From the birthplace of pizza, San Marzano tomatoes, mozzarella di bufala, and so many more gastronomic treasures comes this regional red wine in Campania.
This wine is 100% Aglianico, produced by La Bollina. Andrea Bernardini is the passionate consultant winemaker who has hit numerous home runs. He graduated from Pisa, one of the best schools of oenology in Italy, in 2007. He earned his chops at Poggio Bonelli and Ruffino in Tuscany and trained in South Africa, Romania and Greece. After several years of experience, he is now a flying winemaker blending tradition and modern techniques to obtain high-quality wines with respect to the expression of the different grapes and terroir in which he works.
Berries, cherries, and black cherries are perfectly blended with the soft notes of wood that give this wine the pleasantness typical of the area from which the grapes come. Fruity notes are mixed with the vanilla and mocha sensations coming from the aging, good palate, full body and roundness gives this wine excellent drinkability.
If you’re looking for an any time wine, rich with blueberry fruit, a touch of herbs and mocha, this is the wine for you. Very little oak on this wine makes it a perfect match for a variety of foods or on its own.
Specs
Vintage: 2021
Varietal: 100% Aglianico
Region: Campania
Alcohol: 14%
2018 Bollina Papios Rosso Terre Siciliane
98 Points, The Best Italian Wines 2019, Luca Maroni
In the definitive guide for Italian wines, Luca Maroni – the Robert Parker of Italy - rated this wine 98 points, calling it “one of the year’s best” from not only Sicily but all of Italy in 2019.
Tasting Notes
Dreams of a Mediterranean island, backed by the warm sun, and azure waters, with fresh seafood pasta, and a glass of this wine is just what every armchair traveler needs right now. Meet Papi’s red wine from Bella Sicilia: “Papios”. Bring home a taste of Sicily today!
The innovative blend combines equal parts of the indigenous grapes Nero d’Avola and Nerello Mascalese with two Bordeaux varietals, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Layers of flavors with blueberry, chocolate, mocha, and baked cherry are topped off with a deft touch of oak, vanilla, and Mediterranean herbs in the finish. The result is a spectacular wine that screams “Delizioso!”
Typical and varietal notes of cherry, mulberry, and raspberry, blended with nuances of elegant spices such as vanilla, coffee, and cocoa. The palate is wide, warm and envelopes the mouth with grip, elegant and velvety tannins. Fruity and rich aftertaste.
Enjoy on its own or comfortably pair with any tomato dish, pasta, puttanesca, or grilled meat.
Barrel Regime: 3 months in new American Oak barrels
Alcohol: 14%
2020 Bollina Zenas Primitivo Puglia
98 points ~ Luca Maroni
Meet your new best friend from Southern Italy: Zenas.
Tasting Notes
Primitivo Puglia ‘ZENAS’, is wowing European critics all over again, and now it’s Stateside so you can finally taste it for yourself. Bold but refined on the palate, this delightful ruby-colored red has a heady plummy perfume, a profusion of cherry and spice, and a whisper of herbaceous rosemary softened by vanilla. Drink alone or with tomato-y meat sauces, this is a wine made for food. Those in the know will be snatching up this little-known gem by the caseload…
This wine is soft and supremely well-balanced. The gentle tannins make the Primitivo Puglia “ZENAS” the perfect partner for tomato-based dishes like a hearty meat sauce or lasagna, eggplant parmigiana, chicken cacciatore, and provides the perfect balance to a spicy sausage pizza. This wine loves blue cheeses (Gorgonzola and figs, perhaps), and dry, firm cheeses like Pecorino and Parmigiano Reggiano.
La Bollina is located in Serravalle Scrivia AL, Italy. A municipality in the province of Alessandria, about 62 miles southeast of Turin. This historical territory was for centuries the residence of the Marchioness Figari of Genova. A 300-acre winery, surrounded by hills and chestnut forests, is where La Bollina’s magnificent wines are born.
Besides having 70 acres of cultivated vineyards, and an excellent and well-equipped cellar, in La Bollina you can find luxury accommodation for guests: An “Art Nouveau” style villa, a modern 4-star hotel, and a 9-hole golf course that expands throughout the vineyards. Bollina winery is completely renovated and has some of the most advanced techniques, systems, and instruments in modern winemaking.
