Vintage 2025

The owner, Leonardo Pinzolo, cultivates 52 hectares of biodynamically certified vineyards, spread across his family estates in Popoli and Capestrano. The soils here differ from those in the rest of Abruzzo. Combined with the vineyards' higher altitude and proximity to the Gran Sasso mountains, these wines have a decidedly cooler character than is usually found in Abruzzo. In the winery, fermentation takes place spontaneously and without temperature control. With the exception of a few single-vineyard wines, most wines are aged in stainless steel.

The Petit Rouge grape variety is the backbone of the Aosta Valley. Anyone familiar with it will know it only as Torrette DOC – the region’s oldest and largest appellation. A red wine that has been a staple on the table for generations, just as much a given as the mountain cheese fondue served alongside it. The Charrère family knows this tradition better than most. And yet, in 2019, they made a different decision. No Torrette DOC. Instead, a Valle d'Aosta DOC rosé. The idea: the same indigenous variety, different clones, old vines – but vinified differently. Not as a red wine, but as something that captures the essence of the mountains in their lightest, freshest form.

Santo Stefano Belbo and Calosso, 400 metres above sea level, on the marly soils of the Langhe: here grows the Moscato Bianco from which I Vignaioli di Santo Stefano – the joint project of the Ceretto family and local winegrowers since 1976 – to produce this Asti Spumante. 41 hectares, harvested by hand. A wine that comes from one of the most precise Moscato terroirs in Piedmont. The second fermentation in pressurised tanks gives the wine its lively, finely sparkling mousseux and raises the alcohol content to 7%. Five atmospheres of pressure during bottling: this is complete sparkling wine character that brings the Moscato flavours to the fore.

L'Olionovo – this is how the farmers describe the state of the oil when it leaves the oil mill freshly pressed after the authentic stone grinding process. The Olio di Oliva Extra Vergine from the Castellare di Castellina estate is made from fruit of the Frantoio, Pendolino, Ascolane, Moraiolo and Leccino varieties. When the olives are cold-pressed, the fruit reveals its intensely bright emerald green colour. The aroma is grassy and stimulating. The flavour is fruity, of medium intensity, with a hint of artichoke. Rich in polyphenols, it perfectly reflects the authentic spicy notes of a high-quality olive oil. This oil is a real treat for the palate with fresh bread, but also a great accompaniment to grilled vegetables or fish. SUPERIORE.DE

Donnafugata – a name that epitomises the poetry of Sicilian wine. The fact that the Rallo family also produces outstanding olive oil at their Tenuta di Contessa Entellina is less well known, but no less remarkable. The Milleanni combines four autochthonous olive varieties from the Valle del Belice: Nocellara del Belice, Biancolilla, Cerasuola and the rare Pidicuddara – a quartet that combines the aromatic diversity of western Sicily in one cuvée.

The Greeks called the island Iolaia – after Iolaus, the nephew and companion of Hercules, who, according to tradition, led colonists to the island and left his name behind. Cantina Argiolas has dedicated an olive oil to this myth, which comes from the same Sardinian soil on which the vines for Turriga are rooted: calcareous, stony soil in the hills around Serdiana, Mediterranean warmth, wind from the sea. The olives are hand-picked and then immediately cold-pressed in a modern continuous process at low temperatures – quickly and gently so that the volatile flavours are preserved.

The olive groves of the Iacobucci family grow on the same clay hills of Guardia Sanframondi as the vines – sannio Beneventano, one of the oldest olive-growing regions in southern Italy, long overshadowed by the more famous coastal olive groves, but with its own character and deep tradition. Ortice, Ortolana, Racioppella and other Beneventan varieties, all of which are indigenous. What defines the Classico is speed and care: the olives are hand-picked and cold-pressed no later than 24 hours after harvesting – without the addition of water, using an integral process. Only periodic decanting instead of filtering, so that the oil breathes without losing its natural structure. Acidity below 0.5 per cent.

The Tenuta Regaleali of Tasca d'Almerita is perhaps Sicily's best-known winery – and one that produces its olive oil with the same care as its wines. It is located in the hilly hinterland of the province of Palermo, at 450 to 900 metres, far from the sea and its influences. A terroir that gives intensity and character. Seven olive varieties give this extra virgin its complexity: Biancolilla as the main variety with 67%, supplemented by Piricuddara, Nocellara del Belice, Coratina as well as Nerva, Ogliarola, Carolea, Leccino and Frantoio.

In Tuscany, olive oil was never a by-product. Together with grain and wine, it was the third pillar of the rural economy – and Lisini has never abandoned this principle. The estate's 28 hectares of olive groves follow the traditional "impianto promiscuo": olive trees not in specialised monocultures, but in alternating rows between vineyards and fields – a cultivation method that reflects the balance of the entire farm and preserves the Tuscan cultural landscape as it has grown for centuries. Around 8,000 trees, some of which are in inaccessible terrain, which is used exclusively to preserve the soil. Moraiolo, Leccino and Correggiolo – harvested entirely by hand, cold-pressed.

