Giuseppe Calabrese was born and raised in the vines at the foot of the Pollino massif, in the northern part of Calabria.
His grandmother Peppina owned 4 hectares of vines surrounded by centuries-old olive trees and Mediterranean scrub. The vineyards are located between 350 m and 600 m above sea level, which creates freshness in the vines that is transmitted to his wines. He farms only local grapes, like magliocco, guarnaccia bianca, malvasia, and moscato di Saracena on his soil that is composed by sand and clay.
Exactly the same way it was happening in old wine-producing countries, his grandmother Peppina was making wine and oil for her family and friends, working without any chemicals or additives of any kind. The vines have always grown healthily and pure, giving birth to grapes that preserve all the expressive authenticity of the land. The respectful approach in the vineyard is the perfect prelude to non-invasive winemaking using spontaneous fermentation and low intervention.
When Giuseppe inherited her three very small vineyards, he kept selling grapes and producing wines according to their old family recipe. A humble and simple operation, selling wine in bulk to the villagers. Only in 2013, did he decide to start bottling.
Now, Giuseppe produces around 10,000 bottles per year, including:
- Moscato di Saracena, a traditional sweet wine mostly unknown beyond the regional borders
- Magliocco, a very typical red wine with a simple and direct drinkability
- Guarnaccia 100%, a very deep white wine with delicate scents of pine tree resin
What more can we say, we highly recommend Calabrese for adventurous wine drinkers who want to rediscover the authenticity found in the small corner of Calabria.
