Meet Italian Winemakers Riccardo Baldi and Diletta Tonello

Two friends from Italian regions you don’t know well join us this Saturday to introduce you to new treats and stories.  One crafts what are increasingly recognized as benchmark Verdicchios ranging from Pet-Nat to utterly wild and complex long-aged wines that sit up there with Burgundy in complexity and depth.  The other runs a micro sparkling wine operations in the VERY obscure Lessini Durello appellation between Verona and Vicenza, turning native grapes Durella and Garganega into fizzy magic.

Best of all – both Riccardo Baldi and Diletta Tonello are pretty fun people whose joy and passion shines through at the tasting table as brightly as it does in their wine.  You’ll be very glad to have met them and remember them both fondly as you drink their wines in months to come.

At one table you’ll meet Riccardo Baldi of La Staffa, one of the finest winemakers working today in the Marche’s Castelli di Jesi region. As Vinous says, his Verdicchio whites make one “think of the La Staffa Verdicchios as Meursaults in a lineup of Chablis. The wines are all about tension, acidity and minerality, while many other producers rely on fat and fruit to impress… La Staffa makes wines of unique expression of terroir created through passion-driven winemaking.”  Riccardo will be pouring:

La Staffa Verdicchio Pet-Nat Mai Sentito 2021
La Staffa Verdeicchio Castelli di Jesi Superiore 2022
La Staffa Castelli di Jesi Risderva Selva di Sotto 2019
La Staffa Marche Rosso 2019

At the other table, you’ll delight in getting to know Diletta Tonello and the story behind her winery and the Monte Lessini Durello and Lessini Durello appellations.  She’ll be pouring:

Diletta Tonello Veneto Bianco Frizzante Marachelle
Diletta Tonello Lessini Durello Metodo Classico Brut ioTeti 2019
Diletta Tonello Lessini Metodo Classico Zero Dosage loULISSE 2017

Although you haven’t heard of Diletta or her wines, the few critics who’ve tried them rave (for example, Wine Enthusiast rated the 2017 LoULISSE 94 points!).  And if it’s been a while since you tried Riccardo’s La Staffa wines…well, after this Saturday, you’ll agree you won’t let it go that long again!

No fee and no RSVP required to enjoy this special winemaker meet, greet, and taste-along-with session.  Just round up some fellow wine explorers and join us!