A photo from 1955 adorns the bottle: Elliott Erwitt's "California Kiss", two lovers in the mirror of a car. When Trudie Styler tasted the first sip of this Vermentino, she spontaneously found the name – "like a kiss on the lips". The fact that the wine was released in March 2021, when the world was hungry for closeness, lends it additional poetry. Incidentally, it is the first white wine that Riccardo Cotarella vinified for Il Palagio – a tribute to Trudie's love of elegant Bianchi. The hand-picked Vermentino grapes ferment at a controlled temperature in stainless steel, and a short maturation period preserves the vibrant freshness.

Blangè comes from carefully cultivated Arneis parcels in the Langhe, which benefit from calcareous soils and optimal altitude. Since its introduction in the 1980s, it has been regarded as a modern classic, bringing new fame to the once almost forgotten Arneis grape variety. A characterful, aromatically clear white wine with a Piedmontese identity and contemporary style. Pale straw yellow in colour with greenish reflections. On the nose, a fine, clear aroma of pear, white peach, citrus and a hint of exotic fruit, underpinned by floral notes and a delicate almond flavour. Fresh and balanced on the palate, with juicy fruit, fine acidity and a hint of salty minerality. SUPERIORE.DE

"Fruits that bear abundantly" … that is the meaning of the name. Sciala conjures up images of golden grapes in the warm light of the Gallura autumn. Here, millennia-old tradition and modern precision come together to create a Vermentino that is regarded as the defining wine (not only) of Surrau. The grapes come from the estate's finest plots: historic soils with a granite subsoil, perfect drainage, a constant breeze, and the grapes are rigorously selected to capture the full potential of all their components. After only a brief period of skin contact, gentle fermentation takes place in stainless steel, followed by around six months' ageing on the fine lees, resulting in a balanced and distinct style.

"Zero Infinito" stands for zero chemical intervention and infinity. Years of research and experimentation have led to this extraordinary project, in which grapes from the fungus-resistant Solaris variety are transformed into wine without any additives: no treatment in the vineyard, no use of sulphur dioxide, no commercial yeasts, no fining agents, no filtration and no antioxidants. The grapes for this sparkling wine made using the Méthode Ancestrale (Pet Nat) with lees come from the south-west facing Maso Rella vineyard, situated at an altitude of 800 to 900 metres.

Some wines have a history. This one has a founding history. The Terlaner Cuvée (formerly Classico) was already there in 1893, when 24 winegrowers founded a cooperative in the small village of Terlan – with the conviction that more is possible together than alone. Over 130 years later, this idea remains unchanged, as does the wine. 60 per cent Pinot Bianco, 30 per cent Chardonnay, 10 per cent Sauvignon Blanc – the three great white Terlans in an assemblage that cellar master Rudi Kofler describes as compositional logic: Pinot Bianco provides freshness and acid structure, Chardonnay the ripe warmth and fullness, Sauvignon Blanc the fine aromatic play. Not a product of chance, but a wine with architecture. The grapes grow at 280 to 700 metres above sea level, on the characteristic quartz porphyry of Terlan – volcanic primary rock, which gives the wines their salty minerality and exceptional longevity.

La Contessa is a South Tyrolean white wine with character and heritage, produced from biodynamically cultivated vineyards near Kaltern. Grown on loamy-sandy soils at an altitude of 300–400 metres, this blend of Pinot Blanc, Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc combines alpine freshness with southern charm. Spontaneously fermented and aged partly in wood and partly in stainless steel, the wine is complex and precise: delicate fruity notes of apple, citrus and lemon balm, accompanied by salty minerality and lively acidity. Finely balanced on the palate, dry and invigorating – an expressive, biodynamic white wine with cool elegance and a South Tyrolean character. SUPERIORE.DE

Tenuta Sansonina is situated in the south of Lake Garda, not far from Sirmione – where the lake breathes across the hills and the soils tell the story of what the last Ice Age left behind: A deep, clayey mixture of chalk and silt that stores water, buffers heat and gives the Turbiana grape that distinctive minerality which sets Lugana apart from everything else. Thirteen hectares, organically farmed, with vines around sixty years old – vines that know just how deep they need to reach. 100 per cent Trebbiano di Lugana, hand-harvested and carefully selected before the grapes reach the winery. The must is first cold-fermented statically, then ferments for around ten to twelve days in stainless steel at a controlled temperature. Six months’ ageing in stainless steel tanks, followed by one month in the bottle: no oak, no interference, just the wine and its terroir.

