• Brunello,  Cellar Selection,  Italy

    Cellar Selection

    Caparzo 2011 Brunello Di Montalcino The name of the estate apparently derives from “Ca’ Pazzo”, as shown on some ancient maps. The estate covers an area of 190 hectares, 54 of which are vineyards, 4 are of olive groves, 87 of which are wooded and 45 of which are to be planted with new vines. Caparzo is the only estate-bottled producer of Brunello di Montalcino to have estate vineyards on all five sides of the hill of Montalcino, ensuring that no matter what climatic challenges effect one side, the other vineyards will more than compensate. More than thirty years have passed since the first vines were planted and the first…

  • Italy,  Soave,  Weekend Selection

    Weekend Selection

    Pieropan La Rocca Soave Classico 2013 The Pieropan business was founded in 1880 in the heart of the medieval village of Soave, in the historic Palazzo Pullici. Four generations marked the history of the company, each with their own contributions which varied according to the times, knowledge and entrepreneurial attitude. The wine business started with Leonildo, physician of Soave, who was driven by knowledge in biology and chemistry and began working in the family vineyards and whose work in the cellars was carried on by his sons, Fausto and Gustavo who worked with infinite passion. Pieropan has shown the world just how great Garganega can be. Third generation Leonildo (Nino)…

  • Cabernet Sauvignon,  Italy,  Sangiovese,  Weekend Selection

    Weekend Selection

    Villa di Capezzana Carmignano 2008 At Carmignano the vines have been cultivated in pre-Roman era, about 3000 years ago, as the Wine jars and tasting cups found in Etruscan tombs demonstrate. In the archives of state of Florence a parchment was found, dated 804; it is a lease showing that as early as 1200 years ago, in Capezzana, vines and olives were cultivated for the production of oil and wine. In the early Renaissance, around 1475, Monna Nera Bonaccorsi built the first ‘Nobleman’s house’ and nine farm houses with the wine-making buildings. Other generations and families followed on the estate property; The Biscotti, related to Medici & The Marchesi Bourbon…

  • Brunello,  Cellar Selection,  Italy,  Sangiovese

    Cellar Selection

    Capanna Brunello Di Montalcino 2008 The Capanna Farm, owned by the Cencioni family since 1957, is situated north of Montalcino in the Montosoli area, which has always been considered one of the best ”crus” of Brunello. An area of about 30 acres is cultivated as a vineyard, and the other 28 acres as an olive-grove. Its magnificent position and the stony soil, together with the dry and airy climate, allows Capanna to produce a Brunello wine that is graceful and elegant, suitable for a long maturing process. Went to a restaurant on the Cape, Barley Neck Inn, which offers half price wines during the month of October. They have a…

  • Exceptional White,  Italy,  Lugana

    Exceptional White

    I Frati Càdei Frati 2014 Lugana The company Ca’ dei Frati has been around since 1782, according to a document that refers to a House with a cellar located in the place of Sermione hotels in Lugana tener Fratti. It was in 1939 when Happy Dal Cero, son of Domenico already grower in Montecchia di Crosara, near Verona, moved into that House, Lugana di Sirmione. After thirty years, in 1969, his son Peter starting to bottle its first label of Lugana House of Friars. In 2012 Pietro Dal Cero leaves the company to his wife Santa Rosa and children Igino, Gian Franco and Anna Maria who run the company with…

  • Garganega,  Italy,  Mid-Week Wines

    Mid-Week White

    Inama 2014 Soave Classico In the 1960s, Giuseppe Inama, the estate’s founder, began using his savings to purchase small plots of vineyards in the heart of the Soave Classico region. At that time few understood the area’s potential but Giuseppe believed that he could make a wine capable of restoring Soave’s reputation by working with only top quality vineyards of old-vine Garganega (Soave’s original grape). Today, Inama (pronounced “eeh-NAM-mah”) comprises 70 acres of vineyards in the heart of the Soave Classico and Giuseppe’s son Stefano, who assumed control of the winemaking in 1992 and has cutting-edge outlook, is considered a dynamic visionary of the region. Inama also grows traditional Bordeaux…

  • Brunello,  Cellar Selection,  Italy,  Sangiovese

    Cellar Selection

    Tenute Silvio Nardi 2010 Brunello Di Montalcino Tenute Silvio Nardi consists of 80 hectares of vineyards in an unspoiled part of central Tuscany, Montalcino, whose symbol is its great red wine, Brunello. Silvio Nardi founded the estate at Casale del Bosco, and since 1985 it has been run by Emilia, his youngest daughter. Emilia Nardi knows she can depend on Casale’s special and distinctive territory to produce a contemporary and elegant Brunello. She has invested in the vineyards of this harmonious natural setting. Each of her signature wines expresses the differing character of Sangiovese when it is grown at Montalcino. The estate’s vineyards are situated between 140 and 420 meters…

  • Cabernet Franc,  Cabernet Sauvignon,  Cellar Selection,  Italy,  Super Tuscan

    Cellar Selection

    Batzella Bolgheri Tam 2009 Located in Bolgheri, on central coast Tuscany, the Batzella Winery Estate was founded in 2000 by Khanh Nguyen and Franco Batzella. The commitment of this husband-wife team is to make elegant and genuine wines, with a personality that expresses the best of their terroir. The Bolgheri area is enchanting, surrounded by soft rolling hills and by the Tyrrhenian sea. Its soils and micro climate are perfect for the Cabernet varietals, by now considered local to Bolgheri, to reach full maturation, resulting in wines that can be distinctively elegant. In this land, the Batzellas are pursuing their passion: to find that elusive harmony between elegance and power…

  • Cabernet Sauvignon,  Cellar Selection,  Italy,  Sangiovese

    Cellar Selection

    Terrabianca 2007 Campaccio Toscana Red In the medieval times, Podere Terrabianca found itself in the ambiguous situation of being situated in the part of the countryside under the rule of Florence and, at the same time, also in the diocese of the Bishop of Siena. The very first documents mentioning its presence, dated 1085, describe it as being a country estate as, in fact, its name clearly implies. Today the winery Terrabianca is located at the heart of the Chianti Classico region, in the middle of Tuscany, 12 km from Siena and 50 km from Florence. The soil which consists of layers of chalk, sand and clay from the palaeozoic…

  • Brunello,  Cellar Selection,  Italy,  Sangiovese

    Cellar Selection

    Solaria Patrizia Cencioni Brunello di Montalcino 2003 The Azienda Agricola Patrizia Cencioni is a family owned and run winery that is located on the southeast slope of the Montalcino hillside. The property is almost 50 HA of which 8ha are vined growing DOCG Brunello. The vines were planted in 1989, the year Solaria was founded; though its origins go back to the family estate created in the 1950’s by Giuseppe Cencioni, one of the founders of the Consorzio del Brunello di Montalcino. With Solaria, the estate has vastly improved thanks to the considerable family experience and the entrepreneurial ability of the owner Patrizia Cencioni who adds a feminine touch! A…