Cinzia Sommariva uses red grapes—the Venetian heirloom Raboso, plus some Pinot Nero—that endow this sparkly delight with an enticing deep pink hue and seductive aromas of wild roses and strawberries. It hails from distinguished Prosecco terroir, is made just like Prosecco, and satisfies the same craving, but I’ve found that the joy it elicits as it shimmies over the taste buds turns all of these technicalities into a frivolous afterthought.

If you’re looking for some excitement in your life, pop the crown cap off Davide Vignato’s Primo Incontro. An unfiltered sparkling Garganega produced in a pét-nat style, this is refreshment in its purest form—stony, a bit yeasty, and about as enlivening as wine can get. Davide farms biodynamically in volcanic soils that impart some grit to the clean, bone-dry finish, giving this fizzer some real flair to go with its mouthwatering verve.

The Gregoletto family’s refusal to give up traditional grapes like Verdiso for more mainstream varieties is exactly why we cherish these multi-generational artisans from the hills above Treviso. This dry white’s delicate scent of lemongrass and lime blossom, bracing acidity, and zippy finish make it more than just a rare curiosity; it is versatile enough to earn its place in any wine drinker’s daily rotation. Italy-inspired salads and snacks are obvious pairings, but each invigorating sip had me craving vermicelli bowls, spring rolls, and other bright, herbaceous flavors of southeast Asia.

Before the rise of the light red, wines like this—a pure Corvina from around Lake Garda—would draw nothing but ire and scorn. The color alone, closer to cranberry juice than to any hundred-point wine, would surely be scoffed at by suit-clad alpha bros clamoring to stain their palates with yet another macho Cabernet.
     But times have changed. The light red has broken through, and Corvina—a grape the winemaker likened to “a poor man’s Pinot”—no longer exists only to satisfy geeky somms and wine nerds like me. It might just be Italy’s answer to Trousseau, with sour cherry, peppercorn, and orange zest soaring from the glass. Serve chilled, and savor a win for the underdog.

Two special techniques employed at Quintarelli give this Rosso, which also features Corvina in the blend, its sumptuous perfume and lavish depth of flavor. With appassimento, a portion of the grapes are dried on straw mats after harvest for a period during which all their intrinsic qualities intensify. The rest undergoes ripasso, wherein newborn wine is racked onto the pressed skins of Quintarelli’s legendary Amarone. This sets off a small secondary fermentation that adds body and alluring dark fruit. For all its gravitas, the Ca’ del Merlo retains a certain levity in the form of floral nuances and graceful tannins. You can enjoy this masterpiece for many years to come, and now is the time to start.

Near Italy’s border with Slovenia, Federica Magrini and Lorenzo Mocchiutti cultivate a collection of Friuli’s indigenous grape varieties, including the most prized clone in the Refosco family, distinguished by its red stalks (peduncolo rosso) at ripeness. It reaches a captivating level of finesse in the hands of these luminaries of the vine. Their Refosco radiates purity, hinting at violets and plums with a pristine balance suited to refined cuisine and long cellar aging.