Italy

Grillo is one of our fave southern white Italian grapes and is increasingly being used to make dry full bodied and smooth white wines, such as this one, which is certified organic with the EU and new in store here at Regional.

The Grillo grape has historically been used as one of the three key ingredients in the fortified wine called Marsala, which comes from the westernmost region of the same name in Sicily. Marsala sales are waning but the Grillo grape's popularity and success are growing, along with sales of whites such as this stellar version.

If you love Chardonnay, you'll enjoy the waxy, full bodied texture of this lively wine. 

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. 

Vesevo Taurasi 2013 is a red wine from the Campania region of Italy, made from Aglianico grapes. It has a deep ruby red colour, with a pungent nose of plum, red fruit, and savoury hints. It ages in oak for 16 months and a further three in bottle prior to release., resulting in a wine that is spicy on the palate, with firm tannins but a smooth finish. Here it is offered with significant age showing lovely tertiary flavour notes of cedar and further spice.

If you love champagne but find its rising prices hard to swallow, try Italy's answer to the world's best bubbly - with this blanc de blancs from Lombardy in north central Italy. Vezzoli is renowned as a producer for making bone dry wines and this lovely lively, dry sparkling wine is a top notch example. Yeasty and fresh, it rocks into a citrusy purity of flavour a long, beautifully balanced finish from extended ageing on lees (decomposing yeast) for 20 months.  

100% Arneis from the Roero Arneis DOCG

The grapes are selected from vineyards located in the middle of the Roero region, in Santo Stefano Roero. The vineyards are approximately 25 years old and are planted with 4.500-5.000 vines per hectare. Harvest starts around mid-September and the grapes are first pressed and then clarified. Alcoholic fermentation occurs in stainless steel autoclave at lower temperature (14-16?C, 57-60? F) to preserve some natural CO2 from the fermentation.

The wine does not undergo malolactic fermentation to preserve acidity and freshness and is held in stainless steel tanks on fine lees until bottling.

Description: Pale straw yellow color with fresh floral, citrus and melon aromas with almond hints. An unoaked, dry, medium bodied white wine with crisp acidity, the Arneis is well-balanced, elegant wine with good complexity and a lingering finish.

Food Pairings: As an aperitif with light hors d?oeuvres, crudit?s, seafood, salads, light soups, simply prepared veal, pork, chicken and creamy cheese.

A firm full bodied blend of Nebbiolo grapes with all the elegance, red fruit and silkiness of a great Barolo; it's a blend of mostly cru vineyards offering a complex red now and for ageing. 

Made by one of Piedmonte's great wineries. A wine with superb elegance, depth, complexity and aromatic length. Drink now or cellar.

Designation: Barolo D.O.C.G.

Grape Variety: Nebbiolo (100%)

Vineyard: The grapes for this wine are sourced from the single vineyard Lazzarito in Serralunga d’Alba. Lazzarito is a wonderful natural amphitheater facing southwest, at an altitude of 260 – 390 meters a.s.l., with a clayey and calcareous soil. Vietti’s property in this vineyard stretches for about 2 hectares. The grapevines have an average age of 40 years. They are planted using the Guyot trellis system with about 4,500 plants per hectare.

Winemaking: Hand-picked on September 29th, 2018, the grapes have been destemmed and gently crushed before bringing them into stainless steel tanks for the alcoholic fermentation. They have spent about four weeks in contact with their skins. This time includes the pre- and post-fermentation maceration, using the traditional submerged cap method. Malolactic fermentation takes place in wood.

Ageing: The wine has been aged for 30 months in large oak casks and, only a small amount, in barriques. It was bottled without filtration.

Description: Deep ruby red colour with garnet nuances. Fascinating and deep on the nose. Notes of hay, cut grass, tobacco, white pepper and a hint of mint. Robust, muscular on the palate, with a taut and mineral finish. The tannins are typical of Serralunga: angular, austere and very deep. Appealing long lingering sweetness on the finish.

Food pairings: Game, red meats, seasoned cheeses.

98 points- Jeb Dunnuck

"Located in Novello, from three hectares of the Ravera MGA with southwest exposure, the 2017 Barolo Ravera was aged for 32 months in large oak casks. It is forward and expressive with fresh pine, candied cranberry, orange oil, and aniseed. The palate is full of energetic tension, balance, and purity, with apricot pit, tea leaf and saline minerality. An inspiring wine to close out the Vietti 2017 lineup." Drink 2025 - 2050

97 points - James Suckling

"Dried strawberry and citrus rind, as well as subtle undertones of smoke and dried flowers. Full-bodied, yet so tight and composed with freshness and lightness, yet power, too. Long finish. This really needs time to open. Classic style. Try after 2025."

96 points - Vinous, Antonio Galloni

"The 2017 Barolo Ravera is a powerhouse. My impression is that the 2017 is going to develop into something truly special. It has all the energy that makes this site so distinctive, but with an extra kick of fruit density and a whole range of exotic aromatics that make for a truly drop dead gorgeous wine. Bright red/purplish fruit, rose petal, chalk and white pepper build into a finish laced with searing intensity. This is such an impressive wine." Drink 2027 - 2042

Sensationally good value for money sparkling wine made from Italy's Emilia-Romagna region... This light bodied, lighter alcohol wine has 11.5% alcohol and lively flavours of ripe white peach tempered by the balance bubbles. It's made from 75 Trebbiano and 30% Chardonnay grapes and is extra dry in style, which means it has a light fruity taste and a dry finish. 

It bears a passing resemblance to Prosecco in style but it has different flavours and represents very good value for money. 

For the Vigneti Romio line, Caviro has meticulously selected highly-regarded vine growers from Romagna and the finest grape varieties of the region, trusting in the winemakers that combine the most modern production processes and equipment with the experience gained over many generations. Every bottle conveys the history of Romagna, just like the wine it contains. The nature of this humble region, doting mother to all the varietals in this collection, is expressed through the archetypes of local culture depicted on the labels, each paired with the wine that best represents it.

Tasting Notes

Ruby red with notes of black cherry and spices. The palate shows red berry notes and fine tannins, with a long balanced finish.

Vinification

Grapes are harvested by hand from mid-September to early October. Vinification begins with destemming and gentle pressing, followed by fermentation at controlled temperature of 25 degrees Celsius with frequent pumping over and delestage. The wine undergoes malolactic fermentation.

Aging

12 months in stainless steel vats and 6 months in the bottle.

Here's a great little red blend from Antinori, which is a gorgeous expression of the insanely beautiful Tuscany region, but which is made from an interesting mix of Italian and French grapes. Sangiovese leads the way here with small quantities of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Syrah, all grown in Tuscany. 

Antinori's winemakers describe this wine as firm bodied on the palate, supple with  velvety tannins and a long, savoury aftertaste.