2019 Coffele Le Sponde Recioto di Soave DOCG 500mL

The 2019 Coffele Le Sponde Recioto di Soave DOCG is made from late-harvest Garganega grapes grown in the volcanic soils of Soave Classico, air-dried for months to concentrate sugars and acid before partial fermentation. Coffele treats Recioto with the same rigor as their dry Soave, using appassimento to build intensity without tipping into syrup. The 500mL format is deliberate: this is a wine designed to be poured by the glass over weeks, not consumed in a single evening. The Coffele family has farmed the same parcels in the Soave Classico zone since the 1970s, working organically on volcanic basalt and limestone slopes that give Garganega its characteristic almond and citrus backbone. For Le Sponde, they harvest ripe clusters in October and lay the fruit on bamboo mats in a ventilated loft until January, losing water and concentrating flavor while retaining the grape's natural acidity. Fermentation is slow and partial — indigenous yeasts work through the residual sugar until the wine reaches equilibrium, then it rests in neutral oak to integrate. The high-acid structure Garganega maintains even when dried is what keeps this Recioto from cloying sweetness, yielding a wine with clarity and focus. The nose delivers intense dried apricot and peach layered with almond biscuit and toasted hazelnut. The palate is full and dense, with treacle-tart richness held in check by bright citrusy acidity — no heavy finish, just a long, persistent close with a faintly salty aftertaste. Pair it with blue cheese, panna cotta, or almond tart, or pour a glass with nothing at all after dinner. The half-bottle format and the wine's natural preservation mean it holds well in the fridge once opened, rewarding slow sipping over the course of a month. In stock at Off Premise in Lincoln Park.