Italy — wine

Cinque Terre DOC

Five coastal villages carved into dramatic Ligurian cliffs; vineyards on near-vertical terraces above the Ligurian Sea accessible only by monorail. Bosco, Albarola, and Vermentino grapes produce the dry white Cinque Terre DOC; Sciacchetrà is a rare, intensely sweet passito from partially dried grapes. Perhaps the world's most dramatically situated vineyards.

Year Rating Notes
2022 Good Ligurian summer; terrace Bosco and Albarola achieved full ripeness; Sciacchetrà production very small but excellent
2021 Outstanding cliff-terrace vintage; mineral character particularly pronounced; Sciacchetrà of exceptional concentration
2020 Good conditions; sea spray influence created distinctive saline mineral; cooperative's standard wine very precise
2019 Classic Cinque Terre vintage; hot and dry; Sciacchetrà from raisined grapes showed magnificent complexity
2018 Variable Ligurian weather; terrace farming resilient; quality maintained through the cooperative's experience
2017 Good cliff-terrace season; Bosco and Albarola mineral and aromatic; Sciacchetrà production of normal quality
2016 Superb vintage on the Cinque Terre terraces; Sciacchetrà considered a benchmark from this year; long ageing