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Est! Est!! Est!!! di Montefiascone (also known as just Est! Est!! Est!!!) is an 
The unusual name of the wine region dates back to a 12th-century tale of a German
The story behind the name of Est! Est!! Est!!! di Montefiascone has been widely repeated for centuriesV. Hazan ''Italian Wine'' pg 202-203 Random House Publishing, 1982 and, though likely apocryphal, has served as a tourism draw for the region and gives some notoriety to the wine. While variations of the tale exist, the basic legend involves a traveling Catholic bishop on his way to Rome who sends a servant ahead to find places with the best wine for the bishop to enjoy. Visiting villages throughout Italy, the servant would scrawl ''Est'' (Latin for "There is", "it is", or "is") on the door of the places he found to have good wine for the bishop's party to later visit. The legend has it that the servant was so impressed with the wine being served at a Montefiascone inn that he enthusiastically scrawled ''Est! Est!! Est!!!'' on the door.
While that is the basic outline of the story, over the centuries several variations have popped up that slightly change some details. One of the more detailed retellings can be found in
"''
Italian wine
Italian wine is produced in every region of Italy. Italy is the world's largest producer of wine, with an area of under vineyard cultivation, and contributing a 2013–2017 annual average of 48.3 million hl of wine. In 2018 Italy accounted for ...
region centered on the commune of Montefiascone
Montefiascone is a town and ''comune'' of the province of Viterbo, in Lazio, central Italy. It stands on a hill on the southeast side of Lake Bolsena, about north of Rome.
History
The name of the city derives from that of the Falisci (''Mons ...
in the province of Viterbo
Viterbo ( it, provincia di Viterbo) is a province in the Lazio region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Viterbo.
Geography
Viterbo is the most northerly of the provinces of Lazio. It is bordered to the south by the Metropolitan City of Rome ...
in Lazio
it, Laziale
, population_note =
, population_blank1_title =
, population_blank1 =
, demographics_type1 =
, demographics1_footnotes =
, demographics1_title1 =
, demographics1_info1 =
, demographics1_title2 ...
. Since 1966, the white Trebbiano
Trebbiano is an Italian wine grape, one of the most widely planted grape varieties in the world. It gives good yields, but tends to yield undistinguished wine. It can be fresh and fruity, but does not keep long. Also known as ugni blanc, it ...
and Malvasia bianca
Malvasia (, also known as Malvazia) is a group of wine grape varieties grown historically in the Mediterranean region, Balearic Islands, Canary Islands and the island of Madeira, but now grown in many of the winemaking regions of the worl ...
-based wines produced within the of the region can qualify for ''Denominazione di origine controllata
The following four classification of wine, classifications of wine constitute the Italy, Italian system of labelling and legally protecting Italian wine:
* ''Denominazione di origine'' (DO, rarely used; ; English language, English: “designatio ...
'' (DOC) designation under Italian wine laws Wine laws are legislation regulating various aspects of production and sales of wine. The purpose of wine laws includes combating wine fraud, by means of regulated protected designations of origin, labelling practices and classification of wine, ...
.P. Saunders ''Wine Label Language'' pg 158-159 Firefly Books 2004
The unusual name of the wine region dates back to a 12th-century tale of a German bishop
A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution.
In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ...
traveling to the Vatican
Vatican may refer to:
Vatican City, the city-state ruled by the pope in Rome, including St. Peter's Basilica, Sistine Chapel, Vatican Museum
The Holy See
* The Holy See, the governing body of the Catholic Church and sovereign entity recognized ...
for a meeting with the pope
The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...
