Veronelli

Serra is an often misunderstood location. Small, little known, sometimes underestimated by connoisseurs – because it has neither the full southern sun of a Cerretta nor the dramatic hillside location of a Vigna Rionda. Anyone who hears the MGA Serra in Serralunga for the first time thinks: quite nice. Anyone drinking the wine for the first time will think: wait a minute. The Rosso family's plot is located around one kilometre south of the village centre, in the upper municipal area of Serralunga, with an eastern to south-eastern exposure. No midday light to overwhelm the grapes – instead, cool mornings, slow ripening, a precision in the tannin that only this orientation can produce. Davide Rosso describes it himself: The eastern exposure intensifies the fresh, austere character of these wines. And rightly so. Those who reduce Barolo to power and flavour will have no use for Serra. Those who reduce Barolo to origin and attitude will never forget it.

Massimo Piccin is living the dream of giving new expression to Bordeaux growths from Bolgheri and producing wines that combine power, elegance and longevity. And so the Sapaio offers its full, vital and tannin-rich style magnificently and allows plenty of time for the finish. Once again, some of the grapes come from Bibbona, i.e. outside the Bolgheri DOC, so that this great wine can only bear the addition Toscana IGT.

Gualto 2016 not only reflects the extremely aristocratic exceptional vintage, but is also one of the best Riservas from 2016. On the nose, very clear and straightforward after cherry, herbs and crushed rock. Full and supple on the palate, its texture is elegant and fine, the tannins only come to the fore in the second step and are excellently balanced. This wine will only reveal its true greatness in a few years, but it already offers an extremely tasty and engaging character. For a Riserva, it has a surprising amount of fruit and an elegance that makes it one of the most charming representatives of its kind. This wine (no more than 4,000 bottles were bottled) should not be missing in any well-stocked wine cellar! SUPERIORE.DE

Some wines bear the name of their creator and thus a silent commitment. Gualto is Gualtiero Ghezzi's personal signature: a strict selection of the best exposed Sangiovese Grosso plots near the Castello, at an altitude of over 300 metres, from sandy limestone marl soils with fossil inclusions. Matured for 36 months in oak barrels and a further two years in the bottle – the fact that this Riserva is being released while 2020s are already on the shelves elsewhere is not an oversight, but an attitude. 2019 was the year that rewarded such patience. Spring rains created the water reserves for a warm but never excessive summer. A radiant September with large day-night fluctuations brought full phenolic ripeness – slowly and without haste. International critics are celebrating the 2019 Brunello vintage as one of the most important since 2010 and 2016.

It was in 1988 that Bruno and Brigitte Widmer dared to dream a bold dream that would change the world of Tuscan wine forever. Their Il Blu – named after the timeless blue label with its orange capsule – became an icon for an entire generation of Super Tuscans, a manifesto of modernity amidst centuries-old traditions. Today, after more than three decades of perfection, the certified organic Il Blu 2022 embodies Barbara Widmer's visionary continuity. What once began as a Sangiovese-dominated cuvée has evolved, thanks to the ever-increasing complexity of the Merlot vines from Radda – now over thirty years old – into a blend comprising 80% Merlot, with 10% each of Sangiovese and Cabernet Sauvignon.

Ugolaia is a 1.7-hectare, south-west-facing plot with a view of the sea, where the temperature fluctuations between day and night are considerable. The estate's oldest vines grow here on red iron soil.

Between Sassicaia on the left and Ornellaia on the right, on the Strada del Vino of Bolgheri, lies a vineyard that has rewritten the definition of "perfect location". When Antonio Moretti Cuseri drove through the thick Maremma fog in October 2004 and suddenly emerged into the glistening sunlight of this coastal landscape, he knew: this is where he would make the Orma – his footprint. The third generation of the Moretti Cuseri family had already proven with Oreno at Tenuta Sette Ponti that their passion for Bordeaux cuvées can become an obsession. In Bolgheri, this love of Merlot and Cabernet was to find a new interpretation. On just 5.5 hectares of vines rooted deep in gravel and clay, organically farmed grapes are used to produce the wine that has been delighting international wine critics since its debut in 2005. The 2023 vintage combines half Merlot with 30 per cent Cabernet Sauvignon and 20 per cent Cabernet Franc – an assemblage that combines the Mediterranean climate of the Tuscan coast with the finesse of great Bordeaux growths.

An exceptional milestone in the art of Franciacorta: Palazzo Lana Extrême is masterfully composed and matured on the lees for 84 months before being bottled without dosage. 100% Pinot Noir from old, optimally exposed parcels, rigorously selected and with historic expressiveness. In the glass, it presents itself with bright gold and amber reflections, supported by a very fine-pored perlage. The bouquet is complex and brooding: candied citrus notes, brioche, almond cream, dried apricot, hay ground and a present salty minerality. The palate shows great Franciacorta style: precise acidity, creamy texture, elegant fruit and cool minerality. The finish is long, spicy and shows flavours of toasted almonds, jasmine and Sicilian sea salt in perfect balance. A solitaire that combines origin, depth and style in timeless harmony – serious, generous and with a lasting effect. SUPERIORE.DE

Within the walls of history. The Castello di Bolgheri, built in 1796 and thus the oldest winery in Bolgheri, sits enthroned in the heart of the medieval village like a stone witness to great wine culture. While the world of wine underwent its revolutionary transformation around the Castello – sassicaia and Ornellaia wrote their legendary stories –a treasure lay dormant here that only awoke to its true destiny under Count Federico Zileri Dal Verme. The blend of 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Cabernet Franc and 5% Merlot not only represents the art of blending, but also the philosophy of the house: finesse over power, elegance over opulence. While the best parcels of Cabernet Sauvignon underwent an exceptionally long maceration of 30 days – only possible in exceptional vintages –the wine matured for 20 months in traditional Italian vats and Liters barrels. This choice of large wooden barrels, a deliberate departure from the small barriques of its neighbours, gives the wine the crystalline purity and mineral depth that makes the Castello the "Château Margaux of Bolgheri".

