A Jewel

at the Foothill

of

Italy's Mountains

 

Visuals and text by Juanita Dudhnath

Silver and alabaster stones provide a soft path underneath feet. Patches of dark jade grass oppose topaz skies. Towering mountains whisper with a cool Adriatic breeze. Ah, finally! This is a glimpse of wine land!

Tall in stature and humble in expression, Simone Mochi is the lone winemaker of Ca'Le Soure vineyard, located between the arms of mountains that reach down and sweep just past the picturesque town of Cagli. He is truly a gem in the art of winemaking. Hidden in what looks like a secret path that winds upward, this is Ca'Le Soure, said to mean "house of Soure." Even more mysterious, legend says it is derived from a faraway region of Italy, Venice, but no one really knows.

More than just a gem found between mountains and more than just a place secret pathways lead to, Ca'Le Soure is Cagli's single producer of wine unique to the Cagliese. A proverb warns, "Thou shalt not put new wine in old bottles." This jewel begs to differ - fashioning old school classic "osterian" (a term referring to an old winery) wine into new bottles.

After WWII many people were impoverished and consumed wine because it was cheap and available. It was not uncommon to find families with vineyards in their backyard producing their own wines. Over the last few decades that trend has started to falter. Enter the wine producer.

Simone Mochi who now operates the family's business of wine-making has been producing wine for 42 years. He says that because wine-making is a passion of his, he not only engages in the business for economic purposes, but also values high quality, which he thinks is essential to good wine-making.

"Italians drink not to drink and not very often,
but drink for good high quality," Mochi says.

As an artist winemaker, he ironically enough cannot seem to choose a favorite wine. Overall, Simone Mochi "loves all wine."

Wine such as Ca'Le Soure, MarcheRoss, and Mochetto are famous Cagliese wines. Ca'Le Soure bianco is the most famous of the wines. Light-bodied with a smooth finish, this white wine has a unique taste in the region. The vineyard produces about 13,000 bottles every year, and each is individually numbered.

Many of Cagli's citizens purchase Ca'Le Soure wines that wine sellers say are in high demand. Interestingly enough the vineyard does not grow the grapes for all of the wines. Green and purple grapes are specially imported from France along with the giant barrels that hold the wines. The grapes are mixed together to produce Ca'La Soure's red wines.

With 42 years of production and five different wines, Ca'Le Soure wine creates a taste unique to the Cagli region.

Cagli, located at the foothills of the mountains, has a unique brand of wines, a jewel in the region made by Ca'Le Soure.

The Ca'Le Soure vineyard near Cagli.