Sardinia

Vermentino di Gallura: crisp citrus, sea salt and herbs - Sardinia's signature white.

Grown on granite in the north-east, nearly pure Vermentino. Usually unoaked, with lemon, grapefruit and a slightly bitter almond finish. Drink young and cold with seafood; the Superiore versions are fuller and last longer.

Grown on granite in the north-east, nearly pure Vermentino. Usually unoaked, with lemon, grapefruit and a slightly bitter almond finish. Drink young and cold with seafood; the Superiore versions are fuller and last longer.

Cannonau: Sardinia's Grenache - cherry, spice, myrtle; warm but fresh in the mountains.

Genetically the same as Garnacha and Grenache. Light and fruity when picked early, richer and more tannic from old vines; the best come from the granite mountains of the east.

Genetically the same as Garnacha and Grenache. Light and fruity when picked early, richer and more tannic from old vines; the best come from the granite mountains of the east.

Grilled fish and shellfish with Vermentino di Gallura.

The wine's acidity and salty finish do the work of a squeeze of lemon on grilled fish, prawns or clams.

The wine's acidity and salty finish do the work of a squeeze of lemon on grilled fish, prawns or clams.

Carignano del Sulcis: dark cherry, liquorice and herbs from sandy old vines.

The south-west's red, from old bush vines on sand. Soft in youth, with firm, fine tannin and a salty finish; Superiore and Riserva are the serious ones.

The south-west's red, from old bush vines on sand. Soft in youth, with firm, fine tannin and a salty finish; Superiore and Riserva are the serious ones.

Carignano: dark, herbal, savoury red from old bush vines on sand.

Sardinia's version of Carignan. Soft in youth, with dried cherry, liquorice and thyme; old-vine examples from the Sulcis have fine tannin and a salty finish.

Sardinia's version of Carignan. Soft in youth, with dried cherry, liquorice and thyme; old-vine examples from the Sulcis have fine tannin and a salty finish.

Off the beaten path: Mamoiada Cannonau from Giuseppe Sedilesu.

Mountain freshness, old-vine depth and organic farming. Mamuthone is the top bottle; Ballu Tundu is the easier one.

Mountain freshness, old-vine depth and organic farming. Mamuthone is the top bottle; Ballu Tundu is the easier one.

Granazza: a rare Mamoiada white, crisp or made as orange wine.

A local grape grown in tiny amounts. Citrus and sage when pressed straight; stone fruit and a bitter almond finish when macerated on skins.

A local grape grown in tiny amounts. Citrus and sage when pressed straight; stone fruit and a bitter almond finish when macerated on skins.

Isola dei Nuraghi and Barbagia IGT: where many top blends and Mamoiada reds sit.

Several of Sardinia's best wines skip the DOC and carry an island-wide or local IGT instead. A high price and a good producer on an IGT label are a sign of ambition, not a lesser wine.

Several of Sardinia's best wines skip the DOC and carry an island-wide or local IGT instead. A high price and a good producer on an IGT label are a sign of ambition, not a lesser wine.

Argiolas Costera: the reliable, classic Cannonau of the south.

Ripe cherry, dried herbs and earthy warmth from the family estate in Serdiana. A sound, widely sold introduction.

Ripe cherry, dried herbs and earthy warmth from the family estate in Serdiana. A sound, widely sold introduction.

Cantina Mesa: Santa Margherita-owned Sulcis estate; Buio is pure old-vine Carignano.

A polished modern style that is easy to find. Buio is the entry, Buio Buio the Riserva.

A polished modern style that is easy to find. Buio is the entry, Buio Buio the Riserva.

Isola dei Nuraghi icons: Argiolas's Turriga and Korem, blends built to age.

The island's grand blends, mostly sold as IGT. Turriga is Cannonau-led; Korem blends Bovale and Carignano; both are barrique-aged and age for many years.

The island's grand blends, mostly sold as IGT. Turriga is Cannonau-led; Korem blends Bovale and Carignano; both are barrique-aged and age for many years.

Sulcis sand protects old, ungrafted bush vines that crop very lightly.

Sandy soils keep the phylloxera louse away, so many Carignano vines grow on their own roots. Vines of 50 to 100 years are common, trained as low bushes, and give about a kilo of grapes each.

Sandy soils keep the phylloxera louse away, so many Carignano vines grow on their own roots. Vines of 50 to 100 years are common, trained as low bushes, and give about a kilo of grapes each.

Vernaccia di Oristano: dry, nutty, salty white aged under yeast, like fino.

Not a crisp white: a golden or amber, dry wine with almond, walnut and orange peel, aged in old casks. Serve cool with bottarga, oysters or aged pecorino.

