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This Technology Is Transforming A Quiet Italian Wine Region Into A Destination Jewel

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Earlier this year, the 16 member Wine Consortium of Abruzzo in Italy realized that a hindrance to local wine tourism came from winemakers themselves. Many were so focused on viticulture and fermentation that they ignored promoting their own regional mountain and coastal landscape as a destination for visitors.

Another challenge came when visitors asked consortium members where to visit. Recommending one destination in favor of another could be regarded as biased by local business owners.

A third problem related to directions. Negotiating twisted coastal roads while wrestling a large and unwieldy map over a dashboard does not make for an ideal excursion. Visitors want a breezy and scenic vacation, not a logistical scavenge hunt.

Because the focus of the consortium is to assure the quality of local wines as well as to promote the region, they realized they needed to take action.

Consortium president Valentino di Campli and other members decided to scrap traditional marketing tactics and instead to develop a mobile telephone application (app).

The group mapped out 10 recommended driving routes within Abruzzo. Each, ideally, requires about two days to cover, and all intersect cultural, historical and scenic hotspots. They agreed that for each waypoint along any route, icons could be clicked on the app in order to identify wine bars and restaurants within a selected radius from each point—whether 6, 15, 30 or 45 miles (20, 25, 50 or 75 kilometers) away.

A local developer then created a straightforward app, called Percorsi (Journeys) that displays photos, summarizes attractions and navigates to targeted destinations using global positioning satellites (GPS).

Launched in October in Italian, the app is now also available in English.

Credit: Consorzio Tutela Vini d'Abruzzo

The proximity of Abruzzo to the city of Rome makes the region ideal for a two or three day excursion. Although roughly half the size of the U.S. state of New Jersey (or the country of Slovenia), the region’s population of under 1.5 million is only half that of Rome.

The drive from Rome to coastal Abruzzo is a two hour zip along well engineered blacktop through long tunnels, over gaping valleys and past ancient villages clutching mountainsides—stone dwellings clustered to fend off medieval invaders. Serrated gray walls of Apennine peaks are a visual stunner, and this combination of mountains and coastal bays makes Abruzzo a peaceful and calming slice of rural Italy.

Credit: Tom Mullen

The 35 mile (57 kilometer) long stretch of Adriatic shore between Ortona and San Salvo cities is called the 'trabocchi coast' (trabocchi are ancient wooden fishing structures built over water; most have been transformed into restaurants). With coastal erosion, barefoot teenagers, peninsular views, stunning and clear sea waters, narrow beach lanes and casual fishermen, this yet untrammeled region could be Malibu or Ventura in California decades ago. The twisty coastal strip is home to laid back locals still warmly receptive to visitors.

Rich and diverse local foods include scrumptious ricotto cheeses, olive oils, ample fish, prosciutto, lasagna-like timballo pasta as well as a distinctive three peaked pastry known as 'sise delle monache.'

Credit: Tom Mullen

“This region is not known,” said Valentina Di Camillo of Tenuta I Fauri winery. She joined the wine consortium earlier this year as the only female member. “Our big, beautiful territory offers culture and countryside but is undiscovered. We want to improve gastronomic tourism and build up identity. This is just the beginning. This app is a simple instrument to use on your cell phone that shows local beauty.”

Dino Pepe, the agricultural assessor for the wine consortium, added, “It’s a strategic project to communicate about our wine, food and the natural environment. It provides an opportunity to expose our territory, to market the region to the world. Obviously wine is important to the economy, so we promote that.”

The 10 recommended driving routes on the online percorsi app (a paper map is also available) include trails with names such as Origins of Abruzzo—History and Culture; Chieti—The City of Art; Exploring Vibrata Valley; Between Science and Nature, and Discovering the Trabocchi Coast, which we shall now explore.

When the app is opened there are two starting choices. You can select an existing route (that’s us) or create your own, based on a selection of preferences: sea, mountains, adventure hiking, relaxation, culture and nature (try that more adventurous option when you visit).

Credit: Tom Mullen

Wanting only a day trip, we’ll select a few destinations listed in sequence on the app. First, click and check photos to help decide where to go. Next, read brief summary paragraphs. Finally, switch to GPS mode, mount your camera on the dashboard and fire up the ignition.

Beginning at the spacious and breezy Hotel Spa Villa Maria, our one-way day trip will total 50 miles (81 kilometers).

