PLEASE NOTE THAT SEVERAL WINES FOR THIS PACK HAVE SOLD OUT, BUT IF YOU ARE STILL INTERESTED IN PURCHASING, WE WILL PROVIDE LIKE FOR LIKE REPLACEMENTS FOR ANY MISSING WINES

One of our favourite packs of the year and how can you not be in love with the wines of Italy? They offer some of the most diverse drinking from a plethora of varietals offering some of the most unique and beguiling aromatic and flavour profiles of any wine-producing country in the world.

This year we wanted to move outside the box a little with a selection of some of the more interesting and esoteric varietals Italy has to offer. Italy is a hotbed of nearly 500 native varietals offering some of the world's most fascinating and delicious drinking often not found anywhere else in the world.

Moreover, we are taking our cues from the country's verdant hills and sparkling seas. With over 40% off land mass mountains and neatly 4000k's of coastline and 5 seas surrounding Italy, there is plenty to discover with each pocket expressing in singular and special ways.

That means the wines of Sicily and the country's coastal south have featured strong. Crisp whites, sunkissed and lightly salted along with crunchy reds with warming fruit and vibrancy to boot. We have also made sure to include some classics from the country's cooler north and rolling hills with plenty of favourites from Piedmonte, Verona and its Alpine reaches.

It's pretty exciting stuff and we have put together some brilliant wines that you may or may not have heard of. Of course, we have made sure to include some much-loved varieties, quintessential blends, and regions into the mix so don't fear, there is plenty of familiar drinking territory too.

We hope you enjoy this mash-up of great drinking from Italy.

La Guardiense is one of the largest and most respected cooperative wineries in the Italy, founded in 1962 with over 1000 growers tending 2000 hectares on vines on their books supplying fruit to the winery. They control some of the finest Falanghina, Fiano and Aglianico vineyards within the Beneventano IGT appellation. Producing a range of wines from across the DOC's of Campania, La Guardiense has built a solid reputation for both the quality of the vineyard sources and the wines they release in bottle giving a fascinating glimpse into the varied wine styles of this much improved region of Italy. 

This is spot on this year. Plenty of fleshy fruit and lovely concentration but with a lick of salty goodness that keeps this oh-so-fresh! A little tropical hit on the nose with some tangy lemon and citrus pith too with some peppery spice for a bit of interest. Long and lush palate that finishes tangy and dry. Perfect summer fair. 

Colomba Bianca Grillo is a delightful white wine from Sicily, crafted from the Grillo grape, a variety native to the island. Known for its aromatic complexity and vibrant freshness, this wine presents a bouquet of citrus fruits, green apple, and floral notes, with a hint of minerality that reflects the Mediterranean terroir.

My gosh! Love this wine. So, zippy and lemony, tasty goodness here. There is a lovely saline thread too that just screams of its coastal home. A little bit of tart pithyness and some green tree fruits too. Super clean finish, bright bubbly and so energetic. If you like Chablis or Aussie riesling you will love this. Its simple but it's bloody delicious.

[PREVIOUS VINTAGE] Just the ticket for characterful everyday drinking. Saline and prodigiously thirst-slaking. Simplicity, a benefit rather than a bane. A mid-weighted lightning rod of energy that is juicy, succulent and vibrant. Almond meal, dried tatami straw and preserved lemon accents teem long, the acidity a gentle clatter across the finish rather than anything hard or brittle. There is little that comes close to this for the price. Drink now. NED GOODWIN MW, JamesSuckling.com

Petilia's story is woven into the very fabric of Greco di Tufo and this wine encapsulate brilliantly what these wines can be when this variety and place come together under the watchful eye of a producer of this calibre. Drink this with abandon, enjoy it with a wide range of fare, it's freshness and structure give it a wide zone to play in

Energetic and brimming with life. Crisp, fresh pear. Schweppes Bitter Lemon served with a salt rim and a big twist. A slice of frangipane tart and a lovely powdery goodbye.

