La Staffa's Selva di Sotto Returns
Michele Boscia
“I often think of the La Staffa Verdicchios as Meursaults in a lineup of Chablis. The wines are all about tension, acidity and minerality, while many other producers rely on fat and fruit to impress. The best part is that no matter how enjoyable these wines are upon release, they get even better with time.”
-Eric Guido, Vinous
As if La Staffa owner and winemaker Riccardo Baldi’s standard Verdicchio expressions weren’t exciting enough, we’re very excited to announce the (very limited) return of the Selva di Sotto: a single vineyard expression made only in the best of vintages: 2015, 2017, 2019, and now the 2020 release.
The Selva di Sotto is sourced entirely from a small parcel of Verdicchio planted back in 1974 on a steep, rocky slope surrounded entirely by a large forest. Having started production on the single vineyard expression just ten years ago, this is only the fourth vintage of Selva di Sotto ever made—and it’s the most limited yet.
We’ve all heard of allocated Bourbons like Blanton’s and Weller, but allocated white wines from Italy are few and far between. Nevertheless, we’ve got one here with the 2020 release of La Staffa’s Selva di Sotto with only 2000 total bottles produced, of which only 60 made it to the United States.
What makes it so unique? It’s a more intense version of La Staffa’s standard Verdicchio profile and slightly more oxidized, which leads to concentrated notes of honey and a nuttier profile. Eric Guido’s comparison to Meursault is spot on here. Production of the wine extremely hands-on, as the wine is whole cluster-pressed, then the juiced is pumped over for a few hours. The must is then moved into concrete tanks to ferment.
As Guido also notes, flavors of “candied lime flourish” giving way to “sour melon as tactile mineral tones add a crunchiness toward the close. It’s long and intensely spicy, displaying vivid Meyer lemon and a minty herbal freshness.”
Suffice it to say, it’s a very exciting wine! Unfortunately, there are only a handful of cases to go around, so we strongly recommend fans of La Staffa to reach out immediately and secure what little is available ASAP.