Not a crisp white: a golden or amber, dry wine with almond, walnut and orange peel, aged in old casks. Serve cool with bottarga, oysters or aged pecorino.

Mamoiada's producers follow their own rules: organic farming and native yeasts.

The Mamojà producers' association sets its own standards, including organic viticulture and wild-yeast fermentation. A few macerate Granazza on skins for orange wine.

The Mamojà producers' association sets its own standards, including organic viticulture and wild-yeast fermentation. A few macerate Granazza on skins for orange wine.

Contini: Cabras house since 1898; Flor and the solera Antico Gregori.

The reference producer. Flor spends years in chestnut and oak; Antico Gregori blends old vintages into a dark, fig-and-spice wine.

Attilio Contini, in Cabras on the Sinis peninsula, was founded in 1898 and is the best-known house of Vernaccia di Oristano, a wine whose vineyards have shrunk sharply since the 1970s. The standard Vernaccia is dry and fresh, with almond-blossom and a nutty finish. Flor is the wine to start with: aged for years in chestnut and oak casks under a film of yeast, it has the salty, bruised-apple and walnut character of a dry sherry at a table-wine alcohol. The Riserva, aged much longer in barrel, is smoky and hazelnut-toned with coffee and toasted notes. Antico Gregori is the great curiosity, a solera blend of the best vintages with some wine dating back to the early 20th century, showing cigar tobacco, cinnamon, chestnut honey and a saline edge, with port-like concentration. Serve young Flor cool with bottarga or oysters, and the older wines a little warmer, with aged pecorino or on their own.

Cantina Santadi: Sulcis co-op; Terre Brune is the island's reference red.

Antonello Pilloni and consultant Giacomo Tachis built it into a benchmark. Terre Brune from old ungrafted vines is the wine to buy; Rocca Rubia is the more affordable Riserva.

Cantina Santadi was founded in 1960 by a group of local growers and now draws on around two hundred members close to the winery. It holds more Carignano vineyard than any other producer in the appellation, including old vines grown on their own roots in sandy soil. The turning point came in 1976, when Antonello Pilloni became president and brought in Giacomo Tachis, the Tuscan oenologist behind Sassicaia, as consultant. Terre Brune, mostly Carignano with a little Bovaleddu, is aged in French barriques and is the cooperative's flagship, a dense red with dark cherry, spice and herbs and a firm, fine-grained finish that keeps for many years. Rocca Rubia is the more affordable Riserva. The cooperative also makes a Vermentino, Cala Silente, and a sweet Nasco passito called Latinia. It shows what a cooperative can do at its best.

Capichera: Arzachena estate that put Gallura Vermentino on the world map.

The Ragnedda family's pure Vermentino, partly aged in barriques, is the richest and most age-worthy style in Gallura. Vign'Angena is the single-vineyard bottling to seek out.

Capichera, in the granite hills near Arzachena, is the estate most responsible for lifting Vermentino from a simple summer white to a serious one. The Ragnedda family released their first Capichera Vermentino in 1981 and turned to barrique ageing early, a style that was unusual then and still sets the house apart. The Superiore is fermented cool in steel and then spends part of its time in French barriques, with the idea that oak adds structure and age-worthiness rather than flavour. Vign'Angena, from the estate's own vineyard, is the cuvée to taste first, and the estate also makes a late-harvest Vermentino. The Vermentinos are ripe, with white peach, citrus and almond, but keep a salty, mineral line from the granite and sea breeze. The wines are worth keeping a few years. Taste it next to Cantina Gallura to see how far the style can stretch.

Cantina Santadi: Sulcis co-op; Terre Brune is the island's reference red.

Antonello Pilloni and consultant Giacomo Tachis built it into a benchmark. Terre Brune from old ungrafted vines is the wine to buy; Rocca Rubia is the more affordable Riserva.

Cantina Santadi was founded in 1960 by a group of local growers and now draws on around two hundred members close to the winery. It holds more Carignano vineyard than any other producer in the appellation, including old vines grown on their own roots in sandy soil. The turning point came in 1976, when Antonello Pilloni became president and brought in Giacomo Tachis, the Tuscan oenologist behind Sassicaia, as consultant. Terre Brune, mostly Carignano with a little Bovaleddu, is aged in French barriques and is the cooperative's flagship, a dense red with dark cherry, spice and herbs and a firm, fine-grained finish that keeps for many years. Rocca Rubia is the more affordable Riserva. The cooperative also makes a Vermentino, Cala Silente, and a sweet Nasco passito called Latinia. It shows what a cooperative can do at its best.

Argiolas: Turriga (Cannonau-led) and Korem (Bovale and Carignano) are the prestige wines.

Developed with the Tuscan oenologist Giacomo Tachis, the first Turriga came in 1991. Both wines show what native grapes can do with oak.

