INSIDER'S PICK: 2018 MASSERIA LI VELI FIANO SALENTO $15.99

At a time like this, it's pretty much impossible to be 'normal'. But it is important to try and keep what you can as close to normal as you can while you can. Even though we will not be doing the public tasting portion of the Insider's Pick until further notice, we will still be offering the wine for purchase with the usual 10% discount on Thursday and Friday. The wines will still be ones we highly recommend, and the tasting notes will still be our own. We hope you are able to come by and get some wines to enjoy.

For most of its history the Puglia region has been outside the fame and fortune of the rest of Italy, more remote and without the major cultural or economical centers that draw the world's attention. Masseria Li Veli dates back to the 1600s and was an important model for farms in the region, but like so many fell into disrepair several times during its history and especially after World War II. Reinvestment from other parts of the country has been key, and at the turn of the century the Falvo family (famous former owners of the Avigonese winery in Tuscany) returned to their family roots to develop and expand the quality of the Li Veli wines. Fiano is a recent addition to the portfolio, more noted in Campania on the Western side of the Apennines mountains, but in there hands has shown quite well. Juicier and less mineral driven than the Campanian version, this still shows lots of zest and citrus skin character behind the fresh pear and melon tones, warm and inviting on the palate with lots of mouth-filling flavor and texture that carries no sweetness but also shows little to no astringency. A great pair with seafood or 1st course dishes that may carry some Mediterranean spice. 

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