Dark, spicy wine made from Muristeddu – one of Sardinia’s rarest grapes – bursting with concentrated flavours of black fruits

If you are into unusual wines, try “Parisi”. Named as one of 2022 “Top Wines of Sardinia” by Slow Wine, “Parisi” is produced by three Sardinian garagists. Rather than planting mainstream grapes like Sangiovese or Merlot, these modern-day rebel winemakers produce this rockstar wine from Muristeddu. This is a rare, old clone of Sardinia’s native grape Bovale Sardo, which is slowly sliding into oblivion.

Pietro Uras, one of the three garagists, explains: “Muristeddu’s bunch is small and tight, with thick skin and very concentrated juice, rich in tannins and acidity.”

Winemaking

Muristeddu is planted at an altitude of 580 metres, on pink granite soils in Mandrolisai – a mountainous area of breathtaking beauty in the very centre of Sardinia. Grapes are harvested by hand in the first two weeks of October. After crushing, the juice is fermented at a controlled temperature of 24°C, for two weeks. When the fermentation is over, the wine is kept on the skins for four more days to extract more colour and flavour. After that, the wine spends eight months in 225-litre used French oak barriques. The resulting wine is bottled and stored for three more months in winery’s cellar, to give it time to settle and integrate its flavours.

Tasting Notes

Deep ruby colour. Raised in the mountains of Sardinia, “Parisi” opens up with rich aromas of juicy blackberry, black cherry and plum. On the palate, these are amplified by flavours of espresso, white pepper and chilli, followed by smooth notes of meat and leather. This dark, powerful wine offers a remarkable inner depth, with velvety tannins and a spicy finish.

Awards

Slow Wine 2022 – Top Wine of Sardinia (2019 vintage) | Decanter World Wine Awards 2021 – Bronze Medal (2019 vintage) | The WineHunter (Merano Wine Festival) – Rosso (2019 vintage)