An American in Rome – Can a world leader reshape the long tail of Italian wine?

By now the world knows there is a new pope and most of us have become acquainted with him, if just superficially. He, no doubt, will alter the conversation for peace in the world, which has been perched precariously over a precipice, caused by the wants and desires of men.

While the dance cards of peace and humanity and civility and truth and, while we’re at it, reality, get shuffled here in the 21^st century, what about little ‘ol Italian wine? Can Pope Leo XIV reignite the fortunes of growth for this sputtering agro-economic powerhouse? I’m sure there are a few households in Italy where the candles are burning, the altars are set and the prayers are coming at a feverish pace. Yeah, I’m in the “thoughts and prayers” stage over this matter.

We should determine if Leo XIV likes wine. We know Leo XIII did, very much. Reporting has it that he enjoyed a wine called Mariani, which was red wine laced with cocaine (legal at the time). He was certainly productive and vigorous during his reign.

We know Pope Francis was a Jesuit. And my personal experience relays that the Jesuits are known imbibers of alcoholic beverages, wine among them.

But the Augustinian order, which Pope Leo XIV came out of, is there a tradition of wine?

In short, yes. One of the most famous wineries in Italy is the Abbazia di Novacella in Südtirol in the autonomous province of Bolzano. They produce excellent wines and have one of the great libraries in Europe. Two of my favorite wines they make are the Kerner and the Sylvaner, both whites.

How about closer to Rome? Any chance for the region to get a papal bump? It might be too soon to tell, although the Lazio region has undergone a reawakening in terms of quality and finesse in their wines. It really is one of Italy’s hidden gem areas for up-and-coming winemaking.

But really, I think the hope is the pope uplifts all of Italy and by symbiosis, the wines of Italy. Not that this notion is even anywhere on his radar. After all, the world is a hot mess and his 1.4 billion followers might be looking to him to lead them out of the fog. Of course, it might not be as easy as that, seeing as in the different factions in the church who maintain their independent tenets with regards to faith, behavior and morals, there is sure to be some robust debate and even challenges to the direction Leo XIV might be intending to take his flock. Not all may go willingly, as witnessed by the last pope and his experience with contravening groups, especially here in the USA.

The good news, is that Leo XIV understands the American mind from his time here living as an American. And while he has been spoken of as “the least American out of all the Americans,” this is probably a good time for an American world leader to have a broader sense of the world in which we live. At the very least, this can be a good thing for Italy and Italian wine, which has been one of the main focuses of this blog for 20 years now.

My hope, first and foremost, is that Italy is infused with a new and invigorating energy, let’s call it the energy of America, where the dream of a better life has been one of its main aspirations. If so, then maybe Italy can awaken from its little pisolino and feel the hope of possibility and moving forward. This is not something foreign to the Italian culture and soul. Italy is a religiously creative country, where elegant problem solving is a high art.

The world is in a pause right now when it comes to wine and wine culture. There are distractions and warnings. Health reasons are up there. So are other euphoria producing products, vying for the dollars (or Euros) of the up and coming younger generations. And yes, economics. And, quite frankly, the diminishing ambition felt so broadly all across the European continent. My hope is that this lights a fire in the bellies of Italian winemakers, winery owners, importers and marketing professionals to self-inspire and re-inspire the world about the greatness of Italian wine. 

How about that for thoughts and prayers?

 

 

© written and photographed (at Abbazia di Novacella) by Alfonso Cevola limited rights reserved On the Wine Trail in Italy

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