Argiolas was founded in 1938 by Antonio Argiolas, who inherited a few acres in Serdiana, near Cagliari, and became the first Sardinian winemaker to focus on quality. In the 1980s his sons Franco and Giuseppe replanted the vineyards, cut yields and committed to native grapes, and called on Giacomo Tachis to help create the prestige range. Turriga, first released in 1991, is Cannonau-led with a little Carignano, Bovale and Malvasia Nera, and aged in French barriques: concentrated, spicy and built for the cellar. Korem blends Bovale Sardo and Carignano with similar polish. Both sit under the broad Isola dei Nuraghi IGT, not a DOC, which tells you how ambitious Sardinian producers have ignored the appellation system when it suited their wine. The classic range under the same roof is fresher and cheaper, so you can taste the family's style from entry to top in one visit. The estate is also known for its biodiversity trials.

Giuseppe Sedilesu: organic Mamoiada family estate; Mamuthone is the reference.

The family bottled under its own name from 2001. Mamuthone, from old bush vines, shows dried red fruit, earth and mountain freshness.

Giuseppe and Grazia Sedilesu started small around 1985 in Mamoiada. Their children took over around the turn of the millennium and began bottling under the family name, and the estate now farms a family-sized holding of mostly Cannonau on decomposed granite. The vines are bush-trained and the farming is organic, with spontaneous ferments and little additional intervention. Mamuthone, named after the masked figures of Mamoiada's carnival, is the flagship: firm structure, dried red fruit, earthy minerality and savoury herbs, with the freshness that altitude gives. Ballu Tundu is the more approachable red, and the family also makes a Granazza white and several experimental styles. Sedilesu is a clear first stop for anyone who wants to understand what separates the mountain Cannonau from the coastal style, and tastings are by appointment only.

Enrico Esu: Carbonia grower with 100-year-old vines and nothing added.

SeRuci Miniera and NeRo Miniera from ungrafted vines, farmed without fertiliser, irrigation or pesticide, aged in steel and not fined or filtered.

Enrico Esu works in Carbonia, in the mining country at the heart of the Sulcis, and is one of the best examples of what a small low-intervention grower can do with the area's old vines. His vineyards are around a century old and ungrafted, farmed without fertiliser, irrigation or pesticide. In the cellar the wines are aged in steel and bottled without fining or filtration, so they are closer in style to a natural wine than the polished oak-aged reds of the larger houses. SeRuci Miniera is the one critics point to: dark and deeply flavoured with the dried-cherry, liquorice and Mediterranean herb character of the area and the fine tannin and salty finish of sand-grown Carignano. The NeRo Miniera offers a different cuvée from the same vines. Production is tiny, so treat any bottle you find as a prize and compare it with Santadi's Terre Brune to see the two extremes of the appellation.

Tenute Dettori: biodynamic Romangia pioneer; Renosu Cannonau is the entry.

A cult name near Sennori in the north-west: biodynamic, hand-made, with big wines that divide drinkers.

Tenute Dettori sits on a hilly plateau above the Gulf of Asinara in the Romangia sub-zone, in the north-west of the island, and is farmed biodynamically. The cellar is as far from the glossy Gallura model as it is possible to get: wines are made with little intervention, often without a vintage on the bottle, and the Cannonau can be very strong and powerful. The Renosu range is the approachable way in, with a red Cannonau and a white Vermentino, and Muscadeddu is the estate's skin-contact orange wine. These wines have real character but are not subtle; they suit people who want something different, with robust food, rather than a polished crowd-pleaser.

Granite soils in Gallura and the mountains give salty, mineral wines.

Weathered granite sand drains fast and stresses the vine just enough. In Gallura this is behind the saline, stony edge of Vermentino; in the mountains it gives Cannonau freshness and finesse.

Weathered granite sand drains fast and stresses the vine just enough. In Gallura this is behind the saline, stony edge of Vermentino; in the mountains it gives Cannonau freshness and finesse.

In the glass: Mineral, saline whites and fresh, fine-grained mountain reds

The Maestrale wind keeps vines dry, healthy and slow to ripen.

The north-west wind blows through most of the year. It dries the vines after humid nights, so disease pressure is low, and cool nights with big day-night swings keep acidity in grapes that would otherwise get too ripe.

The north-west wind blows through most of the year. It dries the vines after humid nights, so disease pressure is low, and cool nights with big day-night swings keep acidity in grapes that would otherwise get too ripe.

In the glass: Healthy fruit with fresh acidity and a salty finish

Sulcis sand protects old, ungrafted bush vines that crop very lightly.

Sandy soils keep the phylloxera louse away, so many Carignano vines grow on their own roots. Vines of 50 to 100 years are common, trained as low bushes, and give about a kilo of grapes each.

