Gran Sasso Montepulciano d'Abruzzo DOC 2021

2020 Best Italian Producer - Mundus Vini
2019 Best Italian Producer - Luca Maroni

The Gran Sasso winemaker has absolutely mastered his craft.  The value here is top shelf.

I can't name another sub-$20 Montepulciano in Australia as good as this.  It's been our go to cheap Italian weekday red for a decade. My only apology is, we should have advertised it to our newsletter readers sooner.

The Gran Sasso wines are made by young winemaker Marco Flacco and display a freshness and directness of fruit that is seldom found in this region. Most Montepulciano at this price comes either from negociants buying bulk wines or from co-ops, neither of whom work as well or as closely with their growers as Valentino and his team.  This wine is deep ruby red in colour with garnet reflections. It is clean, fresh and plummy on the nose, rich, supple and accessible on the palate. It is balanced and full-bodied with good tannins. The fresh, primary fruit characters are maximised by the fact that it does not age in oak, making it approachable and ready to drink