Perched atop a craggy cliff and completely landlocked by Italy, the tiny country of San Marino has stubbornly held on to its independence for centuries. Italians flock to the tiny country because of its tax-free status and tourists just generally want to check another country off their list. It’s probably safe to say that not many visitors realize that the world’s oldest republic has been producing wine for nearly 2000 years. There’s just one small winery in San Marino, but approximately 1 million bottles of San Marino wine are produced each year.
Our very cloudy visit to San Marino
Almost all of San Marino wine is bottled in the Consorzio Vini Tipici di San Marino, a society of small and independent wineries dedicated to the traditional production of wine. San Marino’s many caves were transformed into cool cellars and provided the ideal conditions for aging the wine.
The main wine produced in San Marino is a Sangiovese red, though there are some white wines produced also. The best seller is the Brugneto di San Marino, a blend of 85% Sangiovese and 15% local grapes produced from the very best vintages. The wine is classified as IO San Marino (Identificazione d’Origine), the equivalent of DOC in Italy.
San Marino in the sunshine. Image courtesy of Time Travel Turtle
The 2006 Brugneto di San Marino tastes similar to red wines from Emilia Romagna, probably because San Marino is in the heart of the Italian region. It has aromas of blackberries and blueberries and is a dry red with mellow tannins. It’s full-bodied with hints of the blackberries and blueberries from the aroma. The wine should be aged at least 5 – 6 years and pairs well with red meats, game dishes, and mature cheeses. It is best served at 18 – 20°C and should be uncorked and decanted for 1 hour before drinking. We’ll be sipping a bottle tonight with tagliatelle with wild boar ragu!
While 1 million bottles may sound like a lot, it’s actually a rather small production each of about 12 different kinds of San Marino wine from the Consortium each year. The wines aren’t really exported outside of San Marino, but bottles can be found in any wine shop in the tiny country.
Would you like to try San Marino wine in this tiny landlocked country?
Larry says
Sounds like a interesting country to visit. Waiting five or six years for a wine to mature sounds like a long time since most wines are being uncorked at about two years now. I’d like to try a bottle.
Jennifer Dombrowski says
Now that you’re retiring, you can come back for another visit and we can take you there!
Heather says
Thanks for putting this tiny country on my radar! We’ll be spending some time in Italy and Croatia in the not-too-distant future and might need to squeeze in a visit!
Jennifer Dombrowski says
Oh how fun! There are so many great off-the-beaten path places to visit in Italy and Croatia. I love Rome, but there’s just SO much more people miss out on.
Randy Kalp says
We had a chance to visit San Marino in April for an afternoon and quickly fell in love with this little republic. From what I can tell they do a lot of things right there–wine, honey and, of course, epic views. Great to see you guys showcasing San Marino. I hope more people will make the trek up the mountain. It’s a good day trip (even better overnight trip) for anyone visiting Bologna.
Jennifer Dombrowski says
We definitely enjoyed San Marino, even in a cloud. 😉 It’s only about a 3 hour drive from us, so we’ve got to get back there one of these days in better weather.
Ali says
We really enjoyed our visit to San Marino, such a gorgeous country! We didn’t have any wine while we were there, but we did have some great food!
Jennifer Dombrowski says
San Marino is beautiful! We had terrific piadillas there and of course, we always check out the local wine.
The Hedonista says
Can't believe I missed this in my trip to Umbria/Tuscany a couple of years ago. It's just beautiful, and with all my wine study, I shouldn't have missed it. Ahh well. I'll just have to go back!
Cathy Sweeney says
I fell in love with Sangiovese while in Emilia-Romagna. From where I stayed in Verucchio I could see San Marino, but we didn’t actually go there. But I love the whole area and want to return, so I’ll check out San Marino for the wine and other things next time.
Jennifer Dombrowski says
I can’t wait to hear about your wine experiences from your trip!