Villa Quinziana 2018

Our good friend (and talented winemaker) Angelo Maci is a great ambassador for southern Italy. Along with Pavorotti, Sophia Loren, and Pope Benedict XVI, he’s received the Barocco Award for promoting Italian culture overseas. At home, his Cantine du Palme has been named southern Italy’s Winery of the Year a remarkable three times at Vinitaly, and Angelo himself has won the coveted Winemaker of the Year award three times at the same competition. So it stands to reason that his wines are always huge customer favorites.

One thing that sets Angelo apart: he’s a fierce protector of southern Italy’s ancient, albarello-trained bush vines. Very low in yield, they make a big difference when it comes to intensely concentrated flavors. Centered on dark-skinned Negroamaro (with a good slug of aromatic Malvasia Nera), this delicious evidence hails from Puglia’s Squinzano region, a sun-drenched ‘hot spot’ for quality at the tip of Italy’s ‘heel.’

Full of mouthwatering black fruit and Negroamaro’s trademark cocoa and coffee flavors (the grape’s name literally means “black and bitter”), Villa Quinziana was given a six-month slumber in fine French oak barrels, which adds the perfect amount of intriguing, spicy depth. It’s delicious with baked pork chops (Angelo’s favorite), meaty pizzas, and more.

Oh, and remember those albarello vines and their low yields? That means our quantities are (painfully!) limited – so order today.