Vinibuoni d’Italia 2022: a crown goes to Castel del Monte Nero di Troia Riserva DOCG Augustale 2015

On Friday, August 27, the national finals of Vinibuoni d’Italia took place and the awards for the 2022 edition were given. 904 labels reached the finals, selected among the wines with the highest scores in various regional commissions and among the Metodo Classico sparkling wines in the Perlage section.

The format of the final event was revised due to Covid-19 and took place at the Cuneo headquarters of the editorial office in Vezza d’Alba, instead of the usual itinerant form, thus foregoing the so-called parallel commissions of the project Today I Decide the Crowns. However, this did not affect the arduous and difficult work of the 2 commissions, which during the 4 days of tasting awarded 165 wines with the Golden Star and 739 wines with the Crown, the highest recognition of the guide.

These numbers show how the number of samples has significantly increased, with an ever-growing participation of candidate wineries.

Vinibuoni d’Italia: how the voting works

The first step involves sending sample requests to all the companies in the event’s database. Then, the regional coordinators organize the collection of samples and tasting sessions, whose methods vary from region to region. The only common element is that, as Vinibuoni d’Italia has always done, the wines are tasted both blind and in series.

Regarding the voting, the points awarded at the regional level range from 1 to 4 stars. Among all the wines that received the highest score, the finalists are selected and then tasted by the national commissions, which include the national coordinators. Even during this second tasting step, the wines are tasted both blind and in series, and, as a policy, each regional coordinator only tastes wines from regions other than their own.

The wines that receive the most votes are awarded the Crown, the highest recognition of the guide, while the others receive the prestigious Golden Star award.

For both stars, two categories of wines were awarded: those in the “Perlage Italia – Metodo Classico Sparkling Wines” category, and those derived from native grape varieties, allowing for the (re)discovery of some excellent Italian labels.

Vinibuoni d’Italia 2022: 3 tannic wines you must try

The 2022 edition of Vinibuoni d’Italia offered the commissions flavors that embrace the north, center, and south of the peninsula, which the whole world envies us.

Piedmont, the land of Barolo, saw the Barolo DOCG Bussia 2017, from the agricultural company Poderi Luigi Einaudi, of the former President of the Republic, awarded with the Crown. Even when he held his highest political office, Einaudi never missed a harvest, thus gifting his territory with a precious asset to cherish: his “own” 100 hectares of company, built almost from scratch, of which twenty are cultivated with vineyards. Considered an excellent expression of the famous Langhe denomination, this wine offers an aroma of plum, currant, mint, sweet spices, violets, roses, and tobacco to the nose. On the palate, it is rich in fruit and full-bodied, yet not heavy, thanks to its tannins and its acidic vitality.

Oltrepò Pavese, the southernmost area of the Lombardy region, also known as “Old Piedmont,” saw the Oltrepò Pavese DOC Barbera Campo del Marrone 2019, from the Bruno Verdi company, crowned. It presents an excellent calling card: with its intense ruby red, it smells of violets, red fruit, and a potpourri of roses, with a slight spicy touch of cloves and star anise. With its warm and enveloping flavor, yet fresh at the same time, thanks to its tannins, it reveals itself to be balanced on the palate, with an aromatic finish of roasted coffee.

Moving further south, Puglia saw the triumph of Crifo’s most important wine, the Castel del Monte Nero di Troia Riserva DOCG Augustale 2015, produced by the Cantina di Ruvo di Puglia. This is yet another recognition that adds to the already rich palmarès, highlighting how the excellence of the Crifo brand is increasingly growing in popularity.

Since 1960, the year the agricultural cooperative was founded, it has specialized in the collection and vinification of Nero di Troia cultivar grapes, from which this deep and impenetrable ruby red wine is born. Its exuberance releases a scent of red roses and potpourri, spirit-soaked fruit and boero, cloves, cinnamon and cinchona, menthol and aromatic tobacco. On the palate, it is no less, offering intense freshness, thanks to its tannic properties, finishing with balsamic and toasted notes.