Apulia (Puglia) is one of the few regions in Italy that does not have the Apennines as an inland spine. The landscape is flat and fertile with vast agricultural plains. You can see almost everywhere the vegetables and other crops growing in the red soil.

The fields are also spotted with ever present olive trees – over the centuries the olive groves have given kindly of their crop and soft and silky olive oil is produced everywhere. Vineyards also blanket the landscape with long rows of vines, or the bush-like alberello (gobelet) pruning that fights courageously to protect the precious fruit against the relentless heat and wind. On the east side, the Adriatic Sea, and on the west side, the Ionic Sea tempers the otherwise hot climate with cooler winds that blow inland to the relief of the heat-stressed vines.

Wine has been made in this region since time immemorial. Over the centuries, nature and man have chosen the grape varieties best suited to the Apulian soil and climate. Red grapes are predominant with Primitivo and Negroamaro leading the plantings. Traditionally these wines are full-bodied, concentrated with high alcohol. These wines are at odds with the local cuisine which relies heavily on the bounty provided from the sea. It is too hot for many white wine varietals – thus, rose wines have become a delicious substitute.

On offer this week is the 2015 Schola Sarmenti Masserei Nardo Rosato.  The wine is made from 100% Negroamaro and is a beautiful deep pink colour, the result of extended skin contact:

“We kept the must on the grape skins for 24 hours before separating them. Negroamaro needs quite a long time to release all the nice things that are trapped in the skins”, says Alessandro Calabrese, who owns Schola Sarmenti together with Lorenzo Marra.

The 2015 Schola Sarmenti Masserei Nardo Rosato is available for immediate delivery. This wine was made in a particularly good vintage; the grapes arrived at the winery perfectly ripe. When I tasted this wine I thought that it was a classic example of the saying that rose is really a white wine for red wine lovers … This will be a terrific wine for Summer (and Fall, and Winter, and Spring).

To order, please call 416-463-4677 or email us here.

The Small Winemakers Collection is a Toronto-based Ontario wine agent. We supply wine to restaurants and private consumers across the province. Most of our wines are sold through the Consignment program of the LCBO’s Specialty Services department.