25 Best Up-And-Coming Wine Estates And Producers
CANTINA SAN'ANDREA (LAZIO)
"I never cease to be amazed at the extremely enjoyable wines made by this estate, located at the seaside an hour south of Rome. White or red, dry or sweet, wine does not seem to hold many secrets for the owners - the Pandolfo family - and they rarely release anything that isn't at least above average, at prices that are hard to beat."

- Guide to the Best Wines of Italy, Ian D'Agata (2008)

Moscato di Terracina | buy this wine online

91 | The 60 Best White Wines Under $100
43* | Moscato di Terracina Secco 'Oppidum'
"Readers may want to pay special attention to the wonderful wines made here; this is one of the best estates in Italy for high-quality wines at exceptionally fair prices. It all started with Andrea Pandolfo, the great-grandfather of the current owner, who made wine in Sicily in the mid-1800s. You might say that aromatic grape varieties have always been this family's destiny. Back then, it was the muscat of Alexandria; today it's the moscato di Terracina, a specific variant of moscato bianco (white muscat) that has adapted admirably well over time to the unique seaside vineyards of the beautiful Circeo area of southern Lazio. There are three versions of this wine: the off-dry "Templum"; the sticky-sweet "Capitolium"; and my personal preference, the dry "Oppidum" - a remarkably light, enjoyable, balanced wine...It's simply a delectable wine. I think you'll enjoy its rose petal and grapefruit aromas, and the delicate saltiness and zesty lemon-lime accents that soar out of the glass like a fresh sea breeze. In the mouth it is decidedly dry, with enough acidity to keep it light, lively, and deceptively long, while nicely framing peach, grapefruit, and white pepper flavors. An unbelievably good wine for a price that is almost ridiculously low."

- Guide to the Best Wines of Italy, Ian D'Agata (2008)


2008

FATASTIC WINE |
"I had the interesting pleasure of running a tasting recently of wines from Lazio, the region that surrounds Rome and is bordered by Umbria and Tuscany to the north. Lazio tends to get overlooked, because the vast majority of the wine it produces is utterly forgettable white Frascati that flows in a vast river into the glasses of Rome's countless trattorias. But there's a hidden realm of ambitious small producers in the region, makinig some fantastic wine. I'm particularly fond of the in-your-face fragrant 2008 Cantina Sant'Andrea Oppidum ($25, try contacting the importer), a dry Muscat that smells like a fistful of flowers and tastes of citrus fruit with a nut-skin-edge."

- Food & Wine Magazine (December 18, 2009)


2007

A-F*****G-MAZING |
"The pairing of 'Japanese Mackerel' and Moscato di Terracina 2007 is A-F******G-MAZING!!!!!"

- Peter Birmingham (sommelier, consultant, writer)


LIFE IS TOO SHORT FOR BAD WINE |
"And that gets us to the wines I tasted - three of them from Cantina Sant'Andrea, a winery in Lazio in central Italy. While the region, which includes Rome, is best known for light and often-innocuous whites such as Frascati and Est! Est!! Est!!!, Sant'Andