experience and extensive technical and scientific knowledge of the wines that Casauria PDO winemakers have built up over the years, mean that bottling is carried out in the area of origin, using the best techniques designed to preserve all of the physical, chemical and organoleptic characteristics laid down in the product specification for these wines. Bottling facilities outside of the production area can indeed provide the same technological packaging conditions. Nevertheless, the aforementioned optimal conditions will certainly be met more effectively if bottling is carried out by establishments based in the production area. Such establishments, as well as having a profound understanding of the specific qualities of this wine, have a direct interest in preserving the level of quality, the image and the reputation of the designation of origin. In accordance with the relevant EU legislation, bottling in the production area is intended to allow the competent body to monitor with the maximum effectiveness, efficiency and economy. These requirements cannot be assured to the same extent outside the production area. The control body that performs the annual check on compliance with the provisions of the specification can very swiftly schedule the inspection visits to all of the undertakings involved in the production area as Casauria wine is being bottled, in accordance with the respective inspection plan. The goal is to systematically ensure that consignments of Casauria wine can only be bottled after they have been certified as having passed the physical and chemical and organoleptic tests performed by the control body. This makes it possible to achieve better results in terms of the efficacy of the checks, at a limited cost to the producers, in order to offer consumers the maximum guarantees regarding the authenticity of the wine.

Link to the product specification

https://www.politicheagricole.it/flex/cm/pages/ServeBLOB.php/L/IT/IDPagina/19827

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(1)  Regulation (EU) 2024/1143 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 April 2024 on geographical indications for wine, spirit drinks and agricultural products, as well as traditional specialities guaranteed and optional quality terms for agricultural products, amending Regulations (EU) No 1308/2013, (EU) 2019/787 and (EU) 2019/1753 and repealing Regulation (EU) No 1151/2012 (OJ L, 2024/1143, 23.4.2024, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2024/1143/oj).