Tag: Tuscany

2015 Avignonesi Late Release Vino Nobile di Montepulciano special packaging with an illustration by Carlo Stanga of Montepulciano farms and vineyards

Avignonesi Vino Nobile di Montepulciano Late Release 2015: Artistry on the Label and in the Bottle

Our wine year is beginning in a delicious way with the tasting of a late release Sangiovese. Not just any Sangiovese, but a Vino Nobile di Montepulciano crafted responsibly by a winery that takes its social commitments as seriously as its commitment to biodiversity and healthy soils. And the Avignonesi Nobile di Montepulciano Late Release 2015 wine bottle label, and […]

Photo of Campogiovanni Brunello, Vignorello Tuscan IGT and BellAja Bolgheri Superiori on a table

San Felice: Making Wine in Three of Tuscany’s Premier Regions

Three wine estates sit under the umbrella of San Felice in Tuscany representing three different regions. San Felice is comprised of 370 acres of vines (and 15,000 olive trees) in Chianti Classico. Campogiovanni sits in Montalcino with approximately 57 acres of vineyards, 34 of which are dedicated to making Brunello. Bell’Aja is located close to the ocean in Bolgheri where […]

Photo of Avignonesi 2014 Vintage Release Vino Nobile di Montepulciano DOCG and 2020 Avignonesi Desiderio Toscana I.G.T. Merlot on a table with furniture in the background

Avignonesi: Blending Tradition With a Modern Flair in Tuscany

Avignonesi was established in 1974 and sits in Tuscany’s Vino Nobile di Montepulciano denomination. Sangiovese is, of course, the focus of its Nobile wines. Viticultural practices embrace organic and biodynamic principles, and not just in word. Avignonesi is certified organic and biodynamic, which means they fulfill the required record keeping and inspections; it’s rigorous, time consuming and expensive, but good […]

Photo of bottle and glass of 2019 Tenuta Calimaia Vino Nobile di Montepulciano DOCG on a table with fountain in background

A Sangiovese to Sip for Fall

As the wind blows through the trees in our backyard, the leaves now rustle in a way that sounds more like fall than summer. Mornings are cool and damp. Fall is definitely in the air, in spite of warm afternoon temperatures. It’s time to think about introducing more red wines into our usual white wine lineup. Sangiovese is a delicious […]

Photo of Avignonesi 2013 Vino Nobile di Montepulciano in front of wine books

Dinner with Avignonesi Vino Nobile di Montepulciano

One of the highlights of my wine year in 2023 was an introduction to Avignonesi and their single-vineyard Vino Nobile di Montepulciano wines. I had the good fortune of meeting Xiaowen DU, Marketing Manager and Assistant Winemaker at Avignonesi, and Master of Wine student in April. We connected via Zoom, she in Montepulciano with Avignonesi’s vineyards over her shoulder and […]

Photo of four Avignonesi wines

Understanding Avignonesi: Their Practices, Culture and Single-Vineyard Wines

Avignonesi is situated in the hills of Tuscany on the edge of Montepulciano near Cortona. Vino Nobile di Montepulciano is their flagship wine and while they are Sangiovese specialists, and dedicated to the variety, they are also looking to native grape varieties as a hedge against climate change. Their organic and biodynamic practices in the vineyard are carried into the […]

National Rose Day 2018 wines

#NationalRoséDay: A reminder to drink rosé

If rosé consumption trends are any indication you may not need a reminder that this is the perfect time of year to drink pink wine. In the unlikely event that the rosé trend has escaped your notice, or if you are just looking for delicious rosé choices, then we’re pretty sure this group of rosé wines will be of interest […]

Red Wines For Everyday — From The Zonin Family of Wines

This is the second of two posts on a group of wines we received for review from Zonin USA. The selection of wine we received shows the range of wine production by Casa Vinicola Zonin S.P.A. Current generations of the Zonin family manage wine estates in seven well-known Italian wine regions (Veneto, Friuli, Piedmont, Lombardy, Tuscany, Sicily and Puglia) and the US state of Virginia at Barboursville.

Tuscan Taste Off

We recently completed a series of three wine tastings at Fine Wines of Stockton entitled Red Wines of Tuscany. We tasted six Rosso di Montalcino, six Vino Nobile di Montepulciano and six Chianti. We chose our top two wines from each tasting and those six wines were our focus for the Tuscan Taste-Off. We will choose our two favorites from this group of six wines.