. The bishop sent a prelate
A prelate () is a high-ranking member of the Christian clergy who is an ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin , the past participle of , which means 'carry before', 'be set above or over' or 'pref ...
ahead of him to survey the villages along the route for the best wines. The 'wine scout' had instructions to write 'Est' (Latin for 'There is') on the door or on the wall of the inns he visited when he was particularly impressed with the quality of the wine they served so the bishop following on his trail would have known in advance where to make a stop. At a Montefiascone inn, the prelate was reportedly so overwhelmed with the local wine that he wrote ''Est! Est!! Est!!!'' on the door.J. Bastianich & D. Lynch ''Vino Italiano'' pg 264, 413, Crown Publishing 2005 While this tale has been widely repeated, with some variations (such as the event taking place in the 10th century and/or involving a Flemish bishop,M. Ewing-Mulligan & E. McCarthy ''Italian Wines for Dummies'' pg 197-198 Hungry Minds 2001 attending the coronation of Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor
Henry V (german: Heinrich V.; probably 11 August 1081 or 1086 – 23 May 1125, in Utrecht) was King of Germany (from 1099 to 1125) and Holy Roman Emperor (from 1111 to 1125), as the fourth and last ruler of the Salian dynasty. He was made co-ru ...
instead of meeting the Pope,T. Stevenson ''"The Sotheby's Wine Encyclopedia"'' pg286 Dorling Kindersley 2005 etc.), the story is considered by many wine experts, such as Master of Wine
Master of Wine (MW) is a qualification (not an academic degree) issued by The Institute of Masters of Wine in the United Kingdom. The MW qualification is generally regarded in the wine industry as one of the highest standards of professional kno ...
Mary Ewing-Mulligan Mary Ewing-Mulligan is an American author, wine educator and Master of Wine, the first American woman to achieve this accreditation.Matasar, Ann B. (2006). ''Women of wine: the rise of women in the global wine industry''. University of California Pr ...
, to be apocryphal
Apocrypha are works, usually written, of unknown authorship or of doubtful origin. The word ''apocryphal'' (ἀπόκρυφος) was first applied to writings which were kept secret because they were the vehicles of esoteric knowledge considered ...
.
Today, the wine region is known primarily for wine tourism
Enotourism, oenotourism, wine tourism, or vinitourism refers to tourism whose purpose is or includes the tasting, consumption or purchase of wine, often at or near the source. Where other types of tourism are often passive in nature, enotourism ca ...
, catering to the visitors of Lake Bolsena
Lake Bolsena ( it, Lago di Bolsena) is a lake of volcanic origin in the northern part of the province of Viterbo called ''Alto Lazio'' ("Upper Latium") or '' Tuscia'' in central Italy. It is the largest volcanic lake in Europe. Roman historic ...
north of Rome
, established_title = Founded
, established_date = 753 BC
, founder = King Romulus ( legendary)
, image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg
, map_caption ...
, with comparatively little Est! Est!! Est!!! di Montefiascone being exported. Among wine critics
Wine tasting is the sensory examination and evaluation of wine. While the practice of wine tasting is as ancient as its production, a more formalized methodology has slowly become established from the 14th century onward. Modern, professional w ...
, the wine often receives mixed opinions with wine experts such as Hugh Johnson and Jancis Robinson
Jancis Mary Robinson OBE, ComMA, MW (born 22 April 1950) is a British wine critic, journalist and wine writer. She currently writes a weekly column for the ''Financial Times'', and writes for her website JancisRobinson.com, updated daily. She ...
describing in ''The World Atlas of Wine
''The World Atlas of Wine'' by Hugh Johnson and (since 2003) Jancis Robinson, MW, is an atlas and reference work on the world of wine, published by Mitchell Beazley. It pioneered the use of wine-specific cartography to give wine a sense of plac ...
