Italian Wines Blog | Cocktails, Travel, Lifestyle, Tips & More

Chilled fizzy Lambrusco in a glass beside Parma ham, Parmigiano and gnocco fritto

Italian Sweet Red Wine: the Fizzy Ones, the Still Ones and the Pretenders

Most Italian sweet red wine is fizzy and light: Lambrusco, Brachetto d'Acqui and a handful of local fizzes most people never meet. A few are still, rich and made from dried grapes, such as Recioto della Valpolicella and Primitivo di Manduria Dolce Naturale. And some famous reds only taste sweet. This guide sorts the three, explains the label words that say how sweet a bottle really is, and says what to eat with each.

Read Article

Bottles of Tignanello, Solaia and Guado al Tasso on an empty pallet in a warehouse

news

Antinori Wine Theft: 30,000 Bottles of Solaia and Tignanello Stolen

Seven masked men emptied Marchesi Antinori's shipping hub at Cortona on the night of 3 to 4 October 2026 and drove away about 30,000 bottles of 2023 Solaia, Tignanello and Guado al Tasso. What happened, which wines were taken, why it is the third raid on a famous Italian cellar since June, and how to buy these wines safely in the UK.

Read Article

Vietti Moscato d'Asti with two fizzing glasses, baci di dama and peaches above the Asti hills

deep dives

Moscato Wine Explained: Every Italian Style, from Asti to Pantelleria

Moscato is not one wine but a family. Piedmont makes the gently fizzy, sweet Moscato d'Asti and the fully sparkling Asti. Alto Adige makes it dry, and pink. Sicily dries the grapes in the sun. What each style tastes like, what it costs in Britain, and which bottle to open first.

Read Article

Sangiovese vines and cypresses on the Chianti Classico hills of Tuscany, between Florence and Siena, at golden hour

travel

Best Wineries in Tuscany to Visit: Where to Taste, Tour and Stay

51 of the best wineries in Tuscany with open doors, with the price of a tasting, how long it takes and whether you must book, taken from the estates' own pages and our partner listings. Guided tours from Florence and Siena and estates with rooms included.

Read Article

Felluga family vineyards at sunset above the Collio hills, Friuli Venezia Giulia

travel

Visiting Friuli's Wineries: How to Book and Where to Go

Friuli is not a drop-in wine region. Its estates are small, family-run and open by appointment, and the reward for booking ahead is that the person who made the wine usually pours it. This guide covers how far ahead to write, what a tasting costs, how to fit three visits into one day across the Collio's eight villages and the Colli Orientali next door, and which cellars in Oslavia bury their wine in amphorae.

Read Article

A Roman mosaic floor uncovered in a trench between vine rows on a Valpolicella hillside

news

A Roman Mosaic Under the Vines at Negrar, and the Wine Above It

A mosaic floor found a few metres under a row of vines at Negrar belongs to a Roman villa that made wine on the slopes that make Amarone today. The plot is farmed by a family who belong to the village cooperative, so the wine grown over the dig is on sale in Britain now.

Read Article

An Indian table spread with tandoori chicken, a creamy curry in a karahi, naan, raita and mango chutney

food pairing

The Best Wine for Indian Food Is Probably Italian

Chilli, cream and spice punish the wrong bottle. Italy makes the styles Indian food wants: off-dry Prosecco and chilled Lambrusco for heat, Fiano and Verdicchio for cream, Barbera for tandoori and Moscato d'Asti for the sweets. Dish-by-dish picks, most under £25, and the one bottle to order for a shared curry-house table.

Read Article

Wide-based wine decanter filled with red wine beside an empty glass on an Italian terrace at golden hour

wine tips

The Essential Guide to Choosing and Using Wine Decanters

Explore the essential guide on wine decanters, detailing types, materials, and shapes to enhance your wine tasting experience.

Read Article

Four Italian wine glass shapes side by side: balloon red, medium red, white tulip and sparkling tulip at sunset

wine tips

Choosing the Perfect Glass for Your Italian Wine

Enhance your wine tasting experience with the right glass for red, white, rosé, and sparkling Italian wines.

Read Article

Mature Barolo and Brunello bottles resting on a cellar table in warm light

deep dives

Italian Wine Vintage Chart: the Years That Matter, from Barolo to Brunello

A year-by-year guide to Italian wine vintages: how the harvest shapes Barolo, Barbaresco, Brunello di Montalcino, Chianti Classico and Amarone, which recent years earn a place in your cellar, and where to find mature bottles from the great vintages that are still on sale in the UK.

Read Article

Dark red wine poured from a glass into a casserole of browned mince and soffritto, steam rising

food pairing

The Best Red Wine for Bolognese, in the Pan and in the Glass

Wine and bolognese is two questions, not one. What to tip into the pan, what to open at the table, and why the recipe deposited in Bologna leaves the colour of the cooking wine open. Plus Italian bottles for each job, from under ten pounds for the soffritto to Sangiovese, Barbera and dry Lambrusco for the glass.

Read Article

Bowl of fresh egg tagliatelle in meat ragu beside a glass of red wine

food pairing

The Best Wine for Pasta: Match the Sauce, Not the Shape

Pasta is a neutral canvas, so the sauce picks the wine and the shape picks nothing. A dish-by-dish guide to ragu, tomato and chilli, carbonara and cacio e pepe, pesto, seafood and baked pasta, with Italian bottles that fit each one under twenty five pounds.

Read Article

The Italian Wine Journal

Latest Articles

Italian Sweet Red Wine: the Fizzy Ones, the Still Ones and the Pretenders

Antinori Wine Theft: 30,000 Bottles of Solaia and Tignanello Stolen

Moscato Wine Explained: Every Italian Style, from Asti to Pantelleria

Best Wineries in Tuscany to Visit: Where to Taste, Tour and Stay

Visiting Friuli's Wineries: How to Book and Where to Go

A Roman Mosaic Under the Vines at Negrar, and the Wine Above It

The Best Wine for Indian Food Is Probably Italian

The Essential Guide to Choosing and Using Wine Decanters

Choosing the Perfect Glass for Your Italian Wine

Italian Wine Vintage Chart: the Years That Matter, from Barolo to Brunello

The Best Red Wine for Bolognese, in the Pan and in the Glass

The Best Wine for Pasta: Match the Sauce, Not the Shape