Sergio's Pick

While the Vermentino grape is grown in a handful of regions across Italy and France, it unquestionably reaches its apex in Sardinia, where the island’s distinctive climate and soils allow it to shine. Bagella’s opens with a lightly smoky mineral aroma, followed by sharp lime zest, grapefruit and spicy cinnamon. With time, increasingly intense aromas cascade from the glass, including ripe apricot, papaya and freshly baked bread. The palate is equally intriguing, with a pleasantly fleshy, creamy midpalate washed away by a clean, bright, strikingly mineral finish.

 Mario Bagella is a second-generation winemaker whose family has grown grapes for longer than anyone knows. Since taking over, Mario has led a conversion to organic farming and spurred a more low-impact approach in the winery. In northern Sardinia, the Sorso area boasts some of the most intensely limestone and chalk influenced soils in Italy, and Mario’s Vermentino is the perfect lens through which to inspect this mineral signature.