MASSERIA LI VELI “Torremossa” Fiano 2020

(Apulia, Italy) $15

I have no idea how this top southern Italian estate manages to make so many fantastic wines so inexpensively. But I’m happy they do. This dry white, for example, from the historic white grape Fiano is a knockout. Waves of freshness. Loads of citrusity (mandarin orange, lime, kumquat). Quince and sea spray. I’d be thrilled to always have a chilled bottle of this in my fridge, ready to pull out at a moment’s notice. Crisp and pure-tasting wines like this have a wide range when it comes to food—everything from pasta to curry to quesadillas.

The Masseria (the name for a large southern Italian wine estate) of Li Veli has ancient roots going back to classical Greece and Rome. The estate is situated on Apulia’s important Salento peninsula halfway between the Adriatic Sea and the Ionian Sea. While the estate goes back centuries, it is now owned by the obviously-talented brothers Edoardo and Alfredo Falvo, former owners of Tuscany’s famous wine estate Avignonesi. 12% abv

(Masseria Li Veli’s red wine from the rare indigenous grape variety Susumaniello ($18) is also one of our favorites. Juicy and velvety with super satisfying “dark” flavors of espresso and chocolate, it’s begging for a simple roast chicken some winter night.)

92 points KM

Available at Saratoga Wine Exchange