2021 Italian Wine

Organic/Bio Russo’s Calderara Sottana is more red-fruited and open/fleshy than the darker, more intense, San Lorenzo. But there’s still plenty of intensity to the perfume and flavors and grip on the long, minerally,... Read More

No, you didn’t wake up this morning and think, “A Cabernet Sauvignon/Gaglioppo blend from Calabria – that’s what I want to drink tonight!” Taste this, though, and you just might find the thought crossing... Read More

Organic/Bio Only from Etna do you get this captivating combination of smoky volcanic rock and crunchy-ripe strawberry/sweet cherry fruit with mouthcoating tannins that give shape and elevate the flavors without drying you out... Read More

We don't know where Monica originated, but it came to Sardinia in 1400 with Camaldolese monks. And that it's a terrific red grape for the southeastern corner of the island where the Pala family farms. A bit like a cross... Read More

Organic/Bio At just 1,800 feet elevation, the lowest of Passopisciaro’s Contrada vines grow on the last edges of Mount Etna lava. The vines push through the lava to limestone and develop more rich, round, textures than the... Read More

Organic/Bio This is from a tiny, tiny, plot of vines Andrea Franchetti planted in the Passochianche contrada around 3,000 feet done in large oak. Maybe “Puligny Montrachet meets the Santa Cruz Mountains” suggests the... Read More

Organic/Bio With just 1HA of vines on the 2,800 foot elevation, lava-covered, Contrada Sciaranuova, Passopisciaro made only 165 cases or so of this in 2021. The name translates to new lava flow which covered the site in the 1600s... Read More

I never met Andrea Franchetti, who died in December 2021 at the age of 72. But this wine sums up everything I’ve read and heard from his partners at Passopisciaro. “Poetic” and “wildly visionary”... Read More

Organic/Bio Organic farming, wonderfully ripe Sangiovese (80%) and other local grapes, and super-clean, low-intervention, winemaking come together here in a great all-purpose Italian red that will move from party to pizza to Turkey... Read More

Organic/Bio Who knew Primitivo could be this…well, good? Wines from the Italian cousin of California’s Zinfandel are usually pruny, loaded with nail polish remover volatile acidity, and/or bursting with leather/horse... Read More

Organic/Bio How to get you to try this? “The most joyfully delicious Primitivo we’ve ever tried” falls short. And “Like JP Brun Beaujolais except from Puglia Primitivo” is a bit obscure. Let’s... Read More

Organic/Bio Aglianico is Campania’s most important red grape and examples from the Taurasi region show so much power, intensity, and cellar potential they’ve come to be called “the Barolo of the south.”... Read More

Organic/Bio Just as in the rest of Europe, when phylloxera came to Sicily in the early 20th Century it devastated most of the region's vineyards. But two small plots of Nerello Mascalese on Mount Etna's steep slopes survived,... Read More

Organic/Bio “Super-Tuscan” wines don’t have to be “super” – the term came about in the 1980s to describe wines like Sassicaia and Sammarco that failed to qualify for any Tuscan DOC label (usually... Read More