It is in the province of Trapani, just a step away from Marsala and Mazara del Vallo, in that part of Sicily capable of always surprising you, where we find the winery of Giacomo Funaro. A winery that I had the opportunity to visit. However, I prefer to talk about “people” and sensations rather than about a company. When you arrive in Santa Ninfa, in fact, you are almost forced to relax. The terrace, Giacomo’s wine, the pleasure of conversation…. “Shall we make a video?” was the question I asked Giacomo the last time. “Come on, no… we’re fine like this….” was his answer. And indeed we were fine, and we didn’t make the video. (more…)

When you talk with Paolo Ippolito, the first thing you notice is his desire to communicate his territory in a different way. (more…)

In fact, this was my first real participation in the Concours Mondial de Bruxelles. To be precise, I had already had a chance to take a peek at the Rosé…

This year we are in Navarra. Wait… where exactly is Navarra? I found a trick that helps everyone locate it immediately. The magic word to say is “San Fermín”, and…

It was needed. Not a restaurant, not a hotel, but an art gallery. Or rather, a “concept place” – I must admit, I’m not quite sure how to define it given how much I enjoyed it – like the Contemporary Cluster at Palazzo Brancaccio, chosen to help us wine-addicted understand what has been happening at Mandrarossa during the pandemic. (more…)

Ogni volta mi faccio la stessa domanda: ma chi me lo fa fare?
Non ho un’enoteca, non ho un ristorante, non vendo vino e non sono un catering. Eppure ogni volta che mi viene un’idea mi ritrovo a chiamare mille persone, a caricare la mia auto fino all’inverosimile, a coinvolgere persone, a stampare cose, a produrre “oggetti e oggettini” per rendere le cose più gradevoli. Grandi faticate, ma accompagnate da grandi soddisfazioni. (more…)

It was L’Aquila, a June evening, and I was with a group of fellow judges from the “Food & Rosé Selection” organized by the Concours Mondial de Bruxelles. After wandering around for a while in search of the right place to have dinner — it was Saturday night, it was getting late, and the city center was full of people eager to enjoy the evening — finding a table was proving difficult. (more…)

For those of my generation, Pontedera inevitably rhymes with Piaggio. Or rather — if we want to be precise — it rhymes with Vespa. Coming to Pontedera for me was a bit like reliving those teenage years when the ultimate dream was first the vespino, and later the more ambitious Vespa 125. (more…)

Dear Giovanni,

this is not the first article I have written about you and Le Caniette.
Someone might think there is some sort of personal interest behind it, but no — I write simply as a recognition of the quality of your wines, your winery, your territory and your way of doing things (and that’s enough, otherwise I’ll start sounding excessive). (more…)

I have not yet developed that ability to give a wine its “name and surname” at the very first sip.

Perhaps that is why, when I drink — alone or in company and not during a technical tasting — I tend to let my senses run free, looking for unusual details but above all for emotions, the kind that truly leave a mark. (more…)

Just after finishing our first judging session at Radici del Sud, we set off for the scheduled “outing” and arrive at Agrinatura late in the afternoon. (more…)