2025 Poggio Anima "Uriel" Grillo, Sicily, Italy

ABOUT THIS WINE

Uriel, the archangel of repentance whose translation is ‘God of Light’, played a very important role in ancient texts as the ‘rescuer’. Uriel was the angel who checked each of the doors during Passover in order to ensure safety for God’s people. The correlation here is that, as the most important white grape on Sicily, Grillo is the ‘principal light.’ It’s a very resilient grape and one that withstands a lot of heat and wind on Sicily. Grillo is probably best known as the foundation for Marsala but in its ‘dry’ form has many interesting characteristics.  The vineyard for this wine is located in Western Sicily, in the Salemi area at about 25 miles from Marsala. It is planted around a third of a mile above sea level and is east facing on sandy and clay rich soil. Vines are VSP trained with guyot pruning. The 2024 vintage saw very low quantities because of the high temperatures and the lack of rain. Still, the remaining fruit was of very good quality

After de-stemming and macerating for a few hours, the grapes were subject to a soft, whole-berry press before a gentle fining. Fermentation took place in temperature-controlled stainless-steel tanks. The wine was then left on its lees for about about 20 days before being bottled with a one-micron filtration and sulfur addition.

ABOUT THIS PRODUCER

Poggio Anima is a joint venture between one of Tuscany's rising stars, Riccardo Campinoti of Le Ragnaie in Montalcino and his U.S.A. importer Ronnie Sanders of Vine Street Imports. The idea is straightforward: to source great vineyards from existing relationships and produce a real wine that conveys a place and a grape. These wines are not bulk wines or leftover juice from a winery; instead, they are the result of long-standing relationships with reputable and respected growers throughout Italy.

As for the label design, the producers believe there is an everyday dichotomy between good and bad in the world. Looking for balance in all things (including wine) is a vital quest for many. The Eastern ideology of Yin Yang is the core of this ‘balance’ in the Poggio Anima concept. Fusing this Eastern belief with Western philosophy is apparent when you look at the contradiction of red and white (wines), good vs evil (demons vs angels) and modern ideas with old world winemaking practices (catchy, fun packaging with classic old world wine).

The white wines are named after religious archangels while the reds are named after fallen angels. Each wine was specifically named for the persona of the grape, region or style of the wine. Each wine hails from one variety, a single-vineyard and representing its indigenous place of origin. While not technically "certified organic," Poggio Anima does use organic practices in every part of the winemaking process.