Last year, almost by chance, I found myself in a conversation with a consultant winemaker I deeply respect. We were talking about wines, about territories, about how much there still is to discover beyond the most well-known names. At a certain point, a simple idea came up.

What if, instead of only telling stories about wine, I started selecting one… personally? Not just a good wine, but a wine that had truly surprised me. One that I felt I could stand behind completely.

That moment happened on the slopes of Monte Amiata. A place that feels a little removed from the more obvious routes, where vineyards are slowly moving higher and higher, searching for freshness and balance in response to a changing climate. Up there, altitude becomes an ally, and Sangiovese expresses itself in a way that feels vibrant, lifted, and precise.

Together, we selected a 100% Sangiovese grown at high altitude. It has all the fruit you expect, but it never becomes heavy. There are no overripe notes, no sense of excess. Just clarity, energy, and a kind of balance that makes you want to go back to the glass. It follows a traditional path, with about 18 months in French oak and a further period in bottle before release, but what stayed with me was not just the technical side. It was the feeling.

A wine that works beautifully at the table, but that doesn’t necessarily need one. A wine you can open before dinner, or after, sitting outside, letting the evening unfold slowly. That idea of simplicity, without ever losing depth, is what led me to call it Alfresco.