Best Italian red wine 2022: 8 award-winning reds from across Italy

The beauty of Italian red wines has always been the choice on offer. If you like powerful, ageworthy reds, Barolo in Piedmont in the north-west is ideal; for something lighter and still great with food, Chianti from Tuscany or Valpolicella from Veneto work well; and if you like your reds to be rich and ripe, head south to Puglia or Sicily.

There are plenty of classic red wines in Italy, but it’s worth looking beyond the Sangioveses and Nebbiolos of this world, too. Italy has more indigenous grape varieties than anywhere in the world, which is great news for wine drinkers keen to try something new.

A particular shining example achieved a Gold medal in this year’s IWSC: Scriani’s Amarone Della Valpolicella Classico Riserva 2016 from Veneto, made with the Corvina grape, was praised by judges for its ‘ripe tannins, minerality, and balancing acidity.’

For those with more classic tastes, there’s Vite Colte’s Barbaresco Spezie Riserva 2015, made with 100% Nebbiolo and impressing with its notes of ‘red cherries, red apples and plums seasoned by cedar, chocolate, tar, tea leaf and freshly turned earth,’ scoring 96/100.

Moving further south to Tuscany, Tenuta del Buonamico’s Cercatoja 2017 earned a Gold medal and 96/100 as a ‘fantastic example of a terroir driven wine.’

Every Italian red wine at this year’s IWSC was tasted blind by an expert panel of judges including Alistair Cooper MW, head sommelier at 67 Pall Mall Serdar Balkaya, and UK wine buyer for Good Pair Days Harry Crowther.

Italy’s trump card is being able to produce red wines like nowhere else, and this selection of award-winning bottles is a showcase of what this fascinating country is capable of. We’re proud to present the best Italian red wines from the 2022 IWSC.

How do we judge these wines?

We run a tightly structured, rigorous wine tasting process. That means that each wine sample is pre-poured into numbered glasses and assessed blindly by the judges. Most importantly, our IWSC wine judges are experts in their field, who work across all sectors of the wine industry. For evidence, see our full list of judges.

How do we score these wines?

Only the best wines sampled receive a Gold or Silver award. For example, to win Gold, wines have to score between 95 and 100 points. Meanwhile, Silver wines range from 90 to 94 points. Click here to read more on our scoring system.

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