It's time for new wines: here are those ready for bottling

The beginning of the year for every winery represents an important period in which to plan all the phases of bottling, after the fermentations and stabilizations in tanks are completed. We are logically talking about all white wines, red wines, and rosé wines of the vintage. You already know what “vintage” means, right? The term should not be confused with a connotation of aging: normally “vintage” means that the wine is produced with the harvest from a specific year. In the case of a 2017 vintage wine, we are talking about a wine made from grapes harvested last year. Most white wines and rosé wines do not undergo long aging periods and therefore go straight into bottles. The bottling times are precisely in February and the first days of March. A period that guarantees a special maturation of the wine, which comes fresh, fruity, and floral. Ideal to be enjoyed at its moment of best aromatic-olfactive potential.

Italian wines ready at the starting line!

Italian wineries are bottling their white wines. From north to south, the musts that have turned into wine, after their stabilization in steel tanks or in other types of containers like cement, resin, or clay, are bottled through strict control and a careful preparation technique for bottling. This last phase is very delicate and ensures that the wines are resistant to adversities and oxidation. Soave, Lugana, or Friulano, Sauvignon, Chardonnay. Then the Alto Adige whites like Gewurztraminer, Sylvaner, Muller Thurgau. The Piedmontese Roero Arneis or Pigato from Liguria, the vernaccias of San Gimignano, and the Trebbiani from Tuscany. The great whites from Marche, Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi. The Campanian whites from the Avellino territories, Sannio, and Cilento, Greco di Tufo, Fiano di Avellino, Falanghine, and wines from the Amalfi Coast. The whites from Locorotondo and the moscatos from Trani. The Grillo and Inzolia from Sicilian lands. To list all the native Italian white grape varieties would require a separate chapter.

We have only talked about white wines, but the same applies to the rosé wines of Puglia, the Chiaretti of Lake Garda, and the rosés from Oltrepò Pavese. The red wines of lesser structure are also in the bottling phase. From Valpolicella Classico to Perricone from the lands of Alcamo, from Nebbioli from the Langhe to Schiopettini from the Friulian valleys: there is indeed much to anticipate with great curiosity.

Some first bottled white wines on our site

If we seek all the freshness in wines, we must wait a few more months and reach until April. Usually, those who frequent the world of wine say that it is during the Vinitaly fair that all new bottlings arrive. In fact, many producers, if you are at the fair, will tell you explicitly: “the wine is still closed because it has just been bottled”.

But let’s start with our gems from the area of excellence for Italian white wine, namely Alto Adige. Our estate Klaus Lentsch is a fine quality reality that produces from heroic vineyards at equally heroic altitudes: their Pinot Bianco boasts great longevity, the Sauvignon is always particularly citrusy and fresh, and the Gewurtztraminer Amperg is decidedly captivating for all its aromatic complexity and floral composition on the nose.

Don't miss the Langhe Arneis from Azienda Agricola Rocche Costamagna which comes from a vineyard that consistently offers very sapid and floral wines with hints of yellow stone fruits. The white wines from Azienda Vigne Storte in Sannio produce a Fiano, the Aità, rich in structure and exotic roundness with sweet spices. Don’t overlook the perfection of the Soave Danieli from the winery Fattori, which every year produces wines from pure Garganega from its volcanic vineyard that are of great elegance and finesse.

It is now the wine of the new millennium. The white wine with an uppercase 'W' that is conquering the world: Lugana. We have chosen the organic one from Pratello, a small family-run business on the shores of Lake Garda.

First bottled red wines on our site

We cannot fail to mention the fantastic Lambrusco from Tenuta Pederzana, the Cantolibero, which reveals intriguing aromas and always very pleasant balance each year. Another red that remains captivating every year is the Dolcetto d’Alba from Rocche Costamagna. Don’t underestimate the Bardolino. If you choose Benazzoli, you will simply be amazed!
Our Valpolicella wines come in various types, but all are of excellent quality, starting with Valpolicella Classico Le Filagne from Cantina Le Bertarole, Valpolicella Montecurto by young Marco Mosconi, and Col de La Bastìa from Antonio Fattori, from a heroic vineyard on the marly hills bordering the Lessini slopes. A nice Chianti Rufina from Villa di Vetrice displays a vintage rich in red fruits and spicy pepper notes. From Cantine Russolo, we recommend the Refosco dal Peduncolo Rosso, a fruity and floral wine with a nice balanced structural composition on the palate. Finally, an almost unknown but very intriguing wine comes from the Novara hills, the Vespolina from Azienda Agricola Mirù.

Bernardo Pasquali