Outstanding new vintage 2019 Barolo from a classic producer. Giacomo Fenocchio has a reputation for producing classic traditional Barolo with traditional long maceration times, of up to 40 days on skins with natural indigenous yeasts. 

The result is a group of stellar Barolos that can age for between 10 to 20 years in good cellaring conditions and which offer exceptional value for money. The style is savoury all the way from the clean, fresh, earthy note to the rich mushroom, truffle, tar and roses notes that typifies great Barolo. This wine punches above its weight for its price and will age gracefully.

Dry, light bodied Pinot Grigio from the Veneto region in north east Italy. The Botter winery has wrapped this wine in recycled paper to draw attention to its certified organic credentials and environmentally friendly ethos. 

Timorasso is often called the “white Barolo” and this grape produces a white wine with great potential for aging.

The soil in the Tortona area is sandy clay and the vineyard aspect is South, South west at about 250-450m. the vines are trained to Guyot with ten buds per plant at 4.500 vines per hectare.  All grapes are handpicked around the end of September followed by 6 hours of cryo-maceration. Fermentation is in temperature-controlled stainless steel tanks with followed by 6 months on fine lees.

The end result is a super complex minerally driven wine, full-bodied on the palate with fresh citrus and tropical fruit notes leading to a mineral finish.

Commercial description

The hill overlooking Trento, with its clayey-limestone soils, welcomes the Manzoni Bianco and matures the grapes in late September. The character of the Fontanasanta vineyards is expressed through this hybrid, born of a mix of Riesling with Pinot Bianco. Its ability to evolve overtime requires patience; Fontanasanta Manzoni Bianco is a wine that really comes into its own at least three years after harvest.

Name of wine: Fontanasanta Manzoni Bianco Vigneti delle Dolomiti IGT
Grape: Manzoni Bianco
Vineyard location: Fontanasanta, Trento hills
Hectares: 5 hectares
Terroir: Calcareous clay
Fermentation and fining: Fermentation on the skins in cement tanks, followed by 7 months of aging in acacia casks
Annual production: 20.000 bottles

Brunello di Montalcino DOCG is one of Italy's great reds and comes from Montalcino, a hillside town that's about 42 kilometres from the city of Siena, 150 kilometres from Florence and is 567 metres above sea level. 

Brunello di Montalcino must legally be aged for five years prior to its release in bottle, so when looking at the great wines from this small township, it's important to take that into consideration. 

The name Brunello comes from the Italian word Bruno, which means brown. It was given to the grape variety that Brunello di Montalcino is made from; it's a 100% varietal wine, meaning it is made entirely from only one grape variety. And until 1879, that grape was thought to be a distinctively different variety than the main grape in Tuscany, namely Sangiovese. 

In 1879, it was discovered that the Brunello grape is, in fact, a clone of Sangiovese which happens to produce particularly powerful, velvety smooth reds in this little highly prized hillside appellation. So, Brunello is one of Tuscany's few red wines that is made 100% from the Sangiovese grape and it is one of Italy's great red wines. 

Fuoripista narrates an alternative route, a pathway out of the common, a
different perception and vision of nature. Fuoripista Pinot Grigio arises from
the cooperation of Foradori and Marco Devigili, biodynamic winegrower of
the Campo Rotaliano, and expresses the essence of a variety widely diffused
in Trentino. More than 8 months of skin contact in amphorae (tinajas from
Villarrobledo, Spain) liberates and emphasizes the delicate character of this
Pinot Grigio.

Dolcetto is a one of the hidden treasures of Piemonte with its smooth rounded mouthfeel and impressive body and drinkability. This is a deliciously complex example from Dogliani in the region. 

Plantings of this grape declined in the 1990?s in favour of the more expensive, easier to market Barolo and Barberescos. It came down to money, not quality and quietly the wine world mourned. Luckily a few faithful enclaves remained faithful to the grape like in Dogliani just south of Alba.

The wine is jet black in colour with a sumptuous nose of blackberries dusted with exotic spices - fruity with great length and structure.

A skin contact white from Trebbiano, Malvasia, Verdicchio and Grechetto made by the nuns of a monastery from a five hectare plot in the town Vitorchiano, in the region of Lazio. The wine is now made under the guidance of Giampiero Bea, of Paolo Bea, and has seen vast improvements in quality.

This wine offers herbal and fruit forward aromas and flavours with apple, fennel seed and fresh apricots making an appearance.

Delicate but powerful full bodied red made from Nebbiolo grown in the mountains in north west Italy. This is a stunning wine made in small volumes and imported in even lower volumes. 

If you love Italian wines, this is a must buy.

Chianti Classico with a modern twist; Merlot makes up a small portion of this smooth, full bodied Tuscan red, giving it approachability and softness to complement the spicy, red cherry zing of the great Sangiovese grape. 

A Tuscan classic made in a modern style with beauty in every sip. Sensational now and will age superbly for up to a decade. 

Bright and deep garnet color. The nose is rich and concentrated with hints of blueberries, licorice and cocoa. The palate is fresh and juicy. Balsamic and appealing scents of graphite lead to mellow notes of rhubarb. Fine-grained and silky tannins. The 2018 Promis perfectly mirrors the Mediterranean scrubland of which it is surrounded.

Blend: 55% Merlot, 35% Syrah, 10% Sangiovese

Sangiovese 50%, Cillegiolo 50%

A great new southern Italian red made entirely from the Aglianico grape, which makes wines that are often referred to as the Nebbiolo of the south. 

If you're looking for Italy in a glass, here it is - a complex Chianti Classico (90% Sangiovese and 10% Merlot) from  a hillside vineyard in Tuscany called Poggio Teo. This 10 hectare site is situated about 400 metres above sea level where its vines gain maximum sunshine and benefit from cool nights, both of which enhance this wine's deep velvet smooth mouthfeel and complex, dry savoury aromas. Fleshy black plum flavours and a soft textured mid palate are followed by a lingering flavoursome finish. 

A great wine for drinking now (must be decanted to show at its best) and to save for another five to six years.