Andrea Bernardini, La Bollina’s consultant, is a passionate winemaker who has hit numerous home runs. In 2007, he graduated from Pisa, one of the best schools of enology in Italy. He earned his chops at Poggio Bonelli and Ruffino in Tuscany and trained in South Africa, Romania and Greece. After several years of experience, he is now a flying winemaker blending tradition and modern techniques to obtain high-quality wines with respect to the expression of the different grapes and terroir in which he works. He works hand in hand with Alex to produce these magical wines.
Available States
AZ, CA, CO, CT, DC, FL, GA, ID, IL, IN, IA, KS, LA, ME, MD, MA, MI, MN, MO, MT, NE, NV, NH, NJ, NM, NY, NC, ND, OH, OK, OR, PA, RI, SC, SD, TN, TX, VT, VA, WA, WV, WI, WY
Super happy to get the email and we enjoyed this wine, which featured new varieties to me.
The bottle suggested pairing with cheeses and meats, so we did the next best thing as vegetarians – Impossible burgers with cheese and roasted potatoes.
We served at room temp but the nose was still pretty weak. Cranberry, raspberry, but very hard to tease out.
Taste was unlike anything i’ve had – i don’t remember having a Nero d’Avola or Nerello Mascalese, but i’ve had my share of Merlot and Cabernet. I would put this bottle as a light wine, medium acid, medium tannin. To put it in an Italian grape spectrum i do know more about, it’s like a toned down Chianti Classico. Not as robust, not as earthy, not as grippy, not as acidic. Still fun and would pair pretty well with light foods.
Back to the back label – it says to pair with meats and game and cheese. Now this is where i’d suggest otherwise. It’s not a robust wine, so i doubt it would hold up to game in the least. Cheeses would need to be some lightweight, fattier cheese like a brie, chevre, feta. I think it would get lost with lamb/quail/roquefort. Even a full flavored turkey might overwhelm the wine.
It’s definitely a unique wine in a good way. It pleased the three of us drinking, and i think would be a fantastic gifting wine (it is that season!!). The bottle is classy, the taste is different, and it doesn’t look like something one could get at a grocery store wine aisle.
This lovely rat bottle could not have come at a better time—I like to think Alice and WD saw my Philly address and said “yup, she needs a drink.” GO PHILS! The bottle of Primitivo arrived on Tuesday. I was excited because I tend to forget that Primitivo exists then see it on a menu and am never disappointed when I order it. FWIW, my go-to varietals are cab and Syrah and my auto-buys from this site are Wellington, Pedroncelli, and Peterson. I let the bottle rest and opened on Wednesday and if you have a television, you know that the wine was the highlight of my evening. It has a lovely burgundy color and I immediately got blackberry on the nose, swirled it a little and found it a bit smoky. Initial sips were tart, hints of cherry, no legs. Came back to it an hour and change later and noticed no changes; however, a little later I noticed it really gained more texture and was…grassy? In the name of science, I decanted about a glass worth overnight while the rest stayed corked in the bottle. The decanted glass paired very well with my pesto/tomato/mozz sandwich (I mean, hoagie IYKYK). Later I tried the non-decant and found it very smooth, detecting some blueberry and tobacco. I wasn’t particularly hungry, so my only pairing was Halloween candy (Twix, reminder of my commitment to science). I would pay $15-25 for a bottle and only gift to people I like.
2021 Bollina Narses Aglianico Campania
98 points ~ Luca Maroni
Tasting Notes
Specs
2018 Bollina Papios Rosso Terre Siciliane
98 Points, The Best Italian Wines 2019, Luca Maroni
Tasting Notes
Specs
2020 Bollina Zenas Primitivo Puglia
98 points ~ Luca Maroni
Tasting Notes
Specs
What’s Included
3-bottles:
Case:
Price Comparison
Not for sale online, $368/case MSRP
About The Winery
Available States
AZ, CA, CO, CT, DC, FL, GA, ID, IL, IN, IA, KS, LA, ME, MD, MA, MI, MN, MO, MT, NE, NV, NH, NJ, NM, NY, NC, ND, OH, OK, OR, PA, RI, SC, SD, TN, TX, VT, VA, WA, WV, WI, WY
Estimated Delivery
Monday, Nov 28 - Friday, Dec 2
Bollina Mixed Italian Reds
3 bottles for $64.99 $21.66/bottle + $2.67/bottle shipping
Case of 12 for $184.99 $15.42/bottle + $1/bottle shipping
2021 Bollina Narses Aglianico Campania
2018 Bollina Papios Rosso Terre Siciliane
2020 Bollina Zenas Primitivo Puglia
/giphy valiant-rested-cub
98 points? Not good enough. Has to be 100. #Southasiandad.