Nals Margreid has some of the region's best Pinot Bianco vineyards, planted between the two villages of Nalles and Magrè amid the Dolomites rock formations of the Alpine peaks.Situated on their highest vineyard (500-750 meters above sea level), the Pinot Bianco basks in mild summers and cool autumns, allowing a longer ripening period and a later harvest. The grapes are hand harvested, crushed, then pressed to stainless steel tanks for fermentation. The variety's character is refined by skilled winemaking to create a mineral-rich wine with clear-cut aromas and flavours.

The 2021 Berg Pinot Bianco has an extremely fragrant nose composed of lively notes of stone fruit, hay and frangipane, resinous, green mango characters adding vibrancy. The palate is as energetic and full of verve with springy lemon zest, white peach and sweet lime cordial lingering on with a sherbet-like texture that makes the palate salivate for more.

There is much diversity within Soave, as they can be crisp with a fresh, fruity liveliness while others are stylistically denser and richer which adds to the texture, depth and complexities. With focused flavours that include an almond like nuttiness, minerals, citrus and occasionally a touch of tropical fruit. ERIC ASIMOV, New York Times 

Gino Magnabosco and his daughter, Marta, are knocking out some amazing wine out of Soave. The fruit is sourced from their estate grown vineyards throughout the best areas of the region including Monte tenda, Monte foscarino and the name-sake - Monte tondo

Another how do they do it kind of wine. Like, how do they pack so much goodness into a wine like this and charge what they do. Every year we try this wine it never fails to impress and for that it has become a fairly permenant fixture in the shop, in packs and on the shelves. Its drink, don't think kind of territory so go nuts. 

A little light quartzy note is sprinkled with pear and nectarine fruit all pure and fresh. It follows on the palate with a similar line of nashi, yellow plum, nectarines and maybe a hint of green apple on the close. Mid-wight to lighter in style packed with flavour all pinned in close by some zesty acidity. Clean and crisp delivering on all fronts.

Langhe Favorita DOC Favorita is the local name for the Vermentino grape variety when made in the region. It actually comes under several names all over Italy with the versions from the hills in Piedmont and further down the coast in Liguria presenting with a little more floral lift and aromatic higlights than those made further south. 

This little number is a character-filled beauty from the very talented Fausto Cellario in Piedmont and is 100% organic. We were pretty chuffed with this at a recent tasting. Everything you could want, some lifted aromatics, lush fruits, crunchy and clean with plenty of zip but padded with fleshy yellow tree fruits keeping it cuddly and oh so easy to enjoy. A little honeydew melon, lemon, nectarine, and dried grass notes shine on a light but electric body. You little ripper! 

THE FRIENDS

Organically grown in Sicily. The perfect vino quotidiano (everday drinking)! A joint project with Mortellito & QuelVino. These wines offer fantastic drinking with quality beyond what the price might indicate. A crunchy blend of 90% early pick Nero D'Avola and 10% Grilo Bianco. That blend of red and a touch of white makes the perfect in between wine. You could enjoy as is for summer sipping reds or happily put it in the fridge for a little chilled action too. So good!

Grown in Contrade of San Lorenzo, San Giovanni (hence GIO) and Buonivini (cru areas for Nero D'Avola). Grown on limestone & clay soils. 20 to 60 year old bush vines. 

Bing cherry, a touch of white pepper, and a little raspberry coulis meet you on the very enticing nose. Light and fresh on its feet its zippy, just dancing across your tongue. So easy to love this with the perfect balance of bright, sweet berry fruit and acid crunch. Somewhere between a light red and a darker rose. It hits all the notes perfectly, staying limber and bright. We are really love these kinds of wines at the moment and this does it so well. Perfect for the heat!

Cantina Santadi, form Sardinia’s southwestern coastal region known as Sulcis, was founded in 1960 as a cooperative of local growers. Under the guidance of Antonello Pilloni, Santadi has become one of Sardinia’s, and Italy’s, finest wineries, with more than 200 growers farming 600 hectares. In the early 1980’s, Antonello called on the late Giacomo Tachis to consult for Santadi. Creator of Sassicaia, Tachis would go on to become the man behind Italian wine’s worldwide renaissance. The Sulcis peninsula is, geologically, Sardinia's most ancient area, rich in archaeological sites, and offers an astonishing palette of variations and contrasts, with coastal sand dunes, gentle hills and inlets, narrow strips of flatland and inland mountains, rugged cliffs overhanging the sea interspersed with silky-smooth white beaches, pine trees, junipers and vineyards. In these sandy soils, pre-phylloxera vines continue to survive and thrive.

