36 posts
2020 Caldora Montepulciano d’Abruzzo ($15) Caldora is located in Abruzzo on the Adriatic coast in East-central Italy. Caldora has a special arrangement with the many growers who own over 1,500 hectares of land in the two coastal provinces of Teram...
2020 Corvezzo Pinot Grigio ($13) Corvezzo is the leading name in organically grown, vegan wines from northeast Italy’s Veneto region. Founded in 1960, the winery is in the village of Cessalto near Treviso, a sweet spot in the Veneto between the coo...
Ciliegiolo Wines of Maremma Toscana The Ciliegiolo (cheeli-oh-JOL-oh)grape gets its name from an Italian word for cherry, a fruit that is prominent in this wine’s aroma and flavor. Although traditionally used as a blending grape in Chianti, since a...
The Ciliegiolo (cheeli-oh-JOL-oh) grape gets its name from an Italian word for cherry, a fruit that the Ciliegiolo grape resembles in its wine’s aroma and flavor. Although traditionally used as a blending grape in Chianti, since around 2000 it has b...
2019 Alberto Motta Ansonica ($23) Ansonica (an-so-NIC-ah) may not be a grape variety that you are familiar with. I was not. And, the wine region of Maremma Toscana in Italy may not be a region you are familiar with. But, both are quite interesting. ...
Tuscany is a world famous wine region of Italy that is best known for its Sangiovese-based red wines that include Chianti, Brunello di Montalcino and Vino Nobile di Montepulciano. And, within Tuscany, there are more than 40 sub-regions. Maremma Tosca...
2017 Riva Leone Barbaresco ($24.99) Riva Leone was a man of unique character and personality who was an ambassador for the special wines of the Langhe all throughout Europe in the early 20th Century. His legacy lives on in the Riva Leone wines which...
2020 Barone Montalto Pinot Grigio ($11.99) Sicily is a strong and legendary land. Its climate, nature and winemaking experience make it unique. The story of Barone Montalto began in Santa Ninfa, in the province of Trapani, in 2000. Montalto wines ...
The La Scolca estate was purchased in 1919 by the great-grandfather of Giorgio Soldati who, today, leads the company with his daughter Chiara. The surname Soldati meaning “soldiers” is particularly symbolic for the approach taken by the company’s own...
As we’ve explored the wines of Italy, we’ve learned about the regions of Tuscany, Piedmont’s red wines and white wines, Sicily, Veneto, Valpolicella, Soave, and Montepulciano, Italian grapes such as Sangiovese and Nebbiolo, and the non-traditional re...
2019 Scaia Garganega / Chardonnay ($14) The Scaia project was launched by Tenauta Sant’Antonio in 2006 with the aim of creating wines with a modern style outside the restrictions by Italy’s denomination system. In Veneto dialect, the word “scaia” me...
The Veneto wine region is located in the north-eastern part of Italy between Milan and Venice. Its geography includes the foothills of the Alps to the north, Lake Garda to the immediate west and the Adriatic Sea to the east. While it is smaller than ...
Sicily is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea and has been making wine since 4000 BC. Its dry, warm climate, regular sunshine and moderate rainfall is well suited for winemaking. Marsala is Sicily’s most famous wine - a fortified wine. But, ...
We’ve recently been exploring Italian wines (Borolo, Barbaresco, Barbera, Montepulciano, Soave and Super Tuscans), grapes (Sangiovese and Nebbiolo) and regions (Tuscany and Chianti). So, now let’s take a closer look at another of Italy’s great wine...
Tuscan is located in west-central Italy and includes the cities of Florence, Siena and Pisa. It is also the birthplace of the Italian renaissance. Wine production in Tuscan started before the rise of the Roman Empire and is believed to have begun in ...
2019 La Scolca Gavi dei Gavi Black Label ($39) Gavi is the name of a little town in the Apennines mountains, located in the Piedmont border to Liguria, from where the famous white and dry wine has taken its name. Thanks to La Scolca® who began pro...
2019 Barone Montalto Pinot Grigio ($12) This Barone Montalto Pinot Grigio is from the Valle del Belice in south-western Sicily, Italy. It is produced from 100% Pinot Grigio that is fermented for 15 days at 13-15°C. Maturation is conducted in stain...
Terre di San Venanzio Fortunato Brut Prosecco Superiore (~$20) Prosecco is a semi-fragrant sparkling wine variety produced in Italy and made from the Glera grape. Glera has very delicate fruity and floral fragrances. Terre di San Venanzio takes g...
