Winefriend by David Way

Writing about the wines of Piemonte, Italy and France

Tuscany

The wines of Tuscany/Toscana

Entrance to Vinitaly

Diary 49: Piemonte in Verona

Vinitaly 2023 The biggest event in Italian wine business is the national wine fair, Vinitaly, held in Verona every year in spring. It is massive. 93,000 visitors, of which more than a quarter were foreign buyers, attended this year. The organisation has improved over the years, especially since the pandemic, with a better shuttle bus

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Castello di Radda

Radda is probably my favourite Chianti Classico commune. With elevations up to 550m, sweeping slopes and dense forests, it is the coolest part of Chianti Classico. Historically, the challenge was to ripen grapes fully. Radda is also home to a number of great wineries, Montevertine, Volpaia and Monteraponi to name a few. The revived Castello

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Sangiovese Aug 2018 tasting

Like, admire or love?

I recently held a small tasting of Tuscan reds, mostly Sangiovese-based which raised intriguing questions about how much we like a wine.  The occasion was the opportunity to taste the glossy wines of Podere Forte (which I review at length here) alongside some Tuscan classics.   The rest of the group tasted the three Podere Forte

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Ruffino trio

Ruffino’s top wines

Ruffino is a large wine company with an annual turnover of €100m. It was founded in Pontassieve, the gateway to the Chianti sub-region of Rúfina, in 1877 and has since gone from strength to strength.  The Riserva Ducale (‘reserved for the Duke’) line is named in honour of the Duke of Aosta. Back in 1890

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