IN this town north of Venice near Vicenza, in an area known for the clean lines and classic proportions of its Palladian villas, the wine of note is a decidedly baroque confection. Torcolato, which means twisted, is a wine made from grapes left to dry on giant, corkscrew strands hung from attic ceilings. The result is a sweet wine that, until recently, amounted to a local curiosity. That was until Fausto Maculan, 42, took over his father's winery and set his sights beyond the rolling foothills of the Dolomites to the cosmopolitan markets of Europe and America. The Torcolato made by Mr. Maculan, a wine with the richness and balance of a fine Sauternes, is the only one sold outside the region.
