Melissa is a DOC of the Calabria wine region in the far south of Italy. It was introduced in May 1979, just a few months after the Lamezia DOC across the Calabrian peninsula on the Tyrrhenian coast. The name Melissa means sweet, or honey, and is an interesting juxtaposition to that of its neighbor Ciro, which is said to mean bitter. The alternative etymologies are that Melissa was named after Melisseus, a prince of Crete, and that Ciro means lord: these are less poetic, but slightly more prestigious, origins.
Melissa wines come in both red and white forms, although Melissa bianco (white) has now all but vanished from production. The reds therefore account for the vast majority of production and are made predominantly from local variety Gaglioppo, accompanied by up to 25% Greco Nero. Their white counterparts are dominated by Greco Bianco, topped up with Trebbiano and/or Malvasia Bianca.
The vineyards of this area overlap with those of the Ciro DOC, which produces Calabria's most prestigious wine. The Melissa commune (named after the Cretan prince who is said to have founded it) is divided from Ciro by just six miles (10km) and the Lipuda river as it flows from the Sila plateau down to the Gulf of Taranto. The land covered by the DOC regulations ranges from sea level to a maximum of 1000ft (305m), although there is a high ridge immediately west of Ciro town which peaks at 1400ft (425m). There are many vineyards in the east-facing hills here, but the majority of the land under vine lies closer to the coast, on a talon of land jutting awkwardly out from the Calabrian east coast. This makes Ciro and Melissa (the two are often grouped together as close siblings) one of the lowest-lying viticultural areas in Calabria.
The close proximity of the Mediterranean is important to the terroir here, as the mass of water helps to moderate the intense heat of the south Italian summer. The name Il Mezzogiorno, meaning 'The Midday', is often applied to Italy's southern half in reference to this persistent heat. The cooling and heating of the land over the course of a summer day causes morning and afternoon breezes, which minimize the risk of fungal vine diseases and further improve the climate's suitability for quality viticulture. This helps to explain the success of Ciro wines, and implies a bright future for Melissa. The terroir is not limited to just this part of Calabria, however, so there is potential for Ciro's neighbors to enjoy similar success, dependent on the uptake of quality winemaking and some effective marketing.
