Ciavolich, Trebbiano d’Abruzzo, Fosso Cancelli, 2022
Ciavolich, Trebbiano d’Abruzzo, Fosso Cancelli, 2022
- 75cl
- 12%
- White Still
- Trebbiano d'Abruzzo
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Optimal drinking window: 2026 - 2030
Est. delivery in late summer, 2026
Trebbiano d'Abruzzo has spent years unfairly lumped in with the workhorse Trebbiano Toscano, and wines like this one from Ciavolich are doing a fine job of correcting that misunderstanding.
Fosso Cancelli is the family's single-vineyard expression, grown on the hillside estate near Loreto Aprutino in Pescara province, and it drinks with a precision and energy that feels very different from the neutral, high-volume stuff Trebbiano's reputation has been saddled with. Think white peach, green apple, a touch of almond blossom, and a clean saline pull through the finish that speaks to the Adriatic's proximity and the limestone-rich soils beneath the vines.
Chill it well, open it with something simple from the sea, and let it remind you why Abruzzo's best whites deserve far more attention than they get.
At four years old, this 2022 is drinking in its sweet spot right now, all primary fruit and saline freshness with everything in balance. Over the next year or two it will hold steady, the fruit perhaps rounding very slightly as the acidity integrates further. By 2028 it will likely start to lose the bright, cutting edge that makes it so appealing in its youth, though it will not fall apart quickly. Drink it sooner rather than later to catch it at its most vivid.
Tasting Notes
AppearancePale straw with a faint green tint and good clarity.
NoseFresh and precise, with white peach, green apple, and a delicate thread of almond blossom. There is a flinty, almost chalky quality underneath that gives the whole thing a pleasing sense of tension. Clean and inviting without being showy.
PalateLight to medium-bodied with crisp, natural acidity that keeps everything lively. Stone fruit sits at the centre, with a saline pull through the mid-palate that adds grip and interest without any heaviness. The texture is clean and direct, with no wood in sight.
FinishRefreshingly clean with a lingering mineral note and a faint almond bitterness that is very much in the Abruzzo idiom.
Overall impressionA focused, honest white that makes a compelling case for Trebbiano d'Abruzzo as a grape worth taking seriously.
Food Pairings
Along the Adriatic coast of Abruzzo, this kind of white is the default partner for brodetto, the local fisherman's stew that varies village by village but always involves whatever came off the boat that morning. Locals would also reach for a bottle with spaghetti alle vongole, the clams bringing out the wine's saline edge in the best possible way. Grilled whole sea bream with lemon and olive oil is another natural fit, as is a plate of fritto misto di mare from one of the trabocchi, the traditional wooden fishing platforms that jut out into the sea along this stretch of coastline.
We think this wine would go well with
Serve well chilled, around 8 to 10 degrees Celsius, to keep the acidity lively and the freshness intact. No need to decant; this is a wine that rewards pouring straight from a cold bottle. A standard white wine glass with a narrower bowl works well here, helping to concentrate the floral aromatics without letting the wine warm up too quickly in the hand.
The Fosso Cancelli vineyard sits in the Pescara hills at moderate altitude, where the continental climate of inland Abruzzo is tempered by breezes rolling in from the Adriatic. Soils here are predominantly clay and limestone, giving the wines their characteristic freshness and that flinty, saline edge that makes good Trebbiano d'Abruzzo so distinct from its Tuscan cousin. The diurnal temperature shift between warm days and cool nights helps preserve acidity in the grapes, which is critical for keeping this variety lifted and focused rather than flat.
Trebbiano d'Abruzzo DOC covers white wines made from the Trebbiano d'Abruzzo grape across the four provinces of Abruzzo, though despite sharing a name, this variety is genetically unrelated to the widely planted Trebbiano Toscano. The DOC has historically been associated with enormous volumes of neutral wine, but a handful of serious producers have demonstrated that the grape, planted in the right place and handled with care, produces wines of genuine character and even age-worthiness. At the quality end, these whites can age for a decade or more, developing a waxy, honeyed depth that puts them closer to serious white Burgundy than to anything you'd expect from a central Italian DOC.
The 2022 vintage in Abruzzo arrived as a relief after several challenging years, though it demanded careful vineyard management throughout. A dry spring set the stage, followed by intense summer heat that stressed vines across the region's hillside sites. The saving grace came from cooler nights in the Apennine foothills, where many of the best producers farm, allowing grapes to retain freshness despite the challenging conditions. Harvest began earlier than usual, with smart winemakers picking in the cool dawn hours to preserve what acidity they could.
What emerged are wines with ripe, generous fruit but more restraint than you might expect from such a warm year. The Montepulciano d'Abruzzo shows beautiful density without the jammy heaviness that can plague hot vintages here, while Trebbiano d'Abruzzo delivers surprising mineral backbone alongside its characteristic stone fruit flavours. We find these wines drinking beautifully now, offering immediate pleasure with enough structure to reward patient cellaring for five to eight years. It's a vintage that showcases modern Abruzzo at its most accomplished.
FAQs
What does Fosso Cancelli taste like?
It is clean, focused, and refreshing, built around white peach, green apple, and a distinctive saline, mineral quality that comes through particularly on the finish. It is not a big or weighty wine; the appeal is in its precision and energy.
Is this worth cellaring or should I drink it now?
Drink it now, or within the next three to four years at most. This is not a wine that benefits from long ageing; it is at its best while that freshness and saline vitality are still singing. We would not sit on it past 2030.
What food should I serve with this?
Anything from the sea. Grilled fish, clam pasta, a plate of simply dressed seafood, or a good fish stew will all work brilliantly. The saline quality in the wine is practically designed to meet salt and iodine from the ocean halfway.
How should I serve it?
Serve it cold, around 8 to 10 degrees Celsius. Do not decant it; just pour it straight from a well-chilled bottle. A standard white wine glass is all you need.
What makes Trebbiano d'Abruzzo different from other Trebbianos?
Despite the name, Trebbiano d'Abruzzo is a genetically distinct grape from the high-volume Trebbiano Toscano. In the right hands, as here at Ciavolich, it produces wines with real character, minerality, and freshness rather than the neutral, anonymous stuff that gave the Trebbiano name its mixed reputation.
OUR GROWERS
Ciavolich
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