Like Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot is a successful grape of the Bordeaux region in France, that has been planted all over the world. There are sought-after wines made with Merlot like Château Petrus in Pomerol (France). At the same time, Merlot is sometimes blamed for its simplicity.
At parties, you know, the sparkling wine is inevitable. Bottles, slightly rounded in shapes and with slender necks, stand out in the centre of large tables, ready to be uncorked.
In a border area between the Chianti Classico and the Val d’Elsa, halfway from Florence and Siena, overlooking the marvellous city of San Gimignano and its towers, for almost 40 years I Balzini has been producing long-lived, elegant wines. The winery was founded by Vincenzo D’Isanto, later joined by his wife Antonella and more recently by his daughter Diana. Since few years Diana is leading the family business.
Driven by curiosity for the birth of the new vintage, we started for a ‘hit and run’ in the heart of Umbria by Sagrantino, visiting my friend Paolo Bartoloni from Cantina Le Cimate, a full-blown intrusion during the harvest.
The boom in winemaking along the coast of Tuscany is relatively recent. Sassicaia, on the market since 1972 (harvest 1968), acted as a trailblazer of an incredible enological progress of the area to the south of Pisa (province of Livorno).
When were they born? Who made them famous? What are the differences that characterize them? A brief history of “bubbles“, the Italian Champagne, and how they are loved today by wine experts from all over the world.
By going to the estate founded by Roberto Cavalli in the upper part of the Panzano area (heart of Chianti), although inspired by the notoriety of the fashion brand, you will discover an authentic love for the land. It is that of Tommaso Cavalli, Roberto’s son, involved at 360 degrees in wine production.
Tuscany is one of the most popular regions of Italy influenced by international tourism, just look at the number of VIPs who have purchased a home here, celebrities of the calibre of Sting, Paul Smith and Richard Gere…
Food, wine and tourism – In the last few articles on this blog, we have dealt with two areas in the north of Italy which are considered tourist attractions of paramount importance: the first, Lake Garda, has always been characterised by a highly-variegated, international type of tourism, while the second, Franciacorta-Lake Iseo area, is distinguished by niche tourism and is more associated with the wine-producing activities carried out in Franciacorta.
The U.S. magazine Wine Enthusiast has nominated the Lake Garda area as the only Italian wine-producing destination among the top 10 in the world to be visited in 2019.
