A Winemaker Everyone Needs To Meet: Giovanna!
January is planning time for Dan and I, as we map out the year’s travel, catch up with producers, and think about where we want to explore. We’re getting back to Italy this year, and top of the list is a visit to Giovanna Tantini.
This is one of our winemakers that I wish all of you could get to know, sit back at the table with a glass of Giovanna's wine in hand, and enjoy the unfolding evening. Giovanna's joyful, easy attitude undoubtedly infuses itself into her wines. While she may dress like a rockstar, she’s down to earth, and let’s her wine speak for itself. No showy sales pitch or formal tasting -- thats not her style -- rather, time together around a table sharing stories, food and wine. Encounters like this are the reason we've been doing it the way we've been doing it for all these years -- to transfer those experiences across the globe!
Our last visit was just that: a meal with Giovanna and husband Marco, unfolding over the course of several hours. It was a sprawling meal, at a table large enough for 10 or 12 people, yet we barely had enough space for the four of us and all the wine and food laid out at on the table. It started with an enormous antipasto platter, then salad, pasta, followed by the meat course, cheese, and a dessert of sprisolona and grappa. Giovanna lit up the table with warm conversation, an intense curiosity, and her never-ending smile.
This, truly, is the joy of working with small, family-run wineries -- to sit across the table from real, hardworking people, and share a meal while getting to know them better, through conversation, and the fruits of their labor. They share their wine, without pretense, and we try to do them justice by sharing their story and their craft with you.
That evening perfectly captures why we love today’s wine, something Giovanna makes wines for people to enjoy at home, with your own pasta creation, and your own warm, family-like conversation.
Giovanna Tantini
‘Il Bianco’ Custoza DOC 2024
For the curious, this is a blend of Garganega, with Trebbianello, Trebbiano, and Chardonnay… but more importantly, it’s fresh, bursting with ripe fruit aromas and utterly refreshing.
Giovanna picks and ferments each variety separately before making the final blend. She then ages the wine for a 6 months on the lees for a bit of texture and added complexity. The results are beautiful aromas of autumn apples and tropical fruits, and on the palate, a pleasantly round texture with a crisp, fruity finish.
I asked Giovanna what she pairs this with, and with a wave of her hands, she rattled off a menu of antipasti, charcuterie, pasta, fish, vegetables… anything! I agree! A perfect everyday white for everything!