TAL 1930 commemorates the beginnings of the Santa Maddalena winery in 1930: a year of particular significance for the history of viticulture in South Tyrol and for the Bolzano winery. The contrast between mountain and valley – alpine and Mediterranean – determines the character of this exceptional cuvée. The vineyards for the white varieties Chardonnay, Sauvignon and Pinot Grigio lie between the valley floor and the sometimes gentle, sometimes steep slopes of the famous Renon near Bolzano. The vineyards are situated at an altitude of 400 to 700 metres and vary greatly in location and temperature, due to the sun from the Dolomites and the sometimes strong winds of the Isarco Valley.

The name is history. Sapaio – an old Tuscan grape variety, long forgotten, but not its memory. When Massimo Piccin founded his winery in 1999, he chose this name as a sign of his deep connection to the terroir. A tribute to what was and a promise of what was to come. The vineyards extend over the municipalities of Bibbona and Castagneto Carducci, 40 hectares on quaternary deposits, from loose, coarse-grained sand deposits to alluvial soils with calcareous subsoil. Just ten kilometres from the sea, a microclimate that brings Bordeaux varieties to life. Since 2015, Piccin has been going his own way: instead of the prestigious Bolgheri Superiore DOCG, he deliberately chooses the free IGT Toscana, just to be able to add the handful of grapes from Bibbona that make Sapaio what it is today. Sometimes greatness means renouncing titles and regulations.

The name alone hints at the poetry of this vintage Spumante. For decades, Perlé has been regarded as the very essence of Ferrari's artistry, born from a meticulous selection of the finest Chardonnay grapes from the Trentino mountains. The grapes for this Millesimato come from vineyards situated at altitudes of between 300 and 600 metres. Here, where the vines are bathed in the mountain sun all day long but rest in the cool mountain air at night, the Chardonnay develops the mineral depth and aromatic complexity that make Perlé so distinctive. The Lunelli family selects only the very best plots – those grapes that most purely reflect the terroir. Perlé matures on the fine lees for almost five years – an exceptionally long ageing period that gives the spumante its characteristic creaminess and those delicate yeasty notes that harmonise perfectly with the fruity elegance of the Chardonnay.

Sauvignon Bianco Rachtl comes from a small micro-location of just 0.4 hectares. It gets its fine flint and graphite nose from the porphyry soils near Unteraicha in the municipality of Völs. Very subtle on the palate with fine saline acidity, fresh fruit and a long-lasting finish. If you can call one of the 2,000 bottles of this vintage your own, you can count yourself lucky! SUPERIORE.DE

This is the top wine from Il Poggione, and it is a must for anyone who collects wines from this famous vineyard. The estate's oldest parcel, Vigna Paganelli, is a 12-hectare vineyard that was planted back in 1964. It boasts a rich variety of old Sangiovese clones, which are used for the newer plantings.

Sauvignon Bianco Rachtl comes from a small micro-location of just 0.4 hectares. It gets its fine flint and graphite nose from the porphyry soils near Unteraicha in the municipality of Völs. Very subtle on the palate with fine saline acidity, fresh fruit and a long-lasting finish. If you can call one of the 2,000 bottles of this vintage your own, you can count yourself lucky! SUPERIORE.DE

Querciabella's Riserva, with an annual production of 10,000 bottles, is a selection of the best lots. It blends fruit from Greve, where the vineyards lie between 350 and 550 metres above sea level, with grapes from the stony high altitudes of Radda and the chalky soils of Gaiole. Tantalising aromas of spring flowers, cranberries and potting soil are accompanied by vanilla and smoke. On the palate, it is polished and pure, with a delicious, tangy acidity and sinewy tannins. As every year, one of the most refined wines of the appellation. SUPERIORE.DE

Vernaccia di Oristano Antico Gregori Riserva was not only named dessert wine of the year in Gambero Rosso 2021 (1976 vintage), but was also bottled in this 1979 vintage edition. As it was possible to bottle a little more this year than in other years, the usual assemblage of the best vintages of the last century was dispensed with this year. Nonetheless, or perhaps precisely because of this, it is, as always, a breathtaking wine that leaves nothing to be desired in terms of intensity, maturity and depth! SUPERIORE.DE

Crosara Breganze 2017 is a textbook Merlot: full of ripe dark fruits, blackberry pie, liquorice, chocolate, toasted oak and grilled herbs. Offering superb inner sweetness, it is both powerful and elegant, with a lush, super-soft mouthfeel. Pleasingly, a wonderfully focused mineral component saves the wine from ever being overdone. SUPERIORE.DE

Gabbro, produced in small quantities of just 2,500 bottles each year, is the essence of Montepeloso's finest Cabernet Sauvignon grapes, the vines are over 40 years old. Impressively complex bouquet of dark fruits, smoke and grilled vegetables. Powerful and muscular on the palate, revealing its pedigree and great class. Exquisite, complex, nuanced, persistent, long ... Gabbro really does offer everything you need for an unforgettable wine experience at world-class Cabernet level. SUPERIORE.DE