Trebbiano d'Abruzzo 2020

The wine in this vintage

2020 was a broadly favourable year in Abruzzo, with a warm but breezy summer and a dry harvest period that allowed healthy, ripe grapes to be picked. Valentini's Trebbiano d'Abruzzo 2020 follows in the tradition of the estate's great whites, with a profile that unites fullness and freshness. The nose offers yellow apple, greengage, citrus, wild flowers, medicinal herbs, almond and a subtle mineral vein; the palate is juicy and savoury, with well-integrated acidity and a long finish with almondy nuances. Still young, the wine is already enjoyable for those who love the vitality of youthful Trebbiano, but its true character will emerge after a few years in the cellar, as tertiary complexity begins to show.

The producer · Valentini

In Loreto Aprutino, on the hills of the Pescara province between the Gran Sasso massif and the Adriatic, the Valentini estate has been a legend of Italian wine for decades. The architect of that fame was Edoardo Valentini, who died in 2006: a cultured, reserved man who devoted his life to proving the potential of Abruzzo's native grapes, until then thought capable only of simple wines. Today his son Francesco Paolo carries on his work with the same discretion. The philosophy is radical: respectful farming, low yields and extremely strict selection, so that only a small share of the grapes ends up bottled under the family name, with spontaneous fermentations and long ageing in large oak casks. The result is a Trebbiano d'Abruzzo regarded as one of Italy's greatest whites, a deep, long-lived Montepulciano d'Abruzzo made only in years judged worthy, and a cult Cerasuolo. Rare, hard-to-find wines of extraordinary ageing capacity.

Critics' scores

• 97 James Suckling
• 95 Robert Parker
• 95 Antonio Galloni

Technical details

Producer

Valentini

Region

Abruzzo

Country

Italia

Type

Bianco

Vintage

2020

When to drink

Hold, still evolving

Critics' average

95.67/100

Sizes

75 cl, Magnum 150 cl, Case of 6 × 75 cl

eWibe code

0980120