First stop: the Aragonese Castle in the town of Ortona. The app’s photos show a splendid fortification aimed toward a cobalt sea.

Ortona is a lanky town with swirling and twisted streets. The castle is a hunk of well proportioned architecture, a symmetrical and primfully landscaped affair perched on cleanly trimmed grass. The app provides condensed history: built in 1492 for defending against Venetians, this transformed to a residence for nobility in the 17th century. During the Battle of Ortona in the Second World War, the walls were pummeled by German bombs and blasted by American grenades. A few years later the structure was hammered by a mudslide. No wonder it deserved recent renovations.

From the base of these brown walls, look outward and downward toward the massive modern harbor to see a statue of Saint Thomas—patron saint of the city, for whom a two day boat parade and feast is held each May.

Walk from this castle to the Abruzzo regional wine store (Enoteca Regionale d’Abruzzo) on a sloping stone street. The interior is lined with hefty wooden shelves stocked with local vintages. The predominant red grape of the region is Montepulciano d’Abruzzo while most whites are made using Trebbiano d’Abruzzo. Buy a bottle (why not two?) and stash them in your car for a picnic the next day.

The app displays the next stop: Punta Turchino trabocco. However, we’ll stop at another one of these nearby fishing structures—Trabocco Pesce Palombo—because we can pull in for lunch. Begin with a glass of local bubbly spumante bianco, such as Carmine Festa Metodo Classico. Next, select the special that includes oil, garlic, tomato, green peppers, chili, shellfish and six other kinds of freshly caught fish—perhaps sea bass or red mullet during winter, or cuttlefish and anchovies in spring.

After a long lunch, drive to the Abbey of San Giovanni in the commune of Fossacesia. Marvel at this structure and carvings that appear intact and fresh, even though they were completed in 1204—the same year that crusaders sacked Constantinople. Downstairs, rub your palms against the cool and ancient white columns made from marble mined within the nearby Maielli Mountains.

Before visiting the hillside city of Vasto, click on the app’s ‘nearby wine bar’ icon, then navigate to Fontefico. Sit outdoors in the country and sample local ricotta cheese as well as white wines made from Pecorino grapes—precise, creamy, and tasting of grapefruit and nectarines.

Sample both prosciutto and ventricina vastese—a local slice of pork with added spices that may include rosemary, orange peel, fennel seeds, garlic and white pepper. Sip a glass of 2014 red Cocca di Casa Montepulciano d’Abruzzo—a balanced mouthful of cherry and cocoa. “We call the wine Daddy’s little girl,” said co-owner Nicola Altieri, explaining the family's affection for this beauty.

Credit: Tom Mullen

Back in the vehicle, navigate up switchbacks to the hilly city of Vasto. This is an unexpected jewel, a haven of 40,000 residents with a small but vibrantly attractive center. From Palazzo d’Avalos stroll along Corso de Parma to Piazza Diomede and then to adjacent Piazza Gabriele Rossetti—a somewhat circular gathering point with stone benches near turrets, flagpoles, a fountain and cafés: this is signature rural Italy, but with a healthy modern vibe.

(The app is your starting point. If you want a personal tour, consider contacting a professional guide to take you to specific locales and provide more in-depth information.)

Next, descend to Michelin star Restaurant Al Metrò in San Salvo for dinner. While slicing up red mullet, down a glass of Vigneto di Popoli Trebbiano wine from the Valle Reale winery—a tangy and acidic opener to appetizers. Or try a glass of Yare white Pecorino wine from Il Feuduccio, richly tasting of lemongrass with a long, dynamic finish.

For main course consider risotto with calamari and green beans—matched with a glass of another Pecorino white from Torre dei Beati—a refreshing blast of lemons and mandarins, or a Pasetti Rosato rosé—a 100% Montelpuciano d'Abruzzo which is smoke and pineapple on the nose and candy in the mouth. An alternate rosé, always a balanced winner, is a Villa Gemma from Masciarelli.

Dessert? Biscuit sorbet, together with a glass of Gesmino Muscat. On the nose this includes Christmas clementines, lemon rind, strawberries and mushrooms.

Finally, a digestif. Ask for the exquisite clonal Muscat made by only three local wineries from the rare variety of Muscatello di Castiglione e Casauria grapes, grown only in the Pescara valley.

Before leaving the restaurant to your hotel (no more driving after wine), toast to Abruzzo: to wine, food, culture, natural beauty and robust ancient architecture. And, of course, technology.

 

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