This is a stunning little number, ruby-red wine from the island of Sardinia, Italy. Made from 100% Cannonau grapes, it offers up a vibrant and subtely complex bouquet of ripe red fruits, spices and fresh leather. This bucks the trend of many cannonau wines from the island who often come across as soupy and overblown but here we have a wonderfuly light on its feet version with tons of crunchy freshness and pure fruits. It really is a bit of fresh air and we would love to see more of these wines go this way embracing levity and energy over gaudy fruit profiles. Perfect mid-season drinking here and still pack a flavour punch.

It's an impressively modern affair here with state-of-the-art equipment and winemaking facilities. However, the team here is committed to making what they see as the traditional expressions of the wines of the region while embracing contemporary craftsmanship. That includes very little oak if any at all and steel tank, temperature controlled ferments to preserve freshness and vitality. These are impressive wines that capture the warmth, heart, and soul of the region with modern styling and a nod to the many generations of quality wine producers that came before them.

Not the first time the wines of San Moro have made their way into the mixed packs and we doubt it will be the last. These are absolute ripper that deliver in spades. Try them all. We already dried up our stocks of fiano before the NY so there you go.

Anduma is a project delivering authentic, high-quality Piemontese wines as an introduction to the region and its all-star native grape varieties. We collaborate to deliver this set of classics, working with friends who maintain an (almost) 200 year old traditional family winery halfway between Asti and Alba. The quality:price ratio is superb vibrantly showcasing varietal flavours and aromas while staying true to their origins. 

Another cracker from this family-owned operation in the hills of Roero outside. The fruit is cultivated on sandy clay soil at an altitude of 300m without the use of herbicides or chemical fertilisers. Stainless steel fermentation and short aging are employed to keep this fruit-forward and fresh. Cherry and tart plum aromas are mirrored on the palate in a juicy density that is accompanied by a useful brush of tannin. Super food friendly, Dolcetto is often the ultimate lunch wine! This is delicious stuff. 

Established by Gabriele and Miriam Dalcanele in 2006, La Dama represents the new breed of winemakers in the region. Modern, fresh yet compelling wines coaxed from organically farmed vineyards in the fabled commune of Negrar, home to some of the great names including the legendary Giuseppe Quintarelli.

Their 10 hectare estate has been certified organic since 2015 and works only with the native varieties of Corvina, Corvinone, Rondinella, and Molinara. Oak influence is kept to a minimum in order to ensure the vineyard speaks for itself in the glass.

Opens with wild forest fruits, a touch of red currant flecked throughout and dusted with sweet, peppery spice. Silky fruit, super vibrant and punchy packed with flavour but delivered in La Dama's typical ethereal style. A little dark cherry, a splash of blackberry, and a touch of wild strawberry fruit too. Finishes long and fresh. Another great drop. 

Paolo Scavino owns 29 hectares entirely in the Barolo area and works on 20 Barolo historical crus located in Castiglione Falletto, Barolo, La Morra, Novello, Serralunga d'Alba, Verduno and Roddi. The Scavino family distinguishes itself from the beginning by their scrupulous care of the vineyards and passion for terroir. Their core beliefs is the supremacy of the viticulture above the oenology therefore the focus is the care of the vines in order to grow ripe and healthy grapes. In winemaking minimal and equal intervention are sought, to preserve natural diversities, terroir.

Second year in a row for this wine (new vintage) so you know it must be good. While they may be well know for their excellent Barolo this wine is always one that sucks us in when we try it. Nebbiolo from younger vines and those that don't quite make the cut go into this delicious Piemontese red. A melange of read and black fruits with roasted earthy notes from the neb component striking a beautiful counterpoint of savouryness to the sweet fruits. So plush and mellow but with a tingling spine of energy and fresh cut acidity. A wonderfull combo of vibrancy and velvety fruit. Love this wine!