Home Winners > Winners 2017 > ITALY: South Whites

Winner Details

Italy: South - White

2017 Gold: 2 Silver: 4 Bronze: 1 Commended: 5
2016 Gold: 1 Silver: 2 Bronze: 3 Commended: 4

We’ve made the decision this year to separate the results of southern mainland Italy from those of Sicily and Sardinia, and it’s rather shown up who’s doing good things with white. And it’s not the ankle, heel and foot of the country, on this evidence. There was not a lot of good stuff here (the majority, though not all, of the tasting teams were underwhelmed) and the pricing was often wildly optimistic.

So well done to the medal winners – and here’s hoping your peers learn from your success.

FROM THE TASTING TEAMS

‘Not a lot of these wines had character. It was like the producers had decided “well let’s just make a refreshing wine because it’s hot”.’ Jade Koch, team leader

‘I thought this flight was very light, nothing special.’ Rustem Mingaleev, Bovey Castle

‘My house white is a Puglian Fiano.’ Charles Pashby-Taylor, Dabbous

‘I have a lot of Southern Italian wines on my list – but no Pinot Grigio! I work a lot with orange wines and skin-contact wines and for me that’s where the interest is coming from with Italy at the moment.’ Laure Patry, Jason Atherton Group

‘The best in this line-up were too pricey. Customers are looking for easy-drinking white wines with Italy – they’re looking for Pinot Grigio. Wine connoisseurs will look for particular Italian producers though.’ Jose Luis Hernandez, Hakkasan Hanway Place

‘These Southern Italian wines are really food friendly wines – that freshness would really cut through any oiliness.’ Annette Scarfe MW, team leader

Award winners

Found 21 wines

Italy: South – White, including Sicily & Sardinia

Alta Mora, Etna Bianco 2015, Sicily, Italy

Gold medal winner Food Match

‘Bring on the Dover sole,’ said WineEd’s Matthew Cocks, going on to describe this Gold medal and Food Match Trophy winner’s ‘saline notes, as well as lime and green apple, with preserved lemon, too – all with vibrant acidity’. Team leader Martin Lam thought this was ‘ripe, concentrated, elegant but serious and well made’, while Jacopo Armenio of Vinarius found it ‘medium bodied and creamy, long on the palate with good balance’.

£11.54 Eurowines

Mezzacorona, Feudo Arancio, Grillo 2016, Sicily, Italy

Gold medal winner

This Gold medal Grillo represented ‘very good value’ for FJB Hotels’ Charles Van Wyk, who enjoyed its ‘clean, tropical and stone fruit notes, particularly peach and melon’, with team leader Annette Scarfe MW saying: ‘Lovely, fresh, easy-drinking style, unoaked and precise.’ For WineEd’s Matthew Cocks, ‘preserved lemon, peach nectar and almond nougat’ made this ‘well suited to antipasti’, while Wright Brothers’ Ivan Ruiz wanted to see it paired with seafood pasta.

£6.50 Berkmann Wine Cellars

Planeta, Eruzione 1614, Carricante 2015, Sicily, Italy

Gold medal winner

It was a savoury component, as well as some food-friendly richness on the palate that earned this the Gold podium. Team leader Sarah Jane Evans MW found it ‘floral, vibrant and aromatic, with an oily mid-palate and a touch of bitterness on the finish’, while Vinoteca’s Charlie Young praised ‘savoury, rich aromas, and a nice, punchy freshness that carries the weight of the wine’. Richard Brooks of Caroline Catering thought that ‘as an accompaniment to fish or shellfish, this could be a real cracker’.

£13.77 Enotria&Coe

Argiolas, Iselis, Nasco di Cagliari 2015, Sardinia, Italy

Silver medal winner

Richard Brooks of Caroline Catering enjoyed a ‘riper, richer mouthful of fruit with some depth, and it grows and grows on the palate’, concluding: ‘Lovely wine!’ And Michael Moore of The London Cookhouse suggested its ‘ginger tangerine, summery aftertaste would be great with a vitello tonnato’.

£12.10 Eurowines

Argiolas, Merì, Vermentino di Sardegna 2015, Sardinia, Italy

Silver medal winner

Would make a ‘good all-rounder’, said team leader Martin Lam, with its ‘ripe stone fruit nose and juicy fruit palate’, and Jacopo Armenio of Vinarius highlighted its ‘fleshy fruits and medium-bodied, floral character’.

£10.35 Eurowines

CVA Canicattì, Aquilae, Organic Grillo 2016, Sicily, Italy

Silver medal winner

A more aromatic style, said Plateau’s Federico Forte, with its ‘peach and rose aromas, very delicate and elegant with acacia tree notes, followed by a medium-length palate, balanced by nice acidity and melon fruit’.

