Arneis is Piedmont’s best white grape in my opinion, especially when it offers the sort of value and fruit concentration on show here from Ascheri in Bra. Refeshing and zesty, with a slight spritz, but with plenty of weight and concentration behind, with pear and angelica spice and a deliciously bitter twist.
Country: Italy
Rawfair steals the show
by Simon Woolf
It’s the third Monday in May. I’m in East London, in a barn of a building, buzzing with wine producers, press and trade. There’s a palpable sense of excitement throughout...
Brunello and Bordeaux: a tale of two appellations
by Tim Atkin
Brunello and Bordeaux, Bordeaux and Brunello. Italy and France’s most famous wine regions have a lot in common, not least that they both hold high-profile tastings in the first part...
Everyday value?
by Matt Walls
Lined up against the wall in my hallway, they stood quietly like forlorn commuters queuing for a bus. These were not bottles to make a taster salivate. Why didn’t I...
NV Harvey Nichols Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore, Valdobbiadene Prosecco, Veneto
( £15, 11%, Harvey Nichols )A Prosecco with a bit of bling? You might blink at the idea of spending £15 on a bottle of cuve close method fizz, but this is rather good: drier than most examples, with floral aromas, pear and nectarine fruit and small bubbles. Soft and very easy to drink, darling.
2010 Mazzei, Fonterutoli, Chianti Classico, Tuscany
( £16.75, 13.5%, Great Western Wine )When it’s good – and 2010 is a very classy vintage in Tuscany – Chianti Classico can still deliver a lot of flavour and complexity for less than £20. That’s certainly the case here, because I can’t remember a better basic wine from this estate. Its texture is almost Pinot Noir-like, but with a nip of tannin to add some extra backbone. On the palate, it’s silky and sweet with subtle oak and notes of dried tea, raspberry and wild strawberry. Essence of Sangiovese.
2009 Alberto Longo Le Cruste Rosso, Puglia
( £17.95, 13.5%, Lea & Sandeman )Nero di Troia is the least well known of Puglia’s three main red varieties, but to me it’s the one with the most finesse. This is remarkably light and refreshing for a wine from the south of Italy, reminiscent of a Tempranillo, with elegant red fruits, a nip of tannin and impressive length on the palate. It hangs around. And you’re grateful.
2011 Fiano Sannio, Campania
( £7.99, 13.5%, Marks & Spencer )The winemaker behind this southern Italian white is the famous Dr Riccardo Cotarella, who certainly appears to have a magic touch with this increasingly popular grape. It’s spicy and fresh with notes of pear and citrsu fruit and a tangy, unoaked finish. Very focused.
2011 Livio Felluga Pinot Grigio, Friuli Colli Orientali
( £12, 13%, Liberty Wines )Just to prove that I don’t always have it in for Pinot Grigio, this one from Friuli is deliciously drinkable. It’s spicy and intense, with notes of pears and citrus fruit, with a nice undertone of fresh fennel and a zesty bite on the back palate.
2011 The Society's Verdicchio Dei Castelli di Jesi, Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi, Marche
( £6.25, 12.5%, The Wine Society )Good value Italian drinking from the Wine Society, made without oak to allow the variety to express itself, this is fresh and zesty with some weight and texture, notes of aniseed and spice and a breezy, zesty finish.
2008 Caiarossa, Tuscany
( £12, 14.5%, Farr Vintners )A ripe, expressive , full-bodied Tuscan blend of no fewer than seven Bordeaux, Rhône and Tuscan vareities. The wine is is ripe and textured, with sweet oak, ripe fig and plum flavours and attrctive clove spice. The oak os a little drying on the finish perhaps.
2011 Allegrini, Valoplicella, Veneto
( £8, 13%, Liberty Wines )Juicy, modern Valpol with more weight than most examples of Italy’s wine bar red. Unoaked, packed with brambly, raspberry fruit and bright acidity. A wine that surprises you with its seriousness. Perfect for a screwcap closure.