For years, the northwestern Italian region of Piedmont has been the source of our most joyous weeknight Italian red wines, but Le Marche, halfway down Italy’s eastern Adriatic coast, is now rivaling Piedmont for that distinction. Even though it is primarily a white-wine region, Le Marche is also home to the red Montepulciano grape, which can yield highly joyous and food-friendly wines, as well as a smattering of Sangiovese. Situated in the foothills of the Apennines, Colleleva is the thirty-year-old project of Stefano Antonucci, who left his desk job to dedicate himself wholeheartedly to the vineyards surrounding his hometown of Barbara and revive interest in the region’s indigenous grape varieties. A blend of Montepulciano and Sangiovese, this Rosso Piceno is our most recent addition to the delicious Colleleva lineup. It is blended and aged in stainless steel to preserve as much of its juicy exuberance as possible, with notes of red fruit and spice and seamlessly integrated tannin.
     On top of its usual exuberance, the 2024 has a little bit of heft and structure, so I recommend pairing it with your favorite meat-forward pizza, braises, and roasts this fall and winter—not to mention Georgeanne Brennan’s delicious mussels in broth!

Click here for Georgeanne Brennan’s recipe for mussels in spicy tomato broth.