“Slow Wine Fair” 2025, sustainable, organic, young, classic, unique: wine according to Slow Food

Sustainable at 360 degrees, organic or biodynamic, young or, in any case, always young, emerging without, however, forgetting the great classics, of iconic denominations and grape varieties to be rediscovered, which together represent Italian biodiversity, the fruit of a new generation of winemakers, with a very lively feminine side, and, in a word that unites all these aspects, as unique as the territory in which it is born that it represents. They are the “thousand facets” of “good, clean and fair” wine, as many as the winemakers and winegrowers from Italy and around the world who adhere to its Manifesto and the Slow Wine Coalition, selected to tell enthusiasts, professionals and buyers, through more than 5,000 labels, what it means, today, to follow production, from the vineyard to the cellar, with passion and foresight, to express a quality that is always excellent, at the “Slow Wine Fair” 2025, at edition no. 4 at BolognaFiere (February 23-25) with the artistic direction of Slow Food. An event that, for the first time at the same time as edition No. 36 of Sana in the new format of “Sana Food”, a new concept dedicated to healthy eating out of home, will be a world reference for organic food.
Among the peculiar case histories reported by Slow Wine whose key word is “sustainability”, constancy and attention to detail are the strengths of the historic South Tyrolean winery Cantina Girlan, which in recent years has decided to make a commitment to reducing Co2 emissions by adopting lighter bottles. A conscious choice, in line with the inclusion of the Stelvin cap on the classic line of whites and rosés, which, among other things, allows the use of lower dosages of sulfur dioxide. In Provaglio d’Iseo, on the other hand, Silvano Brescianini continues to write the story of Barone Pizzini, a pioneering organic reality in Franciacorta, in which agronomic practices, an energy-efficient structure and the sensitivity of those who work in the cellar contribute to reducing emissions. Proof of this is the Ita.Ca Project, a tool for monitoring and quantifying carbon dioxide and thus knowing the environmental impact of the production process. In Tuscany, on the Etruscan Coast, the virtuous path taken by Le Macchiole, led by Cinzia Merli, continues. The landing to organic certification on the one hand, and the increasingly sustainability-oriented approach on the other, show a dynamic and cutting-edge Bolgheri, which does not separate respect for the environment from high-level production.
Among the organic and biodynamic wineries, three examples come from northern Italy. This is where, Slow Wine tells us, after a meeting with Nicolas Joly in the early 2000s, Marinella Camerani decided to convert to biodynamic what nature had entrusted to her. Today the baton is in the hands of her daughter Federica, who runs the Camerani - Adalia & Corte Sant'Alda farm, an estate of woods, olive trees, fruit trees and vineyards in Val Mezzane, in Varese. Also in Lombardy, Oltrepò Pavese represents an area characterized by multiple soil and climate situations. Here, in what was already referred to as the Pinot Noir hill 50 years ago, the Tenuta Mazzolino led by Francesca Salvo has identified as many as 39 parcels, with the aim of enhancing the peculiarities of each. In Tuscany, in Montepulciano, the Avignonesi winery stands out, with nearly 200 hectares under biodynamic management: record numbers in Italy, for a company whose goal is to generate value by trying to mitigate its impact on nature and the environment in general. Notable is the replanting project of the La Stella vineyard, from a monoculture to a complex ecosystem, functional for the production of quality wine and resilient in the face of climate change. From Amarone to Barolo, Slow Wine’s excursus among the best-known and most characteristic appellations leads first to the Veneto region, where Speri’s Amarone stands out, which has been cultivated for seven generations in the Valpolicella Classica area, selecting the grapes best suited to each wine to make the most of the biodiversity of the area’s native vineyards. These include Monte Sant’Urbano, considered one of the most prestigious in the area. In Piedmont, in the Langhe landscape, the Barolo from G. D. Vajra by Aldo Vaira and his wife Milena Ghigo, now joined by their children Francesca, Giuseppe and Isidoro, is the fruit of determination and knowledge, as well as an example of the production approach pursued over the years. The key word, in fact, is diversification: some 20 grape varieties are grown, in vineyards among the most prestigious in the Langa. In Treiso, Lodali’s Barbaresco best expresses the terroir of the Nebbiolo vineyards located between Rocche dei Sette Fratelli and the Giacone mention, vineyards with plants over 50 years old, and in San Rocco di Seno d’Elvio. From Tuscany, on the other hand, there are two points of reference: the Brunello of Le Chiuse, where since 2006 Lorenzo Magnelli, Simonetta and Niccolò’s son, has been combining a rigorous stylistic imprint with a desire to look at eco-sustainability, focusing mainly on soil balance, and the Chianti Classico of Caparsa, which since 1982 shows how respect for and knowledge of the territory and its traditions have always guided the winery’s choices.
