From: Puglia, Italy
Varietals: Mostly Negroamaro, blended with a small amount of Malvasia Nera
Tasting Notes: The 2013 Copertino Riserva is a wine to savor. Its ruby red color with garnet highlights immediately captivates the eye. The nose reveals herb-tinged red and black fruit aromas that are complemented by savory herbs, tobacco leaf, and black pepper, giving the wine depth and complexity. On the palate, this Riserva is medium-to-full-bodied, featuring brambly raspberries, black cherries, and blackberries that interweave perfectly with the herbaceous notes, creating a well-structured and balanced wine. The moderate acidity uplifts the fruit characters and gives the wine a youthful kick, while firm yet pliant tannins complete the experience. This wine is a testament to the winemaker's expertise, demonstrating the quality that can be achieved with careful winemaking and bottle aging.
Critical Acclaim: “An intriguing red that's aging gracefully, with delicate notes of baked cherry and black fig fruit accented by dried thyme, incense and leather. Well-knit and focused, with light, silky tannins, this is still fresh thanks to its orange peel acidity and the tang of minerally iron and salt notes. Drink now through 2027.” –Wine Spectator, 90 points (2012 vintage review)
Pairing: Perfect for just about any time of year, this 10 year old masterpiece really delivers. We dare say you’ll be wanting this when cooler weather hits, but it’s the perfect richly textured red wine that’ll warm you on cool summer evenings when you want to spend all the time outdoors in front of a fire. It is also the ideal companion for barbecue! If you’re vegetarian, we’d recommend Folami’s BBQ Tofu: a recipe from Folami Prescott-Adams, and adapted by Nicole Taylor for the NYT. If not, give Melissa Clark’s NYT recipe for Grilled Pork with Whole Spices and Garlic Bread a try.
Largely inspired by Puglia in the peninsula's southernmost reaches, ancient Greeks called Italy "Oenotria" – land of the vine. Today, Puglia is home to 25 production zones, most significantly the DOC Copertino. The Copertino Cooperative was established in 1935 when a group of visionary growers collaborated to produce a higher-quality wine from the region's traditional indigenous grapes.
Severino Garofano, the talented winemaker behind this project, has been long regarded as the most respected enologist in the Salento. With Copertino, Garofano and his growers have been catalysts for the region's pride in making modern varietal wines that stand on their own, rather than being used as simple blending resources.
Negroamaro has long been recognized as one of the grapes best suited to the hot, dry climate and terroir in the Salento peninsula (colloquially referred to as the "heel" of Italy's "boot"). At ten years old, this wine’s age is certainly an asset; this time has allowed the Negroamaro’s tannins to sofen, and tertiary flavors to develop in the bottle.