Alto Piemonte is a real hidden gem. Nestled between Biella and the foothills of Monte Rosa lies Lessona – a small DOC region that was once just as famous as Barolo, but then fell into near-oblivion for decades as the textile industry emptied the hills and the vineyards were left to run wild. Paolo De Marchi, who had made his mark on Chianti Classico in Tuscany with Isole & Olena, returned to his family's homeland in 1999 with his son Luca and began what some simply call a 'rebuilding' – but which is, in reality, a long and determined struggle to revive a forgotten wine region.

The Riviera Ligure di Ponente is not an easy landscape. There is little space between the sea and the Alps – the vineyards climb up terraces of dry stone walls, the slopes are steep, the paths winding, the harvest almost exclusively by hand. It was in this solitude that Riccardo Bruna began bottling his family's Pigato in 1970 – a bold decision at the time for a grape variety that hardly anyone knew. Majé is Bruna's most accessible Pigato: from the iron-rich, argillaceous soils around Ortovero and Ranzo, 200 to 300 metres above sea level, just 20 kilometres from the coast. Gentle pressing, fermentation and ageing in steel – the result is the character of this terroir in its most direct form.

It was a very bold move when Michele Satta produced the first Vermentino in Bolgheri in 1984 – at a time when the appellation had only just been established and white wine still seemed unthinkable in a region dominated by red wine. Costa di Giulia, named after a vineyard at the foot of Castagneto Carducci, began life as a single-varietal gem made from Vermentino, until Satta took a far-reaching decision in 1997: The addition of 40% Sauvignon Blanc was intended to give the wine more character and a sweeter, more complex finesse.

In 1881, Anton Jermann left the Austrian Burgenland, travelled through the then Slovenian Collio and finally planted his vines in Villanova di Farra in Friuli. One family, three languages, one Ponca – the characteristic flysch soil of marl and sandstone that gives this region its unmistakable character. On the label of Vinnae, a double-headed eagle bears the legacy of this history: found on an old barrel from great-grandfather Anton, a symbol of the Danube monarchy that once ruled here. Silvio Jermann created the name Vinnae in 1983 – as a tribute to the family's hundred years of winegrowing and the birth of his son Michele. From "Vinnaioli", the winegrowers, to Vinnae: the Ribolla Gialla, the variety that the family has been cultivating in this borderland since the 18th century. Today a blend of 90% Ribolla Gialla, 5% each Friulano and Riesling Renano – three indigenous varieties for three territorial souls. Fermentation in steel, six months maturation partly in large Slavonian oak barrels.

From the 25 hectares of organically cultivated olive groves of the Castello di Camigliano – nestled in the gently rolling hills south-west of Montalcino, where the mild climate of the Ombrone Valley creates ideal ripening conditions. Four classic Tuscan varieties characterise the oil: Leccino, Frantoio, Moraiolo and Correggiolo, harvested by hand and cold-pressed at a controlled temperature immediately after harvesting. Bright green-gold in the glass, fruity aroma of fresh herbs and green almonds, subtle spiciness on the palate and that fine, bitter aftertaste that characterises the best oils from the Terre di Siena. Certified organic – a beautiful piece of Montalcino beyond the wine. SUPERIORE.DE

A Pinot Grigio with character that can only come from the Collio and neighbouring areas of Friuli. The grapes come from high-altitude plots with poor marl and sandstone soil, which reduces the yield and intensifies the flavour. Pale straw yellow in the glass with silvery reflections. On the nose, the wine is complex and elegant: green pear, fresh apple skin, some white melon and a fine hint of lemon balm. The palate is precise and animating with lively acidity, cool minerality and a dry, juicy finish. Not an opulent charmer, but a straightforward, stylish Pinot Grigio with a regional character and subtle depth – in the spirit of Silvio Jermann's quality philosophy. SUPERIORE.DE

Carte Noire is a highly limited Ligurian drip oil, which is obtained using a special process. Only completely intact olives are used for this. After grinding them between granite stones, the paste is spread on mats. These are placed on top of each other, after which the olive oil obtained in this way runs downwards without pressure and is collected there. The result is a mild oil, not without certain rustic notes, with a slight sweetness and hints of spices, almonds, pine nuts, apple and vanilla. Excellent for salads, for flavouring fresh cheeses, but also with white meat. SUPERIORE.DE

A small marvel, perfectly harmonised with multi-layered aromas of tropical fruits, apples and honey. A highly interesting white natural wine that is far more than just a casual pleasure, as it offers an extremely full, well-structured flavour. Fermented with the skins using the red wine method. Strong yellow colour with golden reflections. Intense aroma of dried herbs, incense, candied lemon peel and a hint of bitter orange. Fresh citrus notes on the palate, an exciting acidity and a powerful structure lead into a very long finish, crowned by a hint of bitter almonds. Very complex and a wonderful accompaniment to food – be sure to aerate! SUPERIORE.DE