Campo Alle Comete 2018 Vermentino Toscano

"The apple and peach core is shaded by earth and anise notes in this ripe yet balanced white that persists on the finish." Wine Spectator 89 Points

"It's funny how this wine shows some of the freshness and tonic intensity that you get with a Campania white. Maybe I'm thinking of Campania because that is the tasting I did immediately before this group of Bolgheri whites. It's also surely because Antonio Capaldo is the owner of this estate and Feudi di San Gregorio in Campania. The Campo alle Comete 2018 Vermentino is an easy expression to drink with fried calamari or insalata di mare. You taste the green zesty nature of the Tuscan grape on the close. Some 30,000 bottles were made.

I enjoyed an in-depth visit with Antonio Capaldo and the new team at Campo alle Comete. This is a start-up winery (from the folks behind Feudi di San Gregorio in Campania) and although this estate already counts a few vintages under its belt, you get the sense that its full potential has not yet been fully tapped. One reason is because what is sure to be Campo alle Comete's most interesting vineyard site had not yet been planted when I visited last year. In fact, the hilly parcel of land just beyond lower elevation vineyards owned by Marchesi Antinori's Guado al Tasso had only just been cleared of brush when I saw it. But what a site it was. My feeling—based on the parcel's southern, sea-facing position, its higher elevation and the complex mix of limestone clay and stone alluvial soil with iron oxide—is that this new vineyard will be one of the finest crus in the entire Bolgheri appellation. I asked Antonio why he was attracted to Bolgheri in the first place, given how radically different the wine culture is here in Tuscany compared to Campania (where it's rooted in storied tradition and a strictly defined patrimony of indigenous grapes). He told me that Bolgheri was very much a personal choice and his investments reflect an embrace of the kinds of wines he often drinks privately. Because this project is so new, it is worth noting that the 2016 Bolgheri Superiore represents the first vintage completely managed by the new owner. The conversion process to organic farming was also started in that year." Robert Parker 88 Points