'' Est! Est!! Est!!! di Montefiascone as "usually the dullest white wine with the strangest name in the world."H. Johnson & J. Robinson ''The World Atlas of Wine'' pg 172 Mitchell Beazley Publishing 2005 Wine writers Joe Bastianich
Joseph Bastianich (born September 17, 1968) is an American restaurateur, winemaker, author, television personality, and musician. He, along with his mother and business partner Lidia Bastianich, co-owns thirty restaurants in four countries, incl ...
and David Lynch
David Keith Lynch (born January 20, 1946) is an American filmmaker, visual artist and actor. A recipient of an Academy Honorary Award in 2019, Lynch has received three Academy Award nominations for Best Director, and the César Award for Be ...
compares Est! Est!! Est!!! di Montefiascone to the Tuscan wines
Tuscan wine (Italian ''Toscana'') is Italian wine from the Tuscany region. Located in central Italy along the Tyrrhenian coast, Tuscany is home to some of the world's most notable wine regions. Chianti, Brunello di Montalcino and Vino Nobile ...
from Vernaccia di San Gimignano
Vernaccia is a white Italian wine, made from the Vernaccia grape, produced in and around the Italian hill town of San Gimignano in Tuscany. It was the first Italian wine to be awarded ''Denominazione di Origine Controllata'' (DOC) status in 1966; ...
saying that the region's "...history is more compelling than what's currently in the glass."
Origins of the name
The story behind the name of Est! Est!! Est!!! di Montefiascone has been widely repeated for centuriesV. Hazan ''Italian Wine'' pg 202-203 Random House Publishing, 1982 and, though likely apocryphal, has served as a tourism draw for the region and gives some notoriety to the wine. While variations of the tale exist, the basic legend involves a traveling Catholic bishop on his way to Rome who sends a servant ahead to find places with the best wine for the bishop to enjoy. Visiting villages throughout Italy, the servant would scrawl ''Est'' (Latin for "There is", "it is", or "is") on the door of the places he found to have good wine for the bishop's party to later visit. The legend has it that the servant was so impressed with the wine being served at a Montefiascone inn that he enthusiastically scrawled ''Est! Est!! Est!!!'' on the door.
While that is the basic outline of the story, over the centuries several variations have popped up that slightly change some details. One of the more detailed retellings can be found in Tom Stevenson
Tom Stevenson (born 1951) is a British wine writer and critic. Described by his colleagues as one of today's most prolific wine authors, Stevenson is regarded as the world's leading authority on Champagne.christies.coChristie’s Champagne M ...
's ''Sotheby's Wine Encyclopedia
''The Sotheby's Wine Encyclopedia'' is a reference work on wine written by Tom Stevenson and published since 1988 by Dorling Kindersley, selling over 600,000 copies in 14 languages.''The Sotheby’s Wine Encyclopedia'', 2007 edition
''The Sotheby' ...
'' where he pinpoints the events to late 1110 or early 1111 when a 12th-century German bishop, Johann Fugger
Johann, typically a male given name, is the German form of ''Iohannes'', which is the Latin form of the Greek name ''Iōánnēs'' (), itself derived from Hebrew name '' Yochanan'' () in turn from its extended form (), meaning " Yahweh is Grac ...
, was traveling to Rome for the coronation of Henry V as Holy Roman Emperor. On his travels, Fugger sent his majordomo
A majordomo is a person who speaks, makes arrangements, or takes charge for another. Typically, this is the highest (''major'') person of a household (''domūs'' or ''domicile'') staff, a head servant who acts on behalf of the owner of a large ...
ahead of him to taste the local wines and report back which wines were ''Vinum est bonum''. As with other retellings, the majordomo documented his research by writing ''Est'' in chalk on the door of the establishments whose wines he enjoyed and, being so impressed with the wines of Montefiascone, punctuated his message with multiple ''Est! Est!! Est!!!''. But Stevenson also reports that the bishop, himself, was also so impressed with the wines that he canceled the rest of his journey and stayed in Montefiascone until his death. Today, there is a tomb in a local church in Montefiascone believed to be the resting place of Bishop Fugger, which bears the Latin inscription: ''"Est est est - Propter nimium est - Johannes de Foucris - dominus meus - mortuus est"''.