£9.60 VinumTerra

Tasca, Chardonnay 2014, Sicily, Italy

Silver medal winner

Federico Forte of Plateau found this ‘good on the palate and quite refreshing, with unripe apricot notes and white melon’, while for team leader Sarah Jane Evans MW it was: ‘Individual, vividly flavoured and memorable, with pithy grapefruit style and a long, long finish.’

£28.37 Berkmann Wine Cellars

Tasca, Nozze d'Oro, Inzolia/Sauvignon Blanc, Contea di Sclafani 2014, Sicily, Italy

Silver medal winner

A ‘vividly aromatic’ style for team leader Sarah Jane Evans MW, who noted ‘jasmine and peaches, a full-bodied palate with a tang of limes and a long finish’, while Michael Moore of The London Cookhouse found it ‘very bouncy’.

£14.35 Berkmann Wine Cellars

Planeta, Chardonnay 2015, Sicily, Italy

Silver medal winner

‘Reductive, but in the good way,’ Piotr Artur Tomaszewski of Buddha Bar mused, finding: ‘Lemon and lime, jasmine and camomile teas with nutty and farmyard notes, too. Plenty of oak character adds further dimension.’

£17.57 Enotria&Coe

Planeta, Moscato Bianco, Secco 2015, Sicily, Italy

Silver medal winner

Andre Luis Martins of the Cavalry & Guards Club was keen on its ‘gentle lychee aromas with herbal characters, then light tangerine fruit on the palate with more herbs and an elegant finish’. ‘Good with truffle risotto,’ added Michael Moore of The London Cookhouse.

£10.11 Enotria&Coe

Argiolas, Is Argiolas, Vermentino di Sardegna 2015, Sardinia, Italy

Bronze medal winner

‘Aromas of apricot and slightly bruised green apple,’ began Charles Van Wyk of FJB Hotels, adding: ‘Has a fantastic, coating mouthfeel with slightly waxy notes on the palate, but finishes with vibrant acidity.’

£11.29 Eurowines

Feudo Maccari, Grillo 2016, Sicily, Italy

Bronze medal winner

‘Fleshy style with lots of stone fruit,’ began team leader Martin Lam, with Jacopo Armenio of Vinarius adding: ‘Crisp but intense, with peach and apricot, medium bodied and slightly creamy in texture.’

£7.65 Boutinot

Feudo Montoni, Catarratto del Masso 2015, Sicily, Italy

Bronze medal winner

Giancarlo Cuccuru of The Ned Hotel enjoyed its ‘rounded peachy fruit and good body’, while Charles Pashby-Taylor of Dabbous highlighted its ‘fleshy fruit, good balance and nice acidity’, and team leader Martin Lam summed it up as: ‘Full of white floral notes, and very good indeed.’

£9.96 Ester Wines

Caruso & Minini, Terre di Giumara, Grecanico 2015, Sicily, Italy

Bronze medal winner

‘Very clean and fresh, showing some notes of eucalyptus on the palate, which has great depth,’ said Michael Moore of The London Cookhouse, suggesting: ‘Food match with salmon, asparagus and smoked mozzarella.’ ‘Very pleasant on its own, but would go with a range of salads and chicken dishes,’ said Richard Brooks of Caroline Catering.

£6.70 Bibendum

Poderi Parpinello, Ala Blanca, Vermentino di Sardegna 2016, Sardinia, Italy

Bronze medal winner

Our judges found classic notes of ripe but light and fresh citrus fruits with intermingling layers of herbs and gentle floral touches, supported by a creamy richness of texture, making it ideal for calamari and mussels or lighter pasta dishes.

£12.62 Hallgarten & Novum Wines

Colomba Bianca, Vitese, Grillo 2015, Sicily, Italy

Bronze medal winner

‘This is made for the summer!’ said an enthused Giancarlo Cuccuru of The Ned Hotel, noting its ‘lemon fruit and crisp, refreshing character’, while Jacopo Armenio of Vinarius found it ‘mineral with clean fruit flavours of pear and citrus, and a creamy feel’.

£7.18 Hallgarten & Novum Wines

Planeta, Alastro, Bianco 2015, Sicily, Italy

Bronze medal winner

Team leader Annette Scarfe MW highlighted ‘greengage with a slight spritz and attractive lemon zest’, while Hakkasan Group’s Olivier Gasselin noted ‘bitter-sweet fruit, grassy and smoky yet clean and minerally too’.

£10.11 Enotria&Coe

Nicosia, Etna Bianco 2015, Sicily, Italy

Commended medal winner

£8.99 Boutinot

Cottanera, Etna Bianco 2015, Sicily, Italy

Commended medal winner

£14.00 VinumTerra

Tasca, Cavallo delle Fate, Grillo 2015, Sicily, Italy

Commended medal winner

Santadi, Pedraia, Nuragus di Cagliari 2015, Sardinia, Italy

Commended medal winner

£9.45 Enotria&Coe