Schiavenza’s 0.9 hectares in the Prapò cru are located at 350m above sea level, with southeast exposure; the vines were planted in 1993.  Of all their crus, this is the one in which the soil is most representative of Serralunga: its high percentage of light-colored limestone naturally limits yields...

100% Ruché. Mainly from estate parcels scattered about the steep hills of the Monferrato zone of Asti around the Verruàs' home village of Scurzolengo (there is some purchased Ruché in the mix too). The family farms organically, tending and harvesting the vines entirely by hand. The grapes are...

100% Barbera from a clay and limestone-gypsum vineyard with 20 year old vines, densely planted at 5000 plants per hectare. Macerations lasted 3 weeks. Aged 8 months in stainless steel and 2-3 months in bottle, so it is not released until almost a year after harvest.          

95% Glera/5% other. Father Loris and sons Raffaele and Adelchi Follador farm about 7 hectares in the twisting, steep valley of Valdobbiadene, working quietly and quite independently of any consumer or commercial expectations. Their vines—mainly of Glera, plus a little of other co-planted local...

100% Sangiovese from hillside vineyards located at between 270-320 meters. The average age of the vines is 15 years old. La Gerla Rosso spends six monhts in tank, then one year in Slavonian oak (large casks of 50hl) and another six months in bottle before being released.  

Ciliegiolo, meaning “cherry-like”, is usually reserved as a blending grape. Bottled on its own, it shows remarkably bright red fruits and fresh acidity.  There have been conflicting studies, but Ciliegiolo is either a parent or offspring of Sangiovese.  San Ferdinando’s version comes from 1.7...

100% Sangiovese. Jarkko and Josephin were the first in Chianti Classico to use 250L ceramic orbs called Clayver for aging their wines.  They are fired a very high temperatures and are 20% less porous than terracotta. The wine is called Mimas--one of the many satellites of Saturn--as the Clayver...

80% Prugnolo Gentile/20% Canaiolo Nero & Mammolo. Prugnolo Gentile is the variant of Sangiovese found in Montepulciano and historically co-planted with supporting varieties like Canaiolo and Mammolo. Proprietor Dora Forsoni has been farmiing her family's vines organically forever, many of them...

Ansonica/Vermentino/Trebbiano/Malvasia field blend. The Padovani sisters source the fruit from a grower friend on the Tuscan coast in Capalbio to make what they characterize as a "Mediterranean white" . The co-planted varieties grow on sandy, iron-rich soils, are organically farmed and average...

70% Montepulciano & 30% Sangiovese. Fermented in stainless steel and aged four months in steel & six months in bottle before release. As the Gambero Rosso puts it: “the Rosso Piceno is a consumer’s dream, straightforward but delicious and a pleasure to drink.”

100% Negroamaro. Perrini's Negroamarro comes from estate vines averaging 30-35 years old, with some getting up to 60 years, with full southern exposure on flat and slightly hilly sites. The soils are a mix of sand, limestone and clay, with a rockier nature on the slightly higher-elevation sites....

100% Blatterle. This indigenous variety goes back centuries in the Alto Adige but has shrunk down to a mere 1.5 hectares in production today. Nusserhof is one of only three growers of this thin-skinned, golden-yellow rarity and is the largest of them with their half hectare in Bolzano. The farming...