Good Wine and Drug Rehab??????

by Marty Piazza of Piazza Discepoli

The region of Emilia-Romagna is not particularly well known in America for its wines.  If it is known at all it is due to the inglorious reputation as the home of Lambrusco – that bubbly sweet red that my father used to call Bologna Cola.  The situation is changing, however, as wine specialists are finding some parcels of their geography very suitable to cultivation.

Emilia-Romagna may be Italy’s most flat region, and fine wines often require some hillsides. As you follow the Adriatic coast north through Le Marche, you enter Emilia-Romagna just south of the city of Rimini (home of Federico Fellini). If you turn inland (west) and drive just a few miles, the terrain becomes hilly.   This area is home to San Patrignano, an Azienda Agricola that is becoming famous for some special wines.

This month’s wine is their 2008 Aulente Rosso Rubicone, a hearty red made from 100% Sangiovese which sells for $18.99/bottle. It is full of red cherries, tobacco, licorice and spices, and its muscle does demand food (as most Italian reds do). Compared to a Chianti from Tuscany (which is made from Sangiovese), this wine is a little lower in acidity and warmer in its fruit.

While their wine is an excellent value, what drew me to San Patrignano is its reputation for a mission much bigger than wine production.  The largest drug rehabilitation community for youth in Western Europe, they provide their services completely free of charge, accepting no payment or funding from their families or the government. Since 1978, San Patrignano has taken in over 18,000 people, offering them a home, health care, legal assistance, and the opportunity to study, learn a job, change their lives, and regain their status as full members of society.

One of the jobs the participants can learn there is wine-making. This may be shocking to an American, but it is a clear reminder of how differently the Italian culture views wine – more as a food group than a substance to be abused. In fact, each participant in their program has the option of 2 glasses of wine with both lunch and dinner daily.

Watch the video on their website for a fascinating story.  The custom of using agricultural programs to help troubled youth can be found all around Italy – yet another example of what we Americans can learn from our friends across the sea.