L’APPARTAMENTO is full of vibrant, nourishing table wines that promise to lift the spirits in the depths of winter.
BARRACO
Biancammare 2023
Sicily, Italy
Grillo from a picturesque vineyard Nino planted right by the Mediterranean almost two decades ago. The grapes were picked early, fermented on the skins for a day, then pressed off to vats for a short rest. The result is a salty, briny white wine that makes so much sense alongside crudo. Or as Nino puts it, “il mare nel bicchiere” — the sea in the glass.
Grillo
AJOLA
Bianco #2 2023
Umbria, Italy
A blend of Procanico and Trebbiano from vines planted over clay and limestone in Pitigliano. The grapes were fermented as whole bunches for three days, before being pressed to vats for just under a year. This pairs pristine stone fruits with clean, cooling minerals and a pleasant saltiness.
Procanico, Trebbiano
CANTINA GIARDINO
Tu 2023
Campania, Italy
Roughly half Aglianico, with the balance being a field blend of varieties white and red from ninety year old vineyards in Montemarano. The grapes were fermented on the skins for just two days, before being pressed to concrete vats until spring. A rosato in the Mediterranean tradition, with flavours of sour cherry, blood orange and bitter herbs, this is incredibly versatile on the table.
Aglianico, Coda di Volpe, Piedirosso, Primitivo
LES ÂNES AILÉS
Kik-Off 2022
Roussillon, France
Mostly Grenache Gris, with a touch of Grenache Blanc and Noir planted alongside, this comes from a remarkable north-facing parcel of seventy year old vines planted over shale high in the hills of Banyuls. Harvested at full maturity, the grapes were either kept as whole bunches or destemmed by hand before a week of maceration. After pressing, the wine rested in barriques until the following spring. A gorgeous, hazy shade of purple in the glass, it draws you in with soaring aromas of wildflowers, blood orange and spice, whilst the palate displays a wonderful density of fruit and an intense, stony quality. A fascinating expression of a remarkable terroir.
Grenache Gris, Grenache Blanc, Grenache Noir
JÉRÔME LAMBERT
Le Zu Defruit 2023
Loire, France
Grolleau from fifty five year old vines planted over sandy loam. The grapes fermented as whole bunches for eleven days before being pressed to vats until the end of spring. From a cooler year, it is light, bright, and heady with varietal notes of berries, earth and spice. Served lightly chilled, it makes for a formidable bistro wine.
Grolleau
LA DISTESA
Rosso Ventitre 2023
Marche, Italy
After a difficult harvest that saw Corrado lose eighty percent of his grapes, he picked what he could and harvested with neighbours who farm organically in the region and the result is this charming wine. Mostly Sangiovese, with a touch of Montepulciano from vines young and old, the wine fermented on the skins with a around a third of whole bunches for a week, before being pressed to vats to rest until the following spring. The result is a lively, easygoing vino da tavola that really punches above its weight, offering classic notes of red cherry, herbs and spice.
Sangiovese, Montepulciano