Dolcetto is a fantastic variety with one crucial problem: it is overshadowed by Nebbiolo. Whether this is justified or not remains to be seen, but the fact is that in Alba and the surrounding area, every reasonably decent vineyard is planted with Nebbiolo. For Dolcetto - but also for the great Gr...
The Pinot Noir of Hannes Hoffmann and Olympia Samara has more in common stylistically with France than with the often overly velvety German interpretations - yet it embodies its origins very independently: its deep, clear fruit is cool, the tannin very fine, the structure juicy and light-footed, ...
The Le Trame has been showing for a good two decades in which direction in the Chianti. To speak to Jonathan Nossiter's words, he is "Liquid Memory". But he is also a bridge into the future, a wine that brings together the history of a style (Chianti) and the handwriting of a great winemaker. Gio...
Pacina's "Pacina" has all the attributes of a big Chianti: it consists of 95% of Sangiovese and 5% of Ciliegiolo and Canaiolo, grows on Tufo di Siena, the classic substrate of the southern part of the region and will be in wooden bottles of different sizes over 14 months (500-2500 l) and then exp...
The ČRNA is a foam wine made of teran, which is produced according to the mèthode, and an authentic representation of the properties inherent in it. So there is no shortage of acidity and tannin, nor. Even if Father & Son Čotar orientate themselves from the champagne when it comes to the wine gro...
The Saignée is a clear reference to France, especially to Provence, where excellent rosé wines are still produced today using the (Saignée) method of the same name. Aldo has also done this for many years - but with the 2018 vintage, he is going one step further and building a finely woven, playfu...
The Donesco was once called "Il Secondo" and was the red entry wine into the world of Pacina. The only major difference between Pacina, the estate's classic, and Il Secondo was the fact that the vines for the latter were only planted in 2005 and 2008 respectively, whereas the vines for Pacina hav...
The range of wines that Elisabetta Foradori has produced over the course of her more than 30 years as a winemaker has occasionally shrunk and then grown again. The only thing that has remained stable in the range is her Teroldego, which has always been a guideline for her changing approach over t...
The Guarini Coccinella is the result of Aldo Viola's passion for Syrah. Convinced that the variety could also produce excellent results in Sicily in well-ventilated and north-facing locations, he set out on a search a good two decades ago and found what he was looking for in Feudo Guarini, a micr...
The Guarini Plus is the result of Aldo Viola's passion for Syrah. Convinced that the variety could also produce excellent results in Sicily in well-ventilated and north-facing locations, he set out on a search a good two decades ago and found what he was looking for in Feudo Guarini, a microscopi...
High up in the north, where Piedmont is slowly knocking on Switzerland's door, is Bramaterra, an ancient wine enclave where viticulture has been documented for many hundreds of years. Before Bramaterra was declared a DOC in 1979, the region's wine was called "Vino dei Canonici", referring to the ...
Rori Parasiliti's old Nerello-Mascalese-vines, trained as Alberello, grow on a one-hectare plot in the Contrada (vineyard) Crasà on the northern slopes of Mount Etna. They provide him with grapes that have substance and depth, which he transforms into a radiant and subtle wine that can definitely...
In addition to the Le Trame, her milestone, Giovanna Morganti also covers the "5", whose name does not owe any negative assessment by school chiefs, but simply the house number of her winery. The foundation is the same as for the Le Trame and the fabric from which the wine is made of the wine is ...
Vintages are always a big topic in the wine world. We agree that they are not entirely unimportant, but we do not share the hype about them and are rather sceptical about the views on what is really great and what is rather lousy. Firstly because we can remember massive errors in judgement since ...
Isabelle Legeron, the enterprising organiser of Raw, the largest trade fair for natural wines, has made exactly two Blaufränkisch recommendations with the unbiased palate of a Frenchwoman in the last chapter of her book Natural Wine, which is absolutely worth reading.
One of the two winemakers ...