Ep 402: Corsica, the French Island with an Italian Accent

<p>Corsica is the 4th largest Mediterranean island and the most mountainous. It is a territory of France but is closer to Italy in proximity and, often in wine styles. Corsica is called “Ile de Beauté,” the beautiful island, and its wines, which were once known for quantity rather than quality are making great strides in amazing reds, whites, and rosés, which is the majority of their production.</p> <p> </p> <p>These off-the-beaten trail wines, made of Nielluccio (Sangiovese), Sciacarello (an elegant, native red), and Vermentino (an aromatic white) with a mix of other grapes represent the unique terroir of this rugged, varied isle. These wines are ones to keep on your radar – they are getting better and should be on your “watch” list!</p> <p> </p> <p><img style= "display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src= "https://assets.libsyn.com/secure/show/45638/corsica_map.jpeg" alt= "" width="400" height="280" /></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 8pt;">Map: <a href="http://www.vinsdecorse.com" target="_blank" rel= "noopener">Vins de Corse</a></span></p> <p> </p> <p>Here are the show notes:</p> <p><strong>Location, Climate, Geology</strong></p> <ul> <li>We discuss the location of Corsica -- 90 km/56 mi west of Italy, 170 KM/106 mi SE of France, 11 KM/7 mi north of Sardegna<br /> <br /> <br /></li> <li>Corisca is a big island -- twice the size of Rhode Island, half the area of the country of Wales. Down the center a single chain of mountains takes up 2/3 of the island<br /> <br /> <br /></li> <li>We discuss who actually planted vines here and debate Phoceans v. Phoenicians (the former is from Persia, the latter more from what we know as Greece today)<br /> <br /> <br /></li> <li>In this, the most mountainous island in the Mediterranean, there are many soil combinations, but most contain at least some granite or schist, except on the east coast where there is more alluvial and colluvial soils from mountain runoff<br /> <br /> <br /></li> <li>20% of island covered by wild scrub known a