Doctor Wine

The grapes for this remarkably Burgundian Gran Selezione come from the single vineyard of the same name in a 2.25-hectare Chianti Classico vineyard, which was planted in 1971 with a density of 3,400 vines per hectare and is south-facing on old terraces. Riecine has leased these plots since the 1980s, and in the 2019 debut vintage, the winery succeeded in acquiring this site, which is one of the best terroirs in the Chianti Classico region. The bottles are numbered and around 4,000 bottles and 50 magnums are bottled each year.

Pajana - most modern wine of the entire Clerico range - presents itself closed, compressed and with great potential. Rich ruby with a light garnet rim. Compact nose, showing rich notes of blackberry, dark cherries, a little cinchona bark in the background. Explodes literally on the palate, lots of ripe, present fruit, then opens up with lots of fine-meshed tannin, salty depth, rich pressure. SUPERIORE.DE

Like a precious legacy, this wine is steeped in the history of the Serristori patrician family, who acquired the Donoratico estate in 1512 and built the magnificent villa in 1660. From the shadow of these historic walls springs a wine that embodies the soul of the Tuscan Maremma – where the salty murmur of the Tyrrhenian Sea meets the warm hills of Bolgheri. In the vineyards of Argentiera – the estate within the Bolgheri DOC that lies closest to the coast and is also the highest in elevation – the grapes ripen amidst Mediterranean scrub and the endless blue of the archipelago. Here, on just twelve hectares of the Villa Donoratico vineyard, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot take root in sandy and rocky soils, whilst the subsoil is permeated by marine flysch rock – a geological memory of seas long past.

Tasca got involved in Etna early on and the latest result of these years of experience are four new single vineyard wines from the Tascante estate: Contrada Rampante, Pianodario, Sciaranuova and Sciaranuova Vigna Vecchia (V.V.). The wines are delicate and profound, and despite their power, acidity and taut tannin, very elegant, finesse-rich and light-footed on the palate. Each of the four plots brings a slightly different style and personality to the wine - due to the altitude, soil composition and morphology of the historic lava flows. A high annual rainfall ensures that the soil has all the water it needs, and the temperature fluctuations between day and night support the aromatic diversity of the grapes and ultimately the ripening potential.

Josko Gravner's Ribolla Gialla is not only a captivating, class-defining and intimate white wine, but also the one that has made him a cult winemaker and which can be found on every cutting-edge wine list around the globe. Every sip offers unfathomable depth, intrigue and heady opulence, revealing new dimensions of flavour with every passing hour. With more than 50 vintages to his name, nobody but Josko knows how much longer he will continue to make wine. That's why we always recommend buying these rare wines whilst you still can!

Just 2,100 bottles of this 1.5 ha single vineyard Cabernet Franc "Campo di Magnacosta" (a former riverbed with mainly clay, gravel and crushed stone soil) reach the specialised trade and the menus of the best restaurants worldwide. The vines were planted in the mid-1990s and come from Pomerol. In terms of aromatic intensity, Magnacosta is probably the most sensually elegant representative of the house's three great site cabernets. It has great straightness, but somewhat less power and intensity. It subtly combines black fruit aromas with spicy notes, tar and antique leather. It is already silky and elegant and will certainly gain in finesse over the years. SUPERIORE.DE

Ruby red, with a fine cherry scent, in which there are also hints of nuts and forest fruits, vanilla, cinnamon, sage and tobacco. Concentrated, rich flavour with harmonious tannins and a long, velvety final. SUPERIORE.DE

Only 1,650 bottles of this 1.5 ha Cabernet Franc single vineyard "Campo di Camagi" (mainly quartz and limestone) reach the specialised trade and the menus of the best restaurants worldwide. Campo di Camagi is a very precise and focused wine. The high quality of the Cabernet Franc grape is noticeable here with every sip. Black fruits and spices are in elegant unity here and the full, racy body of this exceptional wine will only fully reveal itself in many years. Please be sure to put this bottle far away! SUPERIORE.DE

Dark, bright ruby with garnet colour. Pure power of aromas, dense and complex with notes of black cherries, smoked ham, savoury herbs, tobacco, liquorice and many other nuances. Equally fascinating on the palate, firm tannins, impressive complexity and depth with noticeable potential for ageing. SUPERIORE.DE

When you hear the story of the effort that went into the Colonia vineyard, you have to wonder if the fine people of Fèlsina are absolutely crazy. It took them two years to remove the imposing rock that had forced previous generations of the Poggiali family to virtually abandon this noble site. But it is thanks to the ambitious Giovanni Poggiali that this spectacular vineyard (Vigneto Colonia) became what it is today. It has reddish-brown soils, is rich in magnesium and iron, and is thus quite different from all other Fèlsina sites.

Just 2,100 bottles of this 1.5-hectare single-vineyard Cabernet Franc "Campo di Magnacosta" (a former riverbed with mainly clay, gravel and crushed stone soil) are sold worldwide in specialised shops and on the menus of the best restaurants. The vines were planted in the mid-1990s and come from the Pomerol region. In terms of aromatic intensity, Magnacosta is probably the most sensual and elegant of the estate's three great Cabernets. It is very straightforward, but somewhat less powerful and intense. It subtly combines black fruit flavours with spicy notes, tar and antique leather. It is already silky and elegant and will certainly become even more refined over the years. SUPERIORE.DE

Davide Rosso had long since successfully written the Serralunga chapter when he rode up Etna for the first time in 2014. He was not looking for a second mainstay. He was looking for a terroir that would challenge him – as the limestone marl of Serralunga had once challenged him. He found it on the northern slope of the volcano, in the Solicchiata fraction, and bought a 14-hectare estate in Contrada Montedolce in 2016. An old palmento, lava soil, 750 metres above sea level. But he didn't stop there. In 2023, he acquired two more hectares in Contrada Pietra Marina – one of the best white vineyards in the entire Etna region, historically famous for the quality of its Carricante, directly influenced by the nearby Alcantara River. The soils here are a unique mixture: volcanic sand and ash, enriched by fluvial silt and sandstone, shaped by thousands of years of tectonic and hydraulic forces. No other piece of land on Etna offers this specific dual character – volcanic energy and mineral river coolness in one vineyard.

