I love having the opportunity to taste new and exciting wines being brought into the US by pioneering importers like Vinity. I happened upon LA salesguy extraordinaire Ned Teitelbaum at Terroni the other day and he let me taste this gorgeous little gem from a winery I had never heard of before: Azienda Agricola Lusenti, in the Colli Piacentini.
The wine is made from 100% Malvasia di Candia, a variety local to this part of Emilia-Romagna. The name Bianca Regina or “White Queen” is appropriate given the gorgeous and opulent aromatics of this wine- all tea leaves and jasmine, honeysuckle and lovely caramelized apricots. On the plate it is unabashedly saline, and vertical with acidity and a balanced and softly tannic structure, thanks to a 4-day maceration on the skins before pressing.
Winery owner Ludovia Lusenti writes on her website that she wishes the wines to “relay the emotion of a journey… and of life in the vineyards”. After tasting the Bianca Regina, I am thirsty to know more.