Red Wine Attanasio Primitivo di Manduria Reserva 2014. Giuseppe Attanasio founded his namesake estate in 2000 and today he works 8 hectares of vineyards in Manduria in Italy’s southern Salento region. Attanasio has been involved in winemaking for more than six decades and brings a wealth of experience to this young project working with the local Primitivo grape variety. Low yields, an extremely arid climate and great attention to detail mean that Attanasio only produces around 15,000 bottles per year in his cavernous cellar beneath a 19th century palace. Attanasio’s Reserva is sure to impress lovers of big, bold reds thanks to its classic southern Italian profile of ripe dark fruit flavours and a remarkably smooth texture. On the nose there are enticing aromas of cassis, dark cherry, licorice and mint while the first sip reveals plenty of ripe plum, jammy berries and sweet spices from the oak ageing. The wine is crafted from top quality fruit grown on bush vines on the typical local terra rossa” or red earth” soils. Attanasio vinifies the wines in stainless steel tanks with a lengthy maceration to capture the natural character of the grape variety. The young wines then age in 225 litre barrels for 12 months followed by 24 months in 114 litre French oak barrels.
2014
Red Wine Attanasio Primitivo di Manduria Reserva 2014
Red Wine Quintarelli Rosso del Beppi 2014. Decant 2 hours before serving. This majestic red is the handiwork of master Italian winemaker Giuseppe Quintarelli who is revered all over the globe for his exceptional Amarone wines. Unlike many of his neighbours who switched to modern mass production techniques to make their wines, Giuseppe clung on to more traditional ways of winemaking such as manual harvesting and very long ageing periods in large Slavonian oak casks. Quintarelli only releases their flagship Amarone in the very best years.
2014
Red Wine Quintarelli Valpolicella Classico Superiore 2014. Decant 1 hour before serving. Widely regarded as the benchmark producer of Amarone della Valpolicella, Quintarelli’s modern success comes thanks to the hard work of Giuseppe Quintarelli. While many of his colleagues shifted to mass production methods, Giuseppe insisted on pursuing time-honoured traditional methods of winemaking such as using large Slavonian oak casks and very long maturation periods. These factors have helped make Quintarelli the top producer of Amarone with a portfolio packed with exceptional traditional-style wines. Quintarelli’s Valpolicella Superiore is a classic example of the style, offering a powerful flavour profile and generous full body thanks to the practice of appassimento. Following the harvest the grapes are rigorously sorted, vinified, and then matured in Slavonian oak casks for seven years.
2014