Never afraid of doing things differently – Terra Sancta have just released the second edition of their multi-varietal wine “The Italian”. A Special release – so special there was no mention of it during my visit there in February…it’s created from the classic Barbera, Dolcetto and Lagrein grapes. But. Not a single vintage – rather, it was decided the to get the best from the fruit by blending multiple vintages (and by necessity, keeping some wine from each year to create future renditions).
Winemaker Austin Black comments: “The Italian varieties were planted in 2013, so it is a young, energetic wine. Quite nervy acidity, savoury and slightly grainier tannins than the pinots from the same soil types. There is a lot of potential in the varieties, and I would expect that eventually we will do single varietal vintage wines, once they get a bit older.”
Made in barrel and with a wild ferment, it has no additions other than minimal sulphur at bottling. Under cork and topped with wax seal, this is expected to cellar well and be beautiful drinking at an eight year apex.
