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A soft, plum-and-cherry Montepulciano d'Abruzzo at 13 percent, and Laithwaites is the only UK shop we track for it. The 'Ludo' on the label is a brand story, not an estate. Drink it young, lightly chilled in summer, with pizza, pasta or lamb.
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One shop sells this wine in the UK, so there is no price to compare between shops. Each price is the one on its page today, read daily.
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Cia' Ludo is a Montepulciano d'Abruzzo DOC bottled at 13 percent, scarlet in colour and medium to full in body. The grape gives ripe plum and cherry with a silky feel. The hot 2024 summer in Abruzzo ripened the fruit early. Serve it cool on a warm day: at 13 percent it takes a light chill well.
Ripe plum and red cherry come first. Behind them is the violet lift Montepulciano often shows when picked fresh. The 2024 grew through a hot Abruzzo summer, so the fruit smells ripe rather than green. It is a simple, clean fruit scent. That fits a wine the DOC lets out the March after harvest.
Violet
Blackberry
Cherry
Plum
Liquorice
SpicyMedium to full in body, with the silky, velvety feel this grape gives when its tannin is ripe. The acidity is moderate, so the plum fruit tastes round rather than sharp. At 13 percent it stays light enough to chill a little on a warm day. The colour is scarlet, not inky, and the wine drinks the same way: bright and easy.
Medium in length and clean, ending on soft tannin and a last taste of cherry. Expect the 2023, from a small, mildew-hit crop, to finish a touch leaner than the riper 2024.
An easy, everyday Montepulciano d'Abruzzo to drink within two or three years of harvest. The 2024 carries a drink-by date of May 2028. It sits at the entry level of the DOC: a pizza-and-pasta red, not a wine to cellar. The name on the label is a brand story, not an estate.
The value score compares the £13.99 Laithwaites listed for Cia' Ludo with the £19.20 median of the 105 in-stock Montepulciano d'Abruzzo listings we track. It reads well on price, though the bottle was out of stock at the last check. Everyday and beginner scores are high for a soft 13 percent red. Cellar and occasion scores are low for the same reason.
Under £15 when listed, 13 percent, soft and fruity, happy with a light chill: a midweek red.
A 13 percent, plum-led red with soft tannin, sold under £15 when in stock: an easy first Montepulciano.
Soft tannin and moderate acidity suit tomato sauces, grilled lamb and pork. It lacks the acidity to cut the richest dishes.
An entry-level DOC under a shop-only brand story, not a bottle to mark an occasion.
Basic DOC with no ageing rule, 13 percent alcohol and soft tannin. The 2024 carries a May 2028 drink-by date: drink young.
Scoring is rule-based and deterministic. The model and weightings are documented in our Wine Fit Score methodology.
A compact view of what the Montepulciano d'Abruzzo denomination actually requires, and how this bottle sits inside it. Pulled from the official Italian disciplinare.
The two vintages could not be more different. In 2023 a wet spring brought downy mildew to Abruzzo. The growers' consortium put the loss at more than 45 percent of the crop, with Montepulciano among the worst hit. In 2024 over two months of heat ripened the grapes early and the bunches came in intact. The consortium called the quality excellent, though the crop was still well below 2022.
A hot, dry Abruzzo summer with more than two months of high heat brought an early harvest. The bunches came in intact and the growers' consortium called the quality excellent, though the crop was 35 to 45 percent below 2022. Drink by 2028.
A wet spring brought downy mildew across Abruzzo and the consortium put the crop loss above 45 percent, with Montepulciano among the worst hit. The consortium said the fruit that survived was of good quality. Drink by 2027.
A hot, dry Abruzzo summer with more than two months of high heat brought an early harvest. The bunches came in intact and the growers' consortium called the quality excellent, though the crop was 35 to 45 percent below 2022. Drink by 2028.
Drink-now / hold guidance reflects general style cues for this wine, not a forecast for a specific bottle. Where vintage-level editorial notes exist, they appear above.
Montepulciano d'Abruzzo has been a DOC since 1968. The rules ask for at least 85 percent Montepulciano and at least 12 percent alcohol in the bottle. Nothing is released before 1 March after the harvest. Cia' Ludo, at 13 percent, is the basic DOC style, not a riserva. A riserva must age for two years before sale.
Italian wine law sorts bottles into a pyramid. DOCG sits at the top: tightly drawn boundaries, prescribed grapes, mandatory ageing, government tasting before release. DOC is the same idea with looser thresholds. IGT (Indicazione Geografica Tipica) is broader still, requiring only that 85% of the grapes come from the named territory.
Montepulciano d'Abruzzo is in the DOC tier. That is not a quality verdict, it is a description of how much freedom the producer has at vinification and ageing.
Montepulciano d'Abruzzo falls within Abruzzo, covering Abruzzo: hill vineyards across Chieti, Pescara, Teramo and L'Aquila provinces. The denomination is further divided into 9 sub-zones.
