Three Territories in a Glass

There are tastings that compare wines, and there are tastings that compare worlds. This one brings together three landscapes with distinct identities: the Tuscany of Brancaia 2012, the Californian breadth of Ravenswood Old Vine Zinfandel 2013, and the Andean altitude of Salentein Numina Spirit Vineyard Gran Corte 2013.

In the glass, the three speak different languages, yet share something essential: a very clear relationship between origin and character. The result is a journey that moves from classicism to exuberance, and from high-altitude elegance to concentration.

Brancaia 2012: Italy in Balance

Brancaia 2012 embodies the most recognisable idea of Chianti Classico: rolling hills, cypress trees, stone, orderly vineyards, and a tradition that values balance over excess. Its profile typically rests on red cherry, dried herbs, earth, and a lively acidity that brings the whole together.

On the palate, this wine conveys precision rather than power. It has that distinctly Tuscan way of making itself known without raising its voice: fine tannins, elegant structure, and a sense of calm depth. It is a wine that seeks not to impress through volume, but through fidelity to its origin.

Ravenswood 2013: Fruit, Sun and Amplitude

Ravenswood Old Vine Zinfandel 2013 represents another idea of red wine: more generous, riper, and more expansive. Napa Valley has built its identity on concentration, intense fruit, and a very direct expression of pleasure in the glass, and this Zinfandel fits naturally within that logic.

Here, blackberry, ripe plum, sweet spices and a enveloping texture take centre stage. It is a broad, warm and expressive wine, with a personality that engages immediately and fills the space with confidence. If Chianti speaks with a refined accent, this Napa wine speaks with a bold, radiant voice.

Salentein Numina 2013: Altitude and Tension

Salentein Numina Spirit Vineyard Gran Corte 2013 offers one of the most compelling expressions of contemporary Argentine wine. The Uco Valley in Mendoza has become a benchmark thanks to its combination of altitude, wide thermal range and Andean light—factors that tend to produce wines with clarity of fruit, freshness and a well-defined backbone.

In the glass, this translates into a balance between ripeness and tension, with aromas of black fruit, spicy notes, and a distinctive sense of verticality. The essence of the Uco Valley lies in this interplay of energy and precision: a wine with weight, certainly, but also with air and clarity.

Reading the Regions

The three wines act as three answers to the same question: what does place do to the grape? In Tuscany, the landscape leans towards tense elegance and a food-friendly profile. In Napa, towards richness, ripeness and expansion. In the Uco Valley, towards high-altitude freshness, aromatic precision and vertical energy.

Brancaia 2012 represents classical restraint; Ravenswood Old Vine Zinfandel 2013, Californian generosity; and Salentein Numina Spirit Vineyard Gran Corte 2013, the refined intensity of the Andes. Together, they form a highly instructive triptych on how wine can simultaneously be a beverage, a geography, and a culture.

Three wines, three latitudes, three ways of telling the story of a landscape. Tuscany offers the classic elegance of Brancaia 2012; Napa Valley, the sunlit fullness of Ravenswood Old Vine Zinfandel 2013; and the Uco Valley, the high-altitude purity of Salentein Numina Spirit Vineyard Gran Corte 2013. The glass thus becomes a map, and each sip a way of travelling without leaving the table.