Wine of the Week - Pipoli Greco di Tufo/Fiano

Winter sunshine makes a rare appearance on a fresh afternoon in South London, the welcome rays transporting us back to summers past and to longer, sunnier days to come. We are at the bi-annual tasting of one of our generous suppliers held, without fail, at the Kennington Oval, London, SE11. The home of Surrey CCC, and to some of English cricket’s greatest triumphs and (just as equally known) trouncings, plays host twice a year to fifteen hundred odd folk within the independent wine trade. Two tiers of vast tasting rooms are set up within the confines of the ground featuring scores of wines for inspection by the multitudes (of a contrasting range of palates…) over the course of a busy seven hour working day.

It is a privilege to be asked each time, and we are always very grateful to our hosts. We have honed our technique over the last couple of years to make our approach to tasting more businesslike, as the temptation to get carried away is all too great.

On this visit, our brief was to acquire more white wine for warmer days so we passed up the opportunity, unlike our good friends who accompanied us, to really get amongst the toppier Bordeauxs and Burgundies. In fact, we hardly sampled any French wine at all, such was our laser focus. We even skipped lunch.

To give you a flavour of what’s to come, we are pleased to introduce you to our first wine from Basilicata, a historic, mountainous region in Italy’s deep South. Watch this space, as they say, for more details on the new arrivals in the next few months. 

Renowned for producing the earthy red variety, Aglianico, Basilicata makes light, fresh crisp whites too. And the ‘Pipoli’ is a great example of that. Featuring two of Italy’s most popular varieties in the blend Greco and Fiano, Pipoli has an inviting, floral nose with candied fruits and lemon sherbert on the palate. In essence, a taste of summer sun. And we could all do with some of that right now.