Wine Stories: Malvasia

“Malvasia” (ˌmalvəˈsiːə) is a word which is lesser known now outside of Venetian circles, but once reverberated throughout Europe as synonymous with ‘the power of Venezia’, and maybe ‘delicious’ too — seeing as what this word directly referred to was a certain wine. 

In medieval times, Western Europe enjoyed significant prowess for the quality of their food and wine. However, after the famines and freeze of the ‘Little Ice Age’ throughout Europe, this quality was severely diminished. One of the areas that remained relatively untouched was that of the Eastern Mediterranean. Thanks to the (albeit more cordial and less overtly friendly) ties between the Eastern Orthodox Church and the clergymen in Venezia, word quickly spread amongst the privileged folk of a wine of superior quality, whose vines had not suffered as greatly. 

Probably, this wine originated from the village of Moni Emvosis. As was the practice at the time (and remains so in some parts of the world, like Italy and France), wines were often named after their geographical location so as to better earmark their quality. That ‘Moni Emvosis’ became ‘Malvagia’ in the Venetian dialect is not such a far off theory. In any case, it was soon recognised by the Venetian merchants that the village’s production capacity was much too small, and so new ones were built in Candia. 

Today, a wine bar in Venezia is referred to as a bacaro, which is a nod to Bacchus, or to the phrase in Venetian dialect ‘fare bàcaro’ meaning ‘to celebrate Bacchus’. However, back in the day, the wine Malvasia became so popular in the city of Venezia that wine bars and shops were referred to formally as ‘malvasie’, as an indication that they stocked the famous beverage. 

The fact that the success of this import soon became a commercial export success throughout Europe is in a big way thanks to the expansionary ambitions of the Ottoman Empire. With Candia seized, the Venetians turned to their other territories throughout the mediterranean to continue their production of the liquid gold. In turn, word continued to spread and demand multiplied, to decline only with the general economic fall of the Republic many years later.

Though it is not nearly as popular nor famous anymore, production of Malvasia continues in many forms all over the world today. What is important to note here, is that the wine Malvasia is in fact not one varietal, but a collection of varietals closely related to one another. For example, Italy, Greece and California still produce the historical Malvasia di Candia, while Istrian varietals such as Malvazija Istarska are produced in Croatia. In Madeira, a grape forming part of the Malvasia family is used to make the sweet wine Malmsey.

Despite the many varietals that make up this family, wines produced generally share some key characteristics, with the exception of the incredibly distinct Malvasia di Candia. These characteristics include an intensity of colour in the white wines, contrasted by a light pink colour in the reds. They are also generally sweeter, producing off-dry wines with tree fruit characteristics for white, and chocolate in the reds. The Candia varietals, by contrast, are dryer and generally only used for white wines, where they are lighter in colour. Even drunk young, Malvasia wines generally have a very round body with soft tannins, making them unsuitable for very long ageing – but perfect to drink right away.

some examples to buy…

baci e cibo is not affiliated with any of the above wine stores.