Easy Breezy, Beautiful Chillable Red
The 2023 Tenuta La Pergola Monferrato Rosso is the kind of wine that reminds me why I fell in lust with wine in the first place. Yes, lust, not love-the first part of that relationship where you just enjoy it without thinking about it. It's delicious, uncomplicated in the best possible way, and dangerously easy to enjoy a little too much.
Imported by Kermit Lynch, Tenuta La Pergola is a tiny estate tucked into the rolling hills of Piedmont's Monferrato region. While the area is better known for producing serious, age-worthy reds, this bottling takes a different approach. A portion of the fruit undergoes carbonic maceration, lending the wine an irresistible freshness and vibrant fruit character that practically leaps from the glass. This is something like Piemonte’s answer to Cru Beaojolais.
Think crunchy red berries, wild cherries, fresh flowers, and a touch of spice. The carbonic element adds lift and energy rather than overt "natural wine" funk, resulting in a wine that feels alive, bright, and endlessly drinkable. The tannins are soft, the alcohol is modest, and the acidity keeps everything humming along beautifully. This is a sippable red.
Serve it at cellar temperature. Give it a slight chill if the weather is warm. Open it with pizza, grilled vegetables or frankly no food at all. It excels at the increasingly rare art of simply being pleasant to drink. What I love most about this wine is that it accomplishes something many wines aspire to but few actually achieve. It is interesting enough for wine geeks, yet approachable enough for everyone else at the table. The bottle seems to empty itself while conversations get longer and dinner somehow stretches into the evening.
These are the wines that quietly become house favorites. The ones you reach for on a Tuesday, then buy by the case on Saturday.
Drink freely, serve slightly cool, and don't overthink it.
