Alberto Longo

Alberto Longo is our latest arrival from Puglia. We have long been admirers of Alberto's wines being stylish, polished and fully expressive of the regional authenticity that we seek out.

The winery and vineyards are located in Lucera in Northern Puglia close to the borders of Molise and Campania. Here you can a range of grape varieties different to those found further down the peninsula. The local specialities Nero di Troia, Falanghina and Montepulciano, mixed up with the more canonical Puglian varieties of Primitivo and Negroamaro.

Alberto is a third-generation winemaker with 35 hectares of vines and a modern, well-equipped winery. Alberto is highly skilled and passionate about his wines, but he has a secret weapon in his armoury, which is his oenologist Graziana Grassini, who up until recently was also the head winemaker of Sassicaia. Graziana has been working with Alberto since 2004 and you can feel her dynamism and drive for top quality in these wines.

The range is exemplary: starting with theLe Fossette, a Falanghina that shows the stoned fruit character of this variety, with an extra dimension of minerality and bright freshness. His Rosé Donnadele made from Negroamaro is a delicate colour with gorgeous pink grapefruit and spice scents.

The Reds are as diverse as they are excellent. The range starts with a pure Nero di Troia, Citerna: fragrant and soft with the warmth of the south. Next is the Cacc' e Mmitte di Lucera, Alberto's local DOC blending Nero di Troia, Montepulciano and a little of his local white variety Bombino Bianco. Following is the Primitivo made from vineyards in Manduria, and it is quite possibly the best Primitivo we have encountered. It is rich, no doubt, but has a delicious freshness and vigour that we have found in no other wine from this variety. Finally, there are Alberto's two top reds: his Syrah 4.7.7, which is quite possibly the best Syrah in Italy, certainly the only one with REAL Syrah characteristics of violets, blackberries and smoked meats; and Le Cruste, which is a single vineyard made from Nero di Troia