Pieropan Calvarino Soave Classico 2021

The nose alone is worth finding a bottle, redolent with wildflowers, almonds, peaches and acacia honey. The sumptuous and expansive palate shows ripe apples, dried flowers and focused minerality that continues long after you drink the wine. Crisp acidity holds the wine in balance and will allow for long cellaring. Drink now–2035. Cellar Selection

The 50th anniversary vintage. The first single vineyard white wine of Italy. Tuffeau and basalt. Calvarino is fermented in cement rather than the tank, as is used for the Classico. A broader sash of orchard fruits, verging toward toffee apple, mingle with ginger, orange blossom, rosemary, sage, almond and jasmine. 20-30% Trebbiano di Soave due to its affinity with volcanic soils. Saline and sappy, whilst also resinous and intense. A powerful wine that is paradoxically pixelated of detail, immensely saline and beautifully light on its feet. The sort of wine I challenge anyone not to love.

Celebrating its 50th anniversary (1971-2021), the organic Pieropan 2021 Soave Classico Calvarino has a soft and richly textured side that is contrasted against the bright citrusy and mineral flavors that the Garganega and Trebbiano di Soave grapes are known for. This blend sees 70% of the first grape and 30% of the second, and the wine is aged in cement for up to 15 months. That's the special quality offered by Calvarino, a wine that is modern yet also rooted in local tradition. You get a lot of food-pairing potential out of this bottle, whether it be sushi or roasted chicken. Production is 70,000 bottles.

There's something especially spicy and enticing about the 2021 Soave Classico Calvarino. White smoke and honeyed floral aromas give way to ground ginger and crushed green apples. It's deeply textural, nearly oily, and young peach nuances swirl throughout. Residual acids keep you returning to the glass as zesty yellow citrus offsets liquid stone through the youthfully tense finale. This is an absolutely stunning performance for Calvarino, and as primary as it is today, I can't help but pour another glass. The 2021 was matured entirely in glass-lined cement tanks for one year. The 2021 Calvarino is a powerful terroir representation.

There's a broad feel to this layered white, yet well-honed acidity keeps this bright and graceful throughout, framing flavors of creamed pear, fleur de sel, macadamia, lemon curd and stony mineral. Long and focused on the finish. Garganega and Trebbiano. Drink now through 2031. 5,833 cases made, 840 cases imported.