@owace 98 pts (really?) should be $100 then…$25 on CM
Luca Maroni!
2018 Bollina Papios Rosso Terre Siciliane
Super happy to get the email and we enjoyed this wine, which featured new varieties to me.
The bottle suggested pairing with cheeses and meats, so we did the next best thing as vegetarians – Impossible burgers with cheese and roasted potatoes.
We served at room temp but the nose was still pretty weak. Cranberry, raspberry, but very hard to tease out.
Taste was unlike anything i’ve had – i don’t remember having a Nero d’Avola or Nerello Mascalese, but i’ve had my share of Merlot and Cabernet. I would put this bottle as a light wine, medium acid, medium tannin. To put it in an Italian grape spectrum i do know more about, it’s like a toned down Chianti Classico. Not as robust, not as earthy, not as grippy, not as acidic. Still fun and would pair pretty well with light foods.
Back to the back label – it says to pair with meats and game and cheese. Now this is where i’d suggest otherwise. It’s not a robust wine, so i doubt it would hold up to game in the least. Cheeses would need to be some lightweight, fattier cheese like a brie, chevre, feta. I think it would get lost with lamb/quail/roquefort. Even a full flavored turkey might overwhelm the wine.
It’s definitely a unique wine in a good way. It pleased the three of us drinking, and i think would be a fantastic gifting wine (it is that season!!). The bottle is classy, the taste is different, and it doesn’t look like something one could get at a grocery store wine aisle.
Thanks all for reading my rant!
@radiolysis YouTube never had Sicilian wine before? We need to up our game when we have gatherings then!
Bollina Zenas Primitivo 2020!
This lovely rat bottle could not have come at a better time—I like to think Alice and WD saw my Philly address and said “yup, she needs a drink.” GO PHILS! The bottle of Primitivo arrived on Tuesday. I was excited because I tend to forget that Primitivo exists then see it on a menu and am never disappointed when I order it. FWIW, my go-to varietals are cab and Syrah and my auto-buys from this site are Wellington, Pedroncelli, and Peterson. I let the bottle rest and opened on Wednesday and if you have a television, you know that the wine was the highlight of my evening. It has a lovely burgundy color and I immediately got blackberry on the nose, swirled it a little and found it a bit smoky. Initial sips were tart, hints of cherry, no legs. Came back to it an hour and change later and noticed no changes; however, a little later I noticed it really gained more texture and was…grassy? In the name of science, I decanted about a glass worth overnight while the rest stayed corked in the bottle. The decanted glass paired very well with my pesto/tomato/mozz sandwich (I mean, hoagie IYKYK). Later I tried the non-decant and found it very smooth, detecting some blueberry and tobacco. I wasn’t particularly hungry, so my only pairing was Halloween candy (Twix, reminder of my commitment to science). I would pay $15-25 for a bottle and only gift to people I like.
Possible to ship to Alabama? Pretty please?
The Luca Maroni reference almost kept me on the fence, but then…can he be THAT wrong ALL the time?!? Nice selection, in for a case!
flatulent-curt-nacho
@Allieroon I think when you translate “Luca Maroni” from Italian to English you get “James Suckling”.
@Mark_L Well then…I hope I’m not stranded Suckling on below average Italian juice!
@Allieroon @Mark_L Nope. Still Luca MaPhony
How much more are you saving by buying a full case?
(Note: tax and shipping are not included in savings).
Bollina Mixed Italian Reds - $75 = 28.84%
@jrbw3 @a5meiser Maybe there’s some 98 pointers in our mystery case!!!
/giphy happy-wine-dance
