Primaterra Sangiovese 2010 750ml

Winery: Primaterra

Varietal: Sangiovese

Sangiovese grapes have been grown in their native Italy and several other countries for a very long time now, with many experts claiming that they were even enjoyed by the ancient Etruscan civilization, long before the spread of the Roman Empire which helped raise the profile of this dark colored and flavorful varietal. It isn't difficult to understand their enduring appeal – the Sangiovese grape varietal delivers wines which are the epitome of finery, soaking up delicate and complex oak and vanilla flavors from the barrels they are aged in, or leaving light, refreshing strawberry notes on the tongue when drank young. Whilst many traditional wineries prefer to use these acidic grapes for single variety wines, many have experimented with blending them with other fine varietals in order to balance out their combination of high acidity and light body. The results have often been truly special, and Sangiovese continues to impress today as much as it did centuries ago.

Region: Veneto

Veneto's wine are much loved around the world for their strength of character, and the region itself is an interesting one from a viticultural perspective. Sheltered by the Alps, Veneto is protected by the harsh central European climate, making it possible to grow a wide range of high quality grape varietals, which wineries manage to do to great effect. This beautiful corner of north-eastern Italy has over ninety thousand hectares under vine, with over a third of this area having the prestigious DOC rating awarded to it by the Italian government. Veneto is Italy's second largest producer of wines, and their dedication to quality and innovation brings about a fantastic range of wine styles, enjoyed around the world for their flavors, aromas and distinctive character.

Country: Italy

For several decades in the mid to late twentieth century, Italy's reputation for quality wines took a fairly serious blow. This was brought about partly due to lack of regulation in certain regions, and too much regulation in others. This led to several wineries in the beautiful and highly fertile region of Tuscany making the bold move to work outside of the law, which they saw as responsible for the drop in quality in Tuscan wines. They believed that they had the expertise and the generations of experience necessary with which to make truly excellent, world class wines, and set about doing just that. These 'Super Tuscans', as they came to be known, quickly inspired the rest of Italy to improve their produce, and now, Italian wine producers in the twenty-first century are widely recognised to be amongst the best in the world. Regulation and law began to change, and wine drinkers across the globe woke up to the outstanding wines coming out of Italy, which are continuing to improve and impress to this day.