Martin van Groenigen
In the past, Puglia was not necessarily known for its wines. The loads primitive that came from here were sometimes seen as 'bulk wines' and that is of course not the case with the Netherlands Vinlogenland.
Yet in some cases it is still the case. Take DuePalme's chardonnay that is on the shelf at Eurospin for € 1,99 (under a different label, but the cork reveals its origin), not really a story that makes the wine better.
Fortunately, in the past 20 to 30 years, a significant change has taken place in the Pugliese wine landscape and you now stumble across the wineries with the most delicious wines from Apulia.
We list some of the best wineries in Puglia for you.
1. Tenuta Giustini (between Grottaglie and Taranto)
Ah, Tenuta Giustini, a winegrower you dream of. But you also don't want to share it with too many people, because it can sometimes lose its charm.
Oh well, I'm not the least and wish you just as great a trip on your holiday as I had. Under the smoke of Taranto (almost literally) lying on the mare piccolo 2 hidden vineyards.
Gabriele and Salvatore take us there, in the back of the car, when we arrive for a tasting. It is about the coldest day of our stay in Puglia, but that should not spoil the fun.
Tenuta Giustini is, by Pugliese standards, a small winery with about 500.000 bottles a year. And that is also the charm.
Salvatore, the wine chef who stirs the barrels, knows exactly the recipe used for all wines. He tastes what is different from other harvests and can explain everything about the different processes.
We taste, among other things, the Vecchio Sogno, a Negroamaro. The first wine from Tenuta Giustini where the name refers to the 'old dream' of Salvatore's great uncle. The dream to become a beautiful wine farm. And it worked!
Recommendations:
- Vecchio Sogno (Negroamaro)
- Jento (malvasia frizzante)
- Acinore (primitivo di manduria)
2. Ionis Vini (Martina Franca)
Cantina Ionis is located on the 'ring' of Martina Franca. So it's a city winery. Yes, I get you. At first glance you might think: I would like to go to a winegrower with gigantic vines and drink a glass between the grapes.
With such charm, the wine usually tastes a bit better immediately, but believe me: Ionis doesn't need that background scene at all. The wines are sublime. Ionis is again a family business where the recipes for the grape juices have been passed on from great-grandfather to grandfather, from grandfather to father and from father to sons.
And those sons, Sergio and Mauro, know how to maintain that success. The wines of Ionis have been awarded with all kinds of awards, prizes and certificates. And what's also nice: in addition to the bottles, the famous jugs with yellow caps are also tapped here. These are not filled with the bottled wines, but with, very bluntly, 'the rest.'
The quality should be less, but you can't taste it. There is a delicious sweet red wine that comes in 3 or 5 liters and believe me when I say that you really shouldn't miss it.
Recommendations:
- Red amabile in a 3 or 5 liter pitcher
- Ninì (susumaniello)
- 431 (verdeca)
3. Cantina Albea (Alberobello)
In Alberobello, in the middle of the trulli, you will find Cantina Albea. Also a city winegrower with a completely innovative concept. As we all probably know, the olive trees in Puglia will lose their leaves in the coming years. It is not yet clear how, when and in which trees this will happen, but the olive-loving bacteria eat away at it.
Cantina Albea anticipated this and offered x number of people who were afraid what would happen to the olive trees to plant vines in exchange. A 'win-win', because they are no longer stressed about the olive trees and Cantina Albea can store some vines again to make delicious wines.
So here too you have to take into account a city vineyard without large vineyards around. But what Albea does have is a real museum about their wines and the way they are made.
In addition, in the summer they organize picnics, concerts and other events elsewhere between the vineyards, but you can always stop by to taste wines with the necessary snacks with it.
Recommendations:
- Due Trulli (Verdeca)
- Due Trulli (Primitive)
- Due Trulli (Susumaniello Rosato)
4. La Cattiva (under Bari near Turi)
And then, time for something completely different: Masseria La Cattiva. Freely translated: Farm the Crack. Where wineries sometimes quickly attach a frumpy label to the wines, which quickly makes the whole thing somewhat dull, that is the other extreme with La Cattiva.
5 old beer brewers, better said: ex-beer brewers, because they are not old yet, thought it was time for something new. The hops were gone. All but one of the men come from different parts of Italy and found each other in brewing and fermenting.
They bought and left farm was born in Puglia and La Cattiva. And we still have to talk about brewing that beer. Because that has ensured that the men dare.
They make choices that traditional winegrowers might classify under the heading of 'cursing in the church', but with success. They have the great 'Smoking Blu', a mix of trebbiano, malvasia and smoked (!) grapes.
But also a white Negroamaro and they distil their own liqueurs from the 'leftovers' such as the 'Mescallo' that makes you doubt whether you are in Mexico or Puglia.
A visit to La Cattiva is really an outing. You won't experience anything like this anywhere else. And I'm not saying that because I like the wines so much and hope for another invitation.
I say that because in the often somewhat snobbish, dusty and 'traditional' wine country it could be a bit more exciting and spicy. If you're looking for a slightly rebellious winery, this is the place to be.
Recommendations:
- La Cattiva (trebbiano)
- Orange (trebbiano and malvasia)
- Smoking Blu (trebbiano, malvasia and smoked grapes)
- Ottantotto tasti (negro amaro)
Your tips for Pugliese wineries?
Have you been to other recommendable wineries in Puglia yourself? Let us know with a comment below this article.
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