Vitalonga Terra di Confine 2013
Aging gracefully, the 2013 Vitalonga Terra di Confine is a masterful blend of Montepulciano and Merlot grown in the winery’s Northernmost vineyards, in the clayey-sandy soil. Expressive, penetrating aromas of marionberry pie, cherry turnover, vanilla, and wood spice shows its Umbrian side with the merest hint of leather and subtle earthiness. In the mouth, caressing, […]
Piccini Villa al Cortile Brunello di Montalcino 2010
A classic, the 2010 Piccini Villa al Cortile Brunello di Montalcino unfurls slowly, revealing her bountiful aromatic charm—underbrush and brambly forest berries, tart pie cherries, forest floor, leather, wild mint, and decaying rose petals. It’s nimble on the palate, furnished with soft, fine tannins and a vein of marly limestone running through the center. Sour […]
Planeta Sicilia Rosé 2016
A straggler in my cellar, the 2016 Planeta Sicilia Rosé is a rose gold-hued blend of 50% Nero d’Avola and 50% Syrah. Light and lilting aromas of strawberry, tart pie cherry, and white peach gracefully twine spring flowers and fleeting mineral tones. It’s crisp, bright and perfect for these waning days of summer. The close […]
Peter Zemmer Rollhütt Pinot Noir 2017
Worth every penny, Peter Zemmer’s Northern Italian Pinot Noir is intensely perfumed, with lilting aromas of dried rose petals, cola, homemade strawberry jam, raspberry, and underbrush. The aromatic profile perfectly matches the nose—it’s elegant, buoyant, and reigned in, with a finish etched in floral undertones and limestone minerality. 13.0% ABV | Sample Peter Zemmer 9o […]
Abbazia di Novacella Stiftskellerei Neustift Pinot Grigio 2016
Fuller in body than is typical for an Alto-Adige Pinot Grigio, the 2016 Abbazia di Novacella Stiftskellerei Neustift is and endowed with aromas of peach kernel, peach pit, stone fruit, lemon drop, and white flowers, and maybe a daub of honeysuckle. It’s round in the mouth, but high lemon-pith charged acidity gives it lift, a […]
Cantina Tramin Pinot Bianco Moriz Alto Adige 2015
A steadily evolving kaleidoscope of white flowers, lemon curd, Asian pear, green apple, and mint. On the palate, the 2015 Tramin Pinot Bianco Moriz is light, bright, and fresh with a burst of pink pomelo, and perhaps most surprising—dried rose petal and wet shell that tumbles onto the scene like an unexpected last act. It […]
Colterenzio Schreckbichl Gewürztraminer 2016
From Northern Italy’s Südtirol – Alto Adige region, the 2016 Schreckbichl Colterenzio Gewürztraminer is lemon yellow in the glass and bursting a heady floral mix of chamomile and lily of the valley—beneath this fruit notes of lychee and cherimoya. On the palate, taut acidity crescendoes through this white’s pretty textural landscape that gives way to Meyer […]
Peter Zemmer Pinot Grigio Alto Adige 2016
Straw yellow in the glass, Peter Zemmer’s 2016 Pinot Grigio from the verdant storybook commune of Cortina, in the Südtirol/Alto Adige region of South Tyrol. A semi-alpine microclimate lends lightness and lift. Aromas of emerging spring flowers, fresh herbs, soft alpine breezes, white peach, and pear waft from the glass. Blithe acidity wends through the […]
Marchesi Mazzei Belguardo Rosato Toscana IGT 2017
This charming salmon-hued rosado from Mazzei, a winery that’s been around since the Early Renaissance, is a blend of 50% Sangiovese and 50% Syrah, all from Maremma. Orange blossom and pie cherry waft from the glass. On the palate, it’s light and welcoming with a delicate core of mandarin oranges and salted yellow peach. 13.8% […]
Producer Profile: The Expressive Wines of Erste+Neue
Located in Caldaro, a storybook village on Alto Adige’s breathtaking wine road, the Erste+Neue cooperative winery was established in 1986 following the merger of the Erste Kellerei (founded in 1900) and the Neue Kellerei (founded in 1925). Translated, the name First + New reflects the winery’s nod to tradition while embracing experimentation and an openness […]