Levante 90, Podere Cipolla
Grape
Malvasia di Candia, with a little Spergola and Moscato
Drinking Window
Drink now until 2027
Region
Reggio Emilia,
Emilia-Romagna
Pairings
Gnocco fritto with salumi, erbazzone,
Parmigiano Reggiano, fried vegetables,
tortelli d'erbetta with butter, fresh cheeses
Regional Recipe
Winemaker Notes
Organically farmed vines just south of the Via Emilia. Spontaneous fermentation with native yeasts in stainless steel, with about 4-5 days of skin maceration. Refermented in bottle by the ancestral method, with no added sugar, and left on its lees without disgorgement (sur lie). No filtration, stabilisation or clarification.
The Story
Denny Bini is one of the humble heroes of the artisanal revival in Emilia. His adventure began in 2003 when he rented a few hectares from his grandfather in the small hamlet of Coviolo, on the outskirts of Reggio Emilia, and vinified in his own garage.
He works with the native grapes of the Reggio hills and refermentation in bottle, the way peasant families always did. Levante is the white of his wines named after the winds, alongside Ponente and Libeccio. His wines are rustic, tasty and alive: not designed to be precise and chiselled, but capable, like few others, of letting the land and the grapes speak directly. This wine would be ideal for a warm summery day, as it is super lemony and mouth-puckering.
