Italy

Only made in the best vintages, the 2016 Chianti Classico Riserva from Querciabella is a really beautiful bottling from this stunning estate. The product of three single vineyards, it’s currently pretty reserved, but with notes of fresh cherries, wild roses, and a hint of rosemary. It’s a simply wonderful wine.

One of the great Super-Tuscans, in 2017 Tignanello is intense and structured, with notes of wild herbs, baked earth, and cassis. There's a silkiness to the finish, which lasts an age.

A single vineyard Freisa, and a step up, this is a brilliant wine from this tiny estate. Wild hedgerow and flowers soar from the glass, with incredible structure and length. Mineral, precise, and very long, this is a delight. And it ages brilliantly: older bottles we tried blew us away.

This is a real benchmark white of Italy, that ages spectacularly. Mineral, intense, with plenty of grip and palate weight, it's a remarkable wine. Buy this, and keep if for a few years.

Wow. What purity and focus, and also such silky tannins. This is a brilliant red. Notes of pomegranate and rose petal, and lots of blood orange add to the core of red fruit. The tannins are talc-like, and there’s such focus on the palate. This is outstanding.

More shy on the nose, but on the palate there’s incredible depth and intensity. Really powerful and grippy, very wild, with notes of orange, peaches and apricots, and such a mineral undercurrent. The best of Etna.

Sourced from across the Barbaresco region, from trusted suppliers, this is a wonderfully fragrant example of the region's everyday grape variety.

Yet another wine that shows just how good the 2014 vintage is. Soaring aromatics, incredible finesse, and remarkable length. A complete wine.

Wonderfully fresh and vibrant, particularly for a 2017, this has notes of cinnamon and freshly cut flowers swirling from the glass. A finessed and classy Barbaresco, that's surprisingly ready to go.

Yet another wine that shows just how good the 2014 vintage is. Soaring aromatics, incredible finesse, and remarkable length. A complete wine.

Juicy and fine boned, with notes of orange and a hint of ripe beef tomato, the 2018 Barbera is a lovely wine. It's drinking well out the gate, but will age nicely, too.

Ian D'agata has written, "I have long thought that the Arneis was by far Giacosa’s most underrated wine", and this is a zesty, fresh example from one of the grape variety's staunchest defenders

The Nervo comes from Serravalian soils, and shows the high-toned fruit, citrus lift, and minerality that you'd expect from such origins. In 2018 it's a real stunner: not to be missed.

A lovely wine from the vineyard surrounding the estate, this is some of the best value that you'll find in Piedmont. Delicate but not overly, the finish here is stunning, with so much energy and poise. Delicious, and approachable younger than some.

From Tortonian soils, as found in Barolo and La Morra, this is for those who like a slightly silkier, richer style of Nebbiolo. Notes of tar and tobacco on the finish, and there's exotic spice, too. Beautifully complex, and very long.

Massara is Verduno's forgotten vineyard, and this has wonderful wild strawberry perfume and nervy acidity. Lovely energy here, and a long and fragrant finish.

The 2015 Riserva from Rabaja has plenty of breadth and volume as you'd expect, with notes of black pepper and sage, and a core of ripe fruit. This is a charming Barbaresco right now. Lovely.

Monvigliero is undoubtedly a Grand Cru of Piedmont: this shows why, in the classically styled 2013 vintage. Notes of wild strawberries and hint of pomegranate and blood orange. The palate is so silky and sensous, and the sapid finish lasts for minutes. Brilliant

One of the finest vineyards in Barbaresco, from a spectacular vintage. This is perfumed, intense, and fine-boned, with amazing precision on the finish. Outstanding.

The 2017 Coltassala, the single vineyard wine from Volpaia, is brooding, intense, and very powerful. With time it's sure to be an impressive wine: at this price, a no brainer.

On the nose notes of pomegranate, fresh morello cherries, and a hint of grapefruit pith. The palate is intense and tightly wound: this will need some time to come out of its shell. Yet you feel the rippling energy here, the purity of fruit, and the underlying complexity: this is an astonishingly good Nebbiolo from one of the region’s masters. Not to be missed.

A touch more 'rustic' in the loosest possible sense than the San Giuseppe, the Vignolo shows notes of tobacco and dried leaves, alongside a dark cherry core, and a cool and mineral finish. The tannins are considerable, but soften with time in the glass, while the finish lasts an age. Another winning 2013 from Cavallotto.

Just 5,000 bottles produced from this one hectare vineyard, in the direction of Montalcino. Here, there’s volcanic sand coming from Monte Amiata. 2016 is a brilliant vintage, and this shows notes of ripe cherry, iron oxide, and plenty of floral lift. A bargain.

Juicy and fresh, this blend of Barbera and Nebbiolo is a charming, delicious wine from Clerico. There’s the intensity and juicy character you’d expect from 2017, but still with plenty of acidity. Bravo.