Sandy soils keep the phylloxera louse away, so many Carignano vines grow on their own roots. Vines of 50 to 100 years are common, trained as low bushes, and give about a kilo of grapes each.

In the glass: Dark cherry, liquorice and herbs with fine tannin and a salty finish

Mamoiada's high granite slopes give Cannonau lift most of the island lacks.

Cannonau at 700 metres and above keeps its freshness: elegant, floral and mineral rather than heavy.

Cannonau is thin-skinned, late-ripening and prone to high alcohol and low acidity in hot places, so altitude matters. Around the village of Mamoiada in the Barbagia mountains the vineyards average about 730 metres and some reach 1,000, on well-draining granite. Summer nights stay cool, which lets the grapes ripen slowly and keep their acidity. Old bush vines crop very lightly. The result is a Cannonau with red fruit, rose and a creamy tannin, closer to a fine Grenache from the Gredos mountains or even a light Burgundian red than to the big coastal style. Mamoiada has no appellation of its own: producers choose between Cannonau di Sardegna DOC and the Barbagia or Nuoro IGTs, and some name old sub-sites called ghirade. Most of the village's producers only began bottling their own wine in recent years, so how well these wines age is still being learned.

In the glass: Floral, mineral, fresh Cannonau with fine tannin and moderate weight

Vernaccia ages under a veil of yeast, like fino sherry but unfortified.

The wine sits in partly filled chestnut or oak casks while a layer of flor yeast forms on top. That is what gives its salty, almond and walnut taste.

Traditional Vernaccia di Oristano is made like no other Italian white. After fermentation the wine goes into small chestnut or oak casks that are left deliberately short of full. A white film of flor yeast grows on the surface, protecting the wine from over-oxidation while changing its flavour: the yeast feeds on alcohol and produces acetaldehyde, which gives the nutty, bruised-apple note you also know from fino sherry. The balance is delicate. If the wine is too weak the flor fails and vinegar threatens; if it is too strong the flor dies. Contini and Silvio Carta also keep stocks for many years, so Riserva bottlings reach amber colour and a smoky, hazelnut, dried-fig depth, and the Antico Gregori of Contini is a solera blend of old vintages. Most modern examples are dry and unfortified, though sweet and fortified versions are permitted. It is a connoisseur's wine for shellfish, bottarga and aged cheese.

In the glass: Dry, salty, almond and walnut wine, deepening to dried fig and hazelnut with age

Many Sulcis vines are old bushes on their own roots and still hand-harvested.

Low bush vines, planted in sand and never grafted, crop so lightly (about a kilo per vine) that the grapes are intensely flavoured. This is what makes the Sulcis reds dense but fresh.

Low bush vines, planted in sand and never grafted, crop so lightly (about a kilo per vine) that the grapes are intensely flavoured. This is what makes the Sulcis reds dense but fresh.

In the glass: Concentrated dark fruit and fine tannin

Gallura Vermentino is either steel-fresh or barrel-aged.

Most are fermented cool in stainless steel and bottled young for freshness. A few, led by Capichera, ferment or age part of the wine in French barriques for texture and longevity.

Most are fermented cool in stainless steel and bottled young for freshness. A few, led by Capichera, ferment or age part of the wine in French barriques for texture and longevity.

In the glass: Steel: citrus, crisp and salty; barrique: rounder, fuller, with peach and almond

Cannonau comes in two styles: fresh and fruity, or late-picked and strong.

Earlier picking gives lighter wines with fruit-forward charm; later picking gives richer, more tannic and age-worthy wines. Always check the alcohol and the producer's intent.

Earlier picking gives lighter wines with fruit-forward charm; later picking gives richer, more tannic and age-worthy wines. Always check the alcohol and the producer's intent.

In the glass: Fresh strawberry and cherry versus rich, spicy, tannic wine

Mamoiada's producers follow their own rules: organic farming and native yeasts.

The Mamojà producers' association sets its own standards, including organic viticulture and wild-yeast fermentation. A few macerate Granazza on skins for orange wine.

The Mamojà producers' association sets its own standards, including organic viticulture and wild-yeast fermentation. A few macerate Granazza on skins for orange wine.

In the glass: More texture, savoury character and individuality

Vernaccia is aged under flor in half-empty chestnut or oak casks.

Casks are left short of full so a yeast veil forms on top. It shields the wine while giving the salty, almond flavour. Riserva and solera versions spend many years in cask.

Casks are left short of full so a yeast veil forms on top. It shields the wine while giving the salty, almond flavour. Riserva and solera versions spend many years in cask.

In the glass: Salty, nutty, dry; amber colour and dried fig with age