Behind the Cork™ - Terre di San Venanzio Here are a couple more wonderful Proseccos from Terre di San Venanzio in Italy. The Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore Extra Dry (shown on the right) hails from 100% Glera from the best D.O.C.G. hills of Vald...
2018 Terra Alpina Pinot Grigio ($16) This 100% Pinot Grigio is from the Dolomiti region of Italy. Located in the far northern reaches of alpine Italy, it experiences warm Mediterranean influences as well as cool Alpine breezes. The Lageder family f...
2018 Terra Alpina Pinot Bianco ($15) This 100% Pinot Bianco is from the Dolomiti region of Italy. Located in the far northern reaches of alpine Italy, it experiences warm Mediterranean influences as well as cool Alpine breezes. The Lageder family f...
2017 Ferzo Pecorino Terre di Chieti ($26) This wine from Ferzo is 100% Pecorino that is grown in the foothills of central Italy’s Abruzzo region in the Terre di Chieti IGT. The Indicazione Geografica Tipica is a relatively new wine classification in...
2016 Ferzo Montepulciano d’Abruzzo ($26) This Montepulciano is from the southern Abruzzo region of Italy. It’s just being introduced to the U.S. and worth looking for. The name, Ferzo, refers to patches of fabric that are stitched together to creat...
2017 Citra Montepulciano D’Abruzzo ($10) This wine is 100% Montepulciano from the Abruzzo region of Italy. Hand-harvested grapes are vinified in stainless steel tanks with a long maceration at a controlled temperature. The must is frequently pumpe...
2017 Citra Trebbiano d’Abruzzo ($10) This wine is produced from the white grape called Trebbiano Abruzzesa, a grape variety from the Abruzzo Chieti province of Italy. Codice Citra wines are estate grown and bottled from a collection of family owned...
2015 Feudi di San Gregorio Rubrato Aglianico ($19.99) Aglianico (Ahl-YAH-nee-koh) is a native grape to southern Italy. This one, from Feudi di San Gregorio, is from the Campania Irpinia region of Italy, near Mount Vesuvious. After being hand-harves...
2017 Feudi di San Gregorio Falanghina ($22.99) I always enjoy learning something new about the wine world and this 100% Falanghina from Feudi di San Gregorio in Italy is just another example. Prior to this bottle, I was not aware of the Falanghina ...
A friend of mine recently recommended a wine that he really liked. When he showed me the wine’s label I saw that it was an Italian Appassimento. That’s a wine that I was not previously familiar with, so I took a look on-line and found a brief descrip...
I just took a week-long trip to the east coast. Not a wine-focused trip. But, nonetheless, I did pick up a couple bottles to enjoy in the evenings. Being a Californian, it’s really easy to immediately look on the shelves for a nice California wine. ...
Last time we took a look at Barbera, a wine that hasn’t gotten the respect it deserves. And, I mentioned that my first exposure to Barbera was a real eye-opening experience. Unfortunately, in California, the Barbera grape has predominately been used...
2014 Pasqua Valpolicella Ripasso Superiore ($9) Valpolicella is an Italian wine generally produced primarily with the Corvina grape and blended with Rondinella, Molinara and sometimes Negrara grapes. Ripasso, or “repassed,” refers to the method of ...
2014 Il Tarocco Chianti Classico ($10) As you can immediately tell from the black rooster on the neck of the bottle, this is a Chianti Classico. The black rooster let’s you know this is a nicer Chianti. While Chianti is required to be made from at ...
Chianti is a great wine to enjoy with an Italian meal. Whether it is spaghetti and meatballs, sausages or pizza, a Chianti is a great pairing. And it’s not hard to find a good one. Chianti is a region within Tuscany in central Italy, between Florenc...
Behind the Cork™ Wine of the Week - Cantina Del Grifone 1967 Red Blend ($6) Looking for an attainable, affordable wine? You’ve come to the right place. Each week I feature just such a wine on the Behind the Cork™ Wine of the Week page of EverWonder...
It’s always fun to find and try new and different wines. And, when it comes to exploring “Old World Wines” it can be even more of an adventure. That’s what happened to me when studying the shelves of Italian wines. I came across a completely unknown ...
France has its Champagne. Spain has Cava. In Italy, Prosecco and Asti are its two most popular sparkling wines. Prosecco is primarily from the Veneto region of Italy and made from the Glera grape. Like Champagne, Prosecco must be produced in design...