Tormaresca Pietrabianca Chardonnay 2024, Castel del Monte DOC, Puglia, Organic

Tormaresca Pietrabianca Castel del Monte DOC is the flagship white of the Antinori family’s Puglia winery. It comes from Tenuta Bocca di Lupo, in the Murgia hills near Minervino Murge, where certified organic vineyards grow on poor, calcareous soils at around 250 metres. The wine is mostly Chardonnay with a small amount of Fiano, a native southern Italian grape that adds aromatic lift. Part of the Chardonnay is fermented and aged on its lees in new French oak barriques, while the Fiano is fermented in stainless steel. The parts are blended in winter and the wine is given time in bottle before release.

Bright yellow with greenish hues, Pietrabianca shows ripe tropical fruit, yellow peach and citrus on the nose, with white flowers, a herbal hint and toasted hazelnut and vanilla from the oak. The palate is rich and layered yet fresh, with a savoury, mineral streak, light buttery notes and a vibrant, structured finish.

Pair it with richer fish dishes such as baked turbot, lobster or crab, seafood pasta, roast chicken, or creamy risotto. Serve at 10 to 12°C rather than ice-cold, to let its texture show. Tormaresca Pietrabianca is drinking well now and will develop for four to six years.

Tormaresca is the Antinori family’s venture in Puglia, founded in 1998 out of a conviction that Italy’s heel had the potential to make wines of real quality and strong regional identity. The winery has two very different estates. Bocca di Lupo sits in the Murgia hills near Minervino Murge, inside the Castel del Monte DOC, with hillside vineyards on poor, calcareous soils at roughly 250 metres; its vineyards are certified organic. Masseria Maìme lies near the Adriatic in northern Salento, on sandy red clay over limestone, and is home to Negroamaro and Primitivo. Together they show both sides of Puglia: cool-headed hill wines and sun-soaked coastal reds, made with Antinori precision.