On Monday 28 April, the team behind Selezione Italia and Josef Maria Schuster from Vino Autentico put together an event that was anything but ordinary. While Selezione Italia normally focuses on connecting Italian producers with Austrian trade buyers (wine-shops, restaurants, distributors), this tasting welcomed both professionals and private enthusiasts—a novelty I’m wholeheartedly in favour of, as it enriches Vienna’s wine-lover calendar. The setting, too, was different: instead of the long-time, much-loved Hotel Regina near the Votivkirche, we gathered at Ristorante Il Cavalluccio in the First District, right in the centre of town.
This new format once again had the great merit of bringing less-famous Italian wineries to Vienna. Italy’s insane oenological diversity—countless native varieties, cellar styles and climates from Alto Adige to Puglia—is both a blessing and a curse: for consumers it’s easy to get lost in such a dense undergrowth.
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Why tastings like this matter
- Giving a stage to the not-so-usual names – nothing against Antinori or Gaja, but there’s so much more to Italy.
- Shining a light on lesser-known wines and regions – the curious drinker will sample a bit of everything; many glasses will fade from memory, yet something from an unexpected corner may strike a chord and spark deeper exploration.
A quick round-up of my impressions of the wines poured at Degustiamo Vino Autentico follows.
The Wines of Degustiamo Vino Autentico
Tenute La Montina
Franciacorta Millesimato Brut 2020
Classic nose of lemon pith and bread crust. The bead is fine yet persistent; the palate is medium-bodied, creamy, savoury and long.
Feudo Disisa
Roano 2018
A chiseled, pepper-and-blackberry nose. On the palate it’s generously spiced and fruity, though a little less defined than on the nose.
Tenuta Casenuove
Lovely line-up overall—especially the Chianti bottlings; the Toscana IGT convinced me less.
- Chianti Classico 2021
What thrills me here is the scent of a sun-baked dirt road—dusty and Mediterranean. Fruit concentration is modest, but powdery tannins along the cheeks sustain it. - Chianti Classico Gran Selezione 2019
Inevitably fuller-bodied. Black-berry fruit and petrichor on the nose, dense palate with ripe tannins. - Rosso 2020
Very light fruit concentration; pleasant raspberry aromas but a bit lacking in personality.
Bosco de’ Medici
I’m not deeply versed in Campanian whites, yet these two piqued my interest.
- Lavaflava 2023
Pure fun—salty, zippy and easy-going. Lime and grapefruit on the nose; the palate is dense, bone-dry and rings with citrus-zest elegance. - Pompeii Bianco 2023
Amphora ageing has added something. Dense structure with honey tones and—again—citrus. A food wine.
Buglioni
Operating on another level altogether: Teste Dure, the day’s star, fetches over €200. Whether it’s worth it from one sip I can’t say, but the wine is stellar, as is Il Lussurioso.
- l’Imperfetto Valpolicella Superiore Classico 2022
Floral, playful nose; light yet lively body. - Il Lussurioso Amarone della Valpolicella Classico 2022
Gorgeously deep: chestnuts, stewed plums, juniper, earth, yet vibrant savouriness. Young, with huge potential. - Teste Dure Amarone Riserva 2015
A different stratum. Orange peel and prunes leap from glass and palate alike; the never-ending finish billows like a black balloon through the mouth. Stunning fruit concentration and full body.
Tiare
I was curious—my soft spot for the Collio is no secret—but these felt muted compared with many Friulian peers.
- Masserè 2024 – Sweet-ish Friulano style; dense fruit, rose-petal nose, elderflower and honey on the palate. Medium-plus body can handle food.
- Malvasia 2024 – Pale and a touch dull: lemon balm, dried herbs, faint white flowers; low fruit.
- Sauvignon FVG IGT – Tired, reminiscent of a characterless Styrian Sauvignon; fair acidity.
- Collio Sauvignon 2024 – A notch better but still underwhelming: apple, tomato leaf, slight reduction; medium body, short finish (perhaps served too cold).
Terre Segrete
A fine producer showing engaging Etna Bianco wines.
- Pappagone Etna Bianco DOC 2022 – Pleasant, balanced acidity, neither overly sharp nor sweet.
- Pellottola Etna Bianco DOC 2021 – Carricante speaks louder here: density, sweetness and jasmine aromatics give depth.
Tenuta Gorghi Tondi
Prices are refreshingly honest. Not every bottling is memorable, but the Nero d’Avola charmed me—and the labels are beautiful.
- Coste a Preola Grillo 2024 – Pleasant, not unforgettable.
- Meridiano 12 Zibibbo 2023 – Textbook sweet-ish profile yet dry and enjoyable.
- Kheirè Riserva Grillo 2023 – Full-bodied, citrus, pine needles—lovely.
- Coste a Preola Nero d’Avola 2024 – Autumn breeze aromatics, ethereal yet dense. Great red- and black-berry concentration with lively freshness; a fine midway between modern plushness and structure.
- Grillodoro 2017 – Walnut tones on the palate, very autumnal, perhaps a touch of excess alcohol. Baroque power unleashed on the palate, dangerously drinkable.
Petrelli
Don Pepe 2019 – Plenty of oak and grippy tannin. Sure, there are mulberries and plums too, but the essence is the heavy barrel use. Still, if plush is your thing, you’ll like it.
My personal honours
- Best wine: Teste Dure Amarone Riserva 2015 – Buglioni
- Best producer: Buglioni
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The best wines, no boring scores
