ORANGE features a selection of macerations which invigorate and excite. Offering examples so filigree and fine they could be classified as genre-defying, alongside those with enough flesh and grip to stand up to the most robust of cooking, few wines are as versatile on the table as these.
AJOLA
Bianco #3 2024
Umbria, Italy
A blend of Procanico, Trebbiano, Malvasia and Verdello from forty year old vines planted over sandy loam of volcanic origin in Sugano. The grapes were fermented as whole bunches for a fortnight before being pressed to vats for a year of rest. Heady with stone fruits, almond and bitter herbs, this is resolutely Mediterranean in feel and an extremely versatile wine on the table.
Procanico, Trebbiano, Malvasia Toscana, Verdello
JACOPO STIGLIANO
Buriana 2022
Emilia-Romagna, Italy
In the Bolognese dialect, Buriana describes a sort of melting pot, a kind of beautiful chaos. This wine comes from two gorgeous old parcels planted over clay and limestone. Over a dozen white varieties grow together, are picked together and fermented on the skins for eight days, before being pressed to concrete vats for two years of ageing. A brilliant shade of gold in the glass, its fine tannins frame complex notes of stone fruits, citrus, saffron and spice, making for a wine that speaks of another age, offering something truly unique.
Over a dozen white varieties
LE COSTE
Bianco 2022
Lazio, Italy
Mostly Procanico with the balance being made up of Malvasia, Roscetto, Pedino, Vermentino, Romanesco and Ansonica from vineyards young and old. From a cooler vintage, this saw a shorter maceration of just five days, before being pressed off to old casks for a year of élevage. A hazy shade of amber, this is wonderfully light on its feet, with heady notes of citrus, smoke and minerals offering refreshment in spades.
Procanico, Malvasia, Roscetto, Pedino, Vermentino, Romanesco, Ansonica