Winery
Fossalta di Piave
Made at Casa Vinicola Botter, Fossalta di Piave. Directions
Cia' Ludo has the soft tannin and moderate acidity of a young Montepulciano. It suits food that is savoury rather than sharp. Tomato-based pasta, pizza and grilled meat are the natural matches. Abruzzo's own arrosticini, lamb skewers cooked over coals, show why. The fruit meets the char and the tannin stays gentle.
Tomato sauce is sharp and a little sweet, and Cia' Ludo's moderate acidity sits level with it instead of fighting it. The ripe plum fruit then reads sweeter against the tomato, and the soft tannin never turns the sauce bitter. This is the classic match for a young Montepulciano.
Try with: Pizza Margherita · Lasagna · Ragu alla bolognese · Pasta alla Norma · More pairings →
Lamb fat coats the mouth, and the gentle tannin in this 13 percent red wipes it away without the harsh grip a bigger wine would bring. Char from the grill meets the cherry fruit. Arrosticini, the lamb skewers of Abruzzo, are the home match.
Try with: Arrosticini · Lamb chops · Rack of lamb · Leg of lamb · More pairings →
Medium to full body stands up to sticky, smoky pork without being swamped. The plum fruit echoes the sweetness in a barbecue glaze, and moderate acidity keeps the richness from tiring the palate.
Try with: BBQ ribs · Pulled pork · Pork belly · Roast pork · More pairings →
Salted roast beef and a gravy-rich pie need a red with fruit to spare, and Cia' Ludo's ripe plum does the job. Salt softens tannin, so the wine tastes rounder with the meat than on its own.
Try with: Sunday Roast Beef · Shepherd's Pie · Steak and Kidney Pie · Roast Lamb with Mint Sauce · More pairings →
Salty pecorino and cured pork bring out the cherry in the wine, and its soft tannin leaves the cheese tasting creamy rather than chalky. Keep the cheeses firm and salty; a sweet blue would overpower it.
Try with: Pecorino sardo e pan carasau · Melton Mowbray Pork Pie · Strong cheddar cheese · More pairings →
Oysters and steamed white fish make a red taste metallic, even one as soft as this. Chilli heat has the opposite problem: it makes the 13 percent alcohol burn and strips the fruit. Keep it for food with some fat and savour.
Skip with: Oysters · Steamed sea bass · Nigiri Sushi · Lamb bhuna · Pairing guide →
This is a wine for the next two or three years, not a cellar candidate. It is the basic DOC style, not a riserva. The 2024 carries a drink-by date of May 2028. Keep it somewhere cool and open the 2023 first. A wine from a small, mildew-hit crop is rarely the one to keep.
Best in the years above; holds without falling over either side.
A short splash decant softens the first-pour edge and opens the aromatics.
Aim for the cooler end on a warm day; warmer end opens up more aromatics.
Basic DOC with no ageing rule, 13 percent alcohol and soft tannin. The 2024 carries a May 2028 drink-by date: drink young.
A style read drawn from the grape and the appellation, not from this exact bottle. We mark these notes openly so you know what you are reading.
Confidence · MediumFrom the official Italian disciplinare for this denomination, cross-checked against the Ministry of Agriculture register.
Confidence · HighOur reading of the price, drawn from the disciplinare, public UK duty rates, and typical landed-cost benchmarks. Not a quote from the producer or a retailer.
Confidence · MediumStyle guidance for this kind of wine at this price point. Treat it as advice, not a forecast for the bottle in your hand.
Confidence · MediumThe label names no estate. 'Ludo', the cycling winemaker on the label, is the brand story Laithwaites tells about the wine. Our records link the bottle to Casa Vinicola Botter, a large bottler founded in 1928 at Fossalta di Piave in the Veneto, which makes wines from many Italian regions. It is not an estate wine.
Ripe plum and cherry with a silky, soft feel, medium to full in body, at 13 percent alcohol. It is a simple, fruity red made to drink young, and it takes a light chill in summer.
Laithwaites is the only UK shop we track for it, so there is no price to compare between shops. It listed the 2023 and the 2024 at £13.99, and both were out of stock when we last checked. The same bottle code also appears at Averys and the Sunday Times Wine Club.
Montepulciano d'Abruzzo is a red wine from Abruzzo, on Italy's Adriatic coast, made from at least 85 percent Montepulciano grapes. It has been a DOC since 1968. The grape has nothing to do with the Tuscan town of Montepulciano, whose Vino Nobile is made from Sangiovese.
Yes, a light chill suits it in warm weather. At 13 percent with soft tannin, a short spell in the fridge sharpens the plum fruit without making the tannin taste hard.
The 2024. Abruzzo's 2023 crop was cut by more than 45 percent by downy mildew after a wet spring, and Montepulciano was among the worst hit. The 2024 had a hot, dry summer, intact bunches and a harvest the growers' consortium called excellent in quality. Both are wines to drink young.
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