Organic Wine and Olive Oil: The Altarocca Wine Resort Proposal is Not Just for the Table

In the last 10 years, organic farming in Italy has grown by 80%, bringing the areas cultivated according to this method, which only allows natural fertilizers and the prohibition of using GMOs, to about 16% of the total fields in our country.

We are therefore a nation that navigates above the European standard in terms of crop area and number of operators involved, and Umbria – our region – is no exception, in fact: the area per farm using organic cultivation is higher than the national average.

What “Organic” Means to Altarocca Wine Resort

Beginning with its name, Altarocca Wine Resort reflects a profound love for one of the most ancient and valuable crops in the Umbrian region: the vine.
Our beloved vines are accompanied by the other crop par excellence of our hills: the olive tree.

We have been cultivating our vines and our approximately 2000 olive trees on the Rocca Ripesena Hill, where the resort is located, for many years according to the principles of organic farming: without the use of genetically modified organisms, chemical fertilizers and pesticides, fungicides, and herbicides.

We enrich the soil of the vineyards and the olive grove with natural fertilizers and with the grassing technique. We are meticulous in managing the greenery that grows spontaneously, giving the soil the characteristics that grapes and olives then fully reflect, and we manually harvest the fruits of both crops, to better preserve them.

The organic in Altarocca is not only linked to the products, but also and above all to the experiences that these products can provide our guests. We try to infuse the territory not only within the fruits through our meticulous attention to raising our crops, but also in the experiences that people may live through these fruits.

Let us take a closer look at how we enhance our guests’ experiences through our organic production.

The Organic Wines of Altarocca: Orvieto Classic DOC and the sparkling wine

The Orvieto territory, in which we find ourselves, is the place of excellence for a white wine production that has few equals in our country: the Classic Orvieto DOC.

At Altarocca we offer this exceptional wine in two versions: one more classic and one more contemporary, both respectful of the disciplinary which provides for 60% of Grechetto in the Orvieto Classic blend.

Arcosesto is our more traditional version of this white wine, which, with an abundant 60% of Grechetto, also combines 40% of other local varieties (Trebbiano, Malvasia, Drupeggio, Verdello, Cannaiolo Bianco). It is a blend made directly in the field, with mixed plots that are also the most “ancient” of our estate. We are talking about vineyards planted around 1981/1982.

Instead, Albaco is the more contemporary version of our Orvieto Superior Classic DOC, oriented to the new trends in oenology, which blends 60% of Grechetto with 40% of Chardonnay. The Chardonnay, before being combined with Grechetto, is aged for 2 months in new French oak barrels. This process determines a fresh, mineral, savory wine, but with a particular structure and elegance.

From this year a great novelty comes to enrich the selection: the Rilievo. This classic method sparkling wine, made with a blend of Trebbiano and Chardonnay, will be the new bet of Cantina Altarocca.

It is perhaps the wine that best expresses the characteristic that unites all our vines to a certain extent. The clay soil typical of Orvieto is enriched, below our vineyards, by volcanic rock resulting from the eruption that led to the creation of the current lake of Bolsena. This unique characteristic combined with our choice of not having irrigation in the vineyards, causing the roots of the plants to naturally push deeper in contact with the lava material, results in a very strong flavor and minerality, and represents an element of recognition, a distinctive trait of the wines of Altarocca.

The Organic Wines of Altarocca: Reds and Rosés

Although Orvieto is a territory known for its whites, in the Altarocca Winery there is no shortage of reds to be combined with the typical Umbrian meats and legumes.

We work mainly with cuts of international vines such as Merlot and Cabernet (Franc and Sauvignon) and with local vines such as Canaiolo. The combination of Canaiolo and Cabernet Franc gives life to our red Librato, a wine with soft tannins, vinified in steel, to be drunk young and lightheartedly.

The more structured red is a blend of Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon, aged 12 months in French oak barrels: it is our Lavico, more complex and decisive to the taste.

From autumn 2022 we will present the latest creation of our oenologist, who worked on drinkability and freshness of the product: the new rosé bubble, which we called “Mosaic”. It will be a sparkling rosé made with the Charmat method, obtained thanks to a pre-harvest that we do to thin our red grapes. This is a very good name, since it will be a blend of all our red production.

Starting in Autumn 2022, we invite you to come and taste “Mosaico” at Altarocca in one of our wine tasting experiences, which we are about to tell you about, or you may order it directly via our online shop to receive it conveniently in your home.

Organic Wine Experiences at Altarocca Wine Resort

Our organic wines are protagonists not only on the tables of the resort restaurant Invinum, but also in the bouquet of experiences and services that we offer our guests.

Our unforgettable Wine Experiences range from a simple walk through the vineyard and a visit to our wine cellar, accompanied by our sommelier to discover the resort’s production, to the more complete Wine & SPA experience, in which in addition to discovering where and how our wines are produced, we combine a light lunch made by our chef with the cellar wines and the most unique and exclusive experience: the private SPA with treatments based on organic wine and oil produced in Altarocca.

In between, some intermediate solutions such as wine tasting or a walk in the vineyard and a visit to our wine cellar together with a light lunch and wine tasting.

Using wine as an active ingredient in wellness treatments is one of the unique aspects of a stay at Altarocca Wine Resort, which makes the experience truly memorable: in the brochure dedicated to our Wine SPA, you will find all the necessary information to book an unforgettable Altarocca experience.

The Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil of Altarocca Wine Resort: Taste Meets Experience

The Rocca Ripesena hill where our resort stands is home to about 2000 olive trees that have on average twenty years of activity: these are trees of the Moraiolo, Leccino and Frantoio cultivars, with which we make a highly esteemed multicultivar organic extra virgin olive oil.

We work only with natural fertilization and enrich the soil of the olive grove with the grassing technique. We harvest by hand and use cold milling to better preserve the scents and aromas of the Umbrian olives: a production that we perform ourselves in the mill on our property. In this way, we control each phase of the production process.

The result is an oil with very low acidity, rich in polyphenols, ideal for use raw, dripped on dishes or even in the kitchen, given the high smoke point.

With our agronomist we are proceeding to map the olive trees that share the Rocca Ripesena territory with us, for the purpose over the next few years of separating collections to propose not only the current blend, but also the oils of the individual olive cultivars.

The Altarocca product is also available for direct purchase online and in tastings for our guests.

An oil obviously protagonist of the kitchen of our restaurant, and also of the range of wellness treatments and the cosmetics line that we offer to those who choose us.

Try Altarocca Wine Resort Organic Products

Carlo Petrini, founder of Slow Food once said: “Whenever they ask me a question about ‘organic food,’ I ask myself: ‘When did the madness start that makes it necessary to certify as an exception what should be the norm? Cultivating, breeding, transforming nature into food without adding external chemical and petroleum-based inputs should be normal. It is those who add chemical fertilizers, pesticides, additives, and preservatives who should declare it, certify, and document its “abnormality’”.

To discover the normality of Altarocca Wine Resort, the best way is to come and visit us: stroll through the rows of our vineyards, touch the volcanic earth of our olive grove, taste our products in the shade of the wine cellar or by the pool.

We have offers able to satisfy the most diverse needs: you can find them here or contact us directly to formulate an experience individually tailored to meet your needs.