Selected by Carlo Ferrini

Selecting the wineries and the wines is, needless to say, crucial for a club like ours. This is why The Italian Selection relies on, possibly, the best and most famous winemaking consultant of the world: Carlo Ferrini.

Tuscan born, after graduating in Agronomy at the University of Florence in 1978, he immediately began his career at the Consorzio (Growers’ association) of Chianti Classico, working, for many years, in the vast area between Florence e Siena. 

In 1992 he started his career as a consultant and, with time, he became one of the – if not ‘the’ - most active winemaker consultant in Italy, working with different sizes wineries from all over the Country, ranging from Trentino Alto Adige to Sicily.
In his brilliant career, Carlo Ferrini consulted over 100 Italian wineries, from the small producer to the top-notch brand, sometimes bringing unknown grapes to the popularity. He has been awarded winemaker of the year both by Wine Enthusiast Magazine (in 2008) e by Gourmet Traveller WINE, three different times.

His contribution to The Italian Selection is fundamental and his work is everything but easy. The art of winemaking in Italy is antique and, even though some regions are more strongly devoted to viticulture then others, is widespread across the entire country. This results in an incredibly large number of various sizes wineries. Then, how do you create the perfect selection? What criteria should guide you?

Carlo’s approach is pretty straightforward: select small, little known, family wineries with a high quality product and an amazing story to tell. It’s a selection that, just like Italy, always combines two essential elements: heart and mind. The first being represented by the passion and the incredible efforts put into their enterprises by the families who own, from generations, the wineries; the second, by the excellent quality of the wines selected, wisely produced from local, important grapes with the greatest care and respect.

These wineries, most of the times, are too small to face the commitment of exporting in the States. By choosing them, The Italian Selection offers to the American wine lovers the opportunity to discover, alongside refined bottles that they already know and enjoy, unique gems that they wouldn’t otherwise have the chance to taste. That’s another reason why the selected wineries are located all across Italy and not just in the most famous wine areas: to create culture and expand the knowledge around amazing, still little known, wines. 

Carlo Ferrini
Wine & Wineries Advisor