Among the unique grape varieties to be rediscovered, which, according to Slow Wine, tell the story of the biodiversity of Italian wine in the glass, in Sant-Pierre, in one of the most vocated areas in the Aosta Valley landscape, Mayolet is just one of the 13 varieties grown by Cantina Barrò. It is led by Matteo, a third-generation winemaker, who joins his parents Elvira Rini and Andrea Barmaz in producing no less than 12 labels on just over three and a half hectares of land. Among ancient sulfur mines in Tufo, Avellino, Cantine dell’Angelo’s Coda di Volpe is the result of Angelo Muto’s newest and smallest parcel. A third generation of winemakers, today one of the best interpreters of the Irpinian territory, he practices low environmental impact viticulture, respecting nature and the healthiness of the soil. Looking to Sardinia, on the other hand, Granazza Bianca bears the name of Giuseppe Sedilesu, whose family made it possible to launch the name of Mamoiada in the world, and continues to be a point of reference in promoting the territory. In addition to the historic labels, wines bearing the names of individual vineyards, such as Ghirada Zi’ Spanu and Ghirada Murruzzone, with vines more than 50 years old, will be added as of this year.
Among those young winemakers looking to the future, Slow Wine reports, after a long wandering overseas, in 2020 Mattia Scarbolo returned to Lauzacco to join his father Walter and sister Lara, who now oversees the winemaking side, in the Scarbolo Sergio winery. With his business, he intends to express an underrated character of Friuli’s grave, giving special attention to Pinot Grigio, and implementing sustainable practices such as grassing, a big challenge considering the area’s humidity level. In upper Monferrato, between Moasca and Canelli, Luca Amerio is, on the other hand, the arm and mind of Tenuta Il Nespolo, which owes its name to the tree planted by his grandfather Giovanni in the 1960s, later inherited by his father Domenico, who is now supporting in the winery. Winner of the “Young Winemaker” award in the “Slow Wine” 2025 guide, Luca has breathed new life into the family business, and is also active in the EsCAMOtage Association, a collective of producers committed to the valorization of Moscato Secco and non-sparkling wines that have given themselves a strict disciplinary. Instead, 30 are the candles of activity of Cantina Adriano Marco and Cantina Vittorio, where Michela Adriano, with precious optimism, has managed to make the best of a vintage that has put everyone to the test, with the recovery of the vines after the bad hailstorm of 2023 and the strength of the plants that withstood the diseases in the rainy 2024, showing the solidity of a family that does not stop looking to the future.
In the “plural female” wine scene, as Slow Wine defines it, at the expense of age, Chiara Condello already has 14 vintages behind her, 10 of them with her own winery. Over the years, she has stubbornly and competently demonstrated her skills, which have made her a point of reference not only for Predappio and Romagna, but for the whole of wine-growing Italy. In Monteforte d'Alpone, 25 km east of Verona, Federica Nardello and her brother Daniele share a challenge with Nardello Vini: organic conversion in the Soave region. Together, they have decided to preserve the area's winemaking traditions, presenting them, however, in a different way, safeguarding and enhancing 60-year-old vines, such as those on Monte Zoppega. In Lonato del Garda, Brescia, Giovanna Prandini is the soul of Perla del Garda, founded in the early 2000s with a very precise philosophy: wine begins to be made in the vineyard, responding without fixed patterns to the climatic conjunctures of the vintage with the care and wisdom of the farming tradition. The Dei family’s origins, however, hark back to Rapolano Terme, in the Terre di Siena, where the first historic activity consisted of the extraction and processing of the famous travertine, of which the present winery bears numerous traces. Caterina Dei inherited from her father Glauco the passion for making quality wine while respecting tradition and territory. In San Gimignano, a visit to Montenidoli means getting in touch with the culture, energy and passion of Elisabetta Fagiuoli, who with her wines succeeds in expressing the potential of the individual vineyards: Vernaccia, Trebbiano and Malvasia in the middle part, and Sangiovese in the higher lands. The vineyards have always been farmed organically, or as Elisabetta likes to say, “according to nature”. Finally, in the Roero hills, a recent but highly successful story is that of Monica and Daniela Tibaldi with Cantina Tibaldi, where this year they are celebrating ten years since their debut. Despite their youth, since 2014 the sisters have managed to nearly double the area planted with vines, obtain organic certification, entrepreneurially structure what had always been a family passion, and, no less, produce wines with a crisp territorial imprint.