DOC regulations
The white blended wines of Est! Est!! Est!!! di Montefiascone received DOC status in 1966 and includes thevolcanic soils
The soil composition of vineyards is one of the most important viticultural considerations when planting grape vines. The soil supports the root structure of the vine and influences the drainage levels and amount of minerals and nutrients that ...
encircling Lake Bolsena in the northern Latium region. According to DOC regulations (last changes approved on date 30-11-2011) the wine should come from grapes grown within the DOC area in the province of Viterbo and included in the administrative territory of the municipalities of Montefiascone, Bolsena, San Lorenzo Nuovo, Grotte di Castro, Gradoli, Capodimonte and Marta, harvested to a maximum yield of 13 tonnes
The tonne ( or ; symbol: t) is a unit of mass equal to 1000 kilograms. It is a non-SI unit accepted for use with SI. It is also referred to as a metric ton to distinguish it from the non-metric units of the short ton ( United States ...
/ha. The finished wine must have a minimum alcohol level
Alcohol by volume (abbreviated as ABV, abv, or alc/vol) is a standard measure of how much alcohol (ethanol) is contained in a given volume of an alcoholic beverage (expressed as a volume percent). It is defined as the number of millilitres (mL) o ...
of at least 11% and be composed of a blend of Trebbiano Toscano (known locally as ''Procanico'') by a percentage between 50% and 65%, Malvasia bianca by a percentage between 10% and 20% and Trebbiano Giallo (known locally as ''Rosetto'') by a percentage between 25% and 40%.Est! Est!! Est!! di Montefiascone d.o.c. regulations "''
Wine styles
Wine writer Joe Bastianich describes the wines of Est! Est!! Est!!! di Montefiascone as mildly aromatic (wine), aromatic withapple
An apple is an edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus domestica''). Apple trees are cultivated worldwide and are the most widely grown species in the genus '' Malus''. The tree originated in Central Asia, where its wild ances ...
notes and high acidity
In computer science, ACID ( atomicity, consistency, isolation, durability) is a set of properties of database transactions intended to guarantee data validity despite errors, power failures, and other mishaps. In the context of databases, a sequ ...
. The wines can be produced in dry
Dry or dryness most often refers to:
* Lack of rainfall, which may refer to
** Arid regions
** Drought
* Dry or dry area, relating to legal prohibition of selling, serving, or imbibing alcoholic beverages
* Dry humor, deadpan
* Dryness (medica ...
and sweeter ''abboccato
The subjective sweetness of a wine is determined by the interaction of several factors, including the amount of sugar in the wine, but also the relative levels of alcohol, acids, and tannins. Sugars and alcohol enhance a wine's sweetness, whi ...
'' styles. Locally, the wines are often paired with Roman cuisine
Roman cuisine comes from the Italian city of Rome. It features fresh, seasonal and simply-prepared ingredients from the Roman Campagna.Boni (1930), pg. 13. These include peas, globe artichokes and fava beans, shellfish, milk-fed lamb and goat ...
such as fritto misto
This is a list of Italian foods and drinks. Italian cuisine has developed through centuries of social and political changes, with roots as far back as the 4th century BC. Italian cuisine has its origins in Etruscan civilization, Etruscan, Anc ...
and deep-fried artichokes
The globe artichoke ('' Cynara cardunculus'' var. ''scolymus'' ),Rottenberg, A., and D. Zohary, 1996: "The wild ancestry of the cultivated artichoke." Genet. Res. Crop Evol. 43, 53–58. also known by the names French artichoke and green artich ...
.
One major producer is Falesco
Falesco is a winery and vineyard established in Montefiascone, Italy in 1979. It has been described as a "state-of-the-art winery" and its production facilities are now located in Montecchio. It is a family owned business, currently run by Ri ...
. Their version has been called a "generic Umbrian (sic) cheap white known around the world."
References
{{reflist Italian DOC Italian wine Province of Viterbo Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor