Cantine Paolo Leo

Paolo Leo founded his Salento winery in 1989, situated in San Donaci, between Lecce and Brindisi, inside the Negroamaro Park. It is one of the leading Puglian wineries, renowned for its production of native varietals such as Primitivo and Negroamaro, and remains in the hands of the founding family.

An intense ruby red coloured wine. The nose is complex with aromas of cherries, raspberries and currants. The oak ageing adds a pleasant toasty, spicy character. The palate is full bodied with flavours of dried fruit, slight raisin character, plums, damsons, garrigue and a hint of spice. The finish is rich and full with good, sweet fruit flavours in an excellent balance.

A superb accompaniment to red meat dishes and cheese.

In mid August when the grapes reach perfect maturity, the grapes are slightly dried. The grapes are left to dry for about 12 days and thus ensuring a natural drying process. They lose about 25-30% of their weight. Such a process allows the concentration of flavours and a natural sweetness of the grapes. After destemming, the grapes are gently pressed, allowing the skin to remain intact and optimizing colour extraction. Fermentation takes place at a controlled temperature of 22-25°C for 8-10 days. Frequent remontage and delestage are carried out in the early stages of fermentation in order to achieve soft extraction of aromas and gentle tannins. After racking, malolactic bacteria are added to induce malolactic fermentation.

Wine Merchant Magazine, Tried and Tested, April 2023: "You can dry your grapes on straw mats or you can make it happen on the living vine, as is the case at this Puglian estate, where the stalks of mature berries are twisted to stop further nurishment. This creates a 30% reduction in liquid and a concentration of raspberry and cherry flavours, enhanced by a hint of blood and spice."