This is more than a wine – it is the essence of a project born in 1999 with the vision of showing the world the finest that Bolgheri is capable of producing. From five selected vineyard sites between 80 and 220 metres above sea level – argentiera, Ginestre, Ventaglio, Porcarecce and Ceccosodo – a cuvée has emerged that has been a contemporary symbol of Italian winemaking since its debut vintage in 2003. The 2021 vintage is the culmination of an extraordinary era: 48% Merlot is combined with 45% Cabernet Sauvignon and 7% Cabernet Franc to create a Bordeaux-inspired masterpiece that nevertheless breathes an unmistakable Tuscan soul. Sourced from the Tenuta's best plots, where sandy, calcareous and stony soils thrive between Mediterranean scrub and the salty tang of the Tyrrhenian Sea, each grape embodies the unique terroir identity of this privileged location.

Grattamacco was the second winery in Bolgheri in 1982 and is still a firm favourite for great, terroir-driven wines with an independent character. The Rosso Superiore comes from high, coastal hillside vineyards with an excellent microclimate and matures for almost two years in French barriques after spontaneous fermentation. The cuvée deliberately does not follow the classic Bordeaux pattern: in addition to Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, Sangiovese also characterises the wine as an indigenous soul – a sign of identity, not convention.

Forty years. That's how long it took Ferrari to create the perfect Blanc de Noirs. Perlé Nero Riserva is a challenge within a challenge: to vinify a white spumante from 100% Pinot Nero without forcing the colour extraction, without manipulating the body. The result? Pure elegance. 2016 was a year for purists. A cool, precise vintage that gave the capricious Pinot Nero the structure that great Riserva Spumanti need. The Lunelli family knew that this vintage would make history. In fact, the 2012 Perlé Nero later became World Champion and the 2016 follows in the same tradition.

Le Macioche Riserva 2019 has the same slender and bright appearance as the Annata and the fine aromas of wild berries and cassis associated with Sangiovese. Racy and supple, it sweeps across the palate with a silky texture and shows tart wild berries and sour citrus fruit, all accompanied by lively acidity. The finish is long, with an earthy aftertaste. A very successful Riserva from a wonderful year, which has been interpreted very convincingly in this wine. SUPERIORE.DE

Strong ruby red. Opulent aromas of dark berries, mint, spices, forest floor and undergrowth. In the balanced, powerful drink very clear, juicy and tight. Spreads comfortably with notes of plum, raspberry compote and chocolate. This great Amarone captivates from the first sip - its long, silky finish leaves nothing to be desired. SUPERIORE.DE

Le Lucére is not a wine for coincidences. The plot – almost 2.5 hectares, east-facing, Galestro and slate, vines that have been rooted in this soil for more than a quarter of a century – only becomes a single-vineyard bottling under certain conditions. 2018 was such a year, although the world of Brunello experts initially reacted cautiously. Wrongly so. The eastern exposure of San Filippo is a quiet privilege for cooler years: no blazing afternoon sunshine that burns the fruit and hardens the tannins. Instead – morning light, slow ripening, precision. The vines did not suffer. They concentrated. Caciorgna vinified in steel, fermented in concrete, put the wine first in barrique and tonneau, then in large 20 to 30 hectolitre barrels. More than three years of ageing, one year in the bottle. The wine needed the time.

Carricante is the white soul of Etna. While Nerello Mascalese attracts the attention of the world, Carricante works quietly and consistently – a grape variety that develops deep minerality on volcanic lava sand and an acidity structure that can last for decades. On the northern Etna slope, in the Contrada Cottanera, lies the vineyard to which this estate has given its name and to which it now dedicates its purest white wine. Hand-picked with careful grape selection. What follows is a conscious decision: 5 to 6 hours of maceration in the press – longer than most producers would risk with Carricante, and yet it is not a so-called orange wine. The skin contact gives texture, depth and a phenolic structure that supports the subsequent ageing. Fermentation in concrete vats at 14 to 22 °C – the material that breathes without overlaying. Then 24 months in concrete, 24 more in the bottle. A full four years from the vineyard to the glass.

The single vineyard Bufaleffi is considered one of the most historic cru zones around Pachino, the historic heart of Nero d'Avola. The deep red soils with a high iron and lime content, the hot climate tempered by the sea air at night and the organic cultivation form the foundation of this single vineyard wine. The ungrafted vines are over fifty years old, the yield is low and the harvest is selective and manual. After the classic mash fermentation, the wine matures for over two years in used barriques and then for a long time in the bottle – this gives it density, structure and expression.

This is more than a wine – it is the essence of a project born in 1999 with the vision of showing the world the finest that Bolgheri is capable of producing. From five selected vineyard sites between 80 and 220 metres above sea level – argentiera, Ginestre, Ventaglio, Porcarecce and Ceccosodo – a cuvée is created that has been a contemporary symbol of Italian winemaking since its debut vintage in 2003. Sourced from the best plots of the Tenuta, where sandy, calcareous and stony soils thrive between Mediterranean scrub and the salty breeze of the Tyrrhenian Sea, each grape embodies the unique terroir identity of this privileged location.