2019 Bollina Papios Rosso Terre Siciliane

Dreams of a Mediterranean island, backed by the warm sun, azure waters, fresh seafood pasta, and a glass of this wine are just what every armchair traveler needs right now.Meet Papio's red wine from Bella Sicilia: "Papios".

In the definitive guide for Italian wines, Luca Maroni rated this wine 98pts, calling it "one of the year's best" from Sicily, and all of Italy in 2019.

The innovative blend combines equal parts of the indigenous grapes Nero d'Avola and Nerello Mascalese with two Bordeaux varietals, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Layers of flavors with blueberry, chocolate, mocha, and baked cherry are topped off with a deft touch of oak, vanilla, and Mediterranean herbs in the finish. The result is a spectacular wine that screams "Delizioso!"

La Bollina Winery is one to watch. This impressive Italian estate is creating innovative, fun, amazing value wines. Thanks to its high quality and uniqueness, this winery has quickly become Luca Maroni's darling, who has blessed it with impressive reviews year after year.

La Bollina is located in Serravalle Scrivia AL, Italy. A municipality in the province of Alessandria, about 62 miles southeast of Turin. This historical territory was for centuries the residence of the Marchioness Figari of Genova. A 300-acre winery, surrounded by hills and chestnut forests is the location where La Bollina's magnificent wines are born.

Besides having 70 acres of cultivated vineyards, and an excellent and well-equipped cellar, in La Bollina you can find luxury accommodation for guests: An “Art Nouveau” style villa, a modern 4-star hotel, and a 9-hole golf course that expands throughout the vineyards. Bollina Winery is completely renovated and has some of the most advanced techniques, systems, and instruments in modern winemaking.

Andrea Bernardini, La Bollina's consultant, is a passionate winemaker who has hit numerous home runs. In 2007, he graduated from Pisa, one of the best schools of enology in Italy. He earned his chops at Poggio Bonelli and Ruffino in Tuscany and trained in South Africa, Romania and Greece. After several years of experience, he is now a flying winemaker blending tradition and modern techniques to obtain high-quality wines with respect to the expression of the different grapes and terroir in which he works. He works hand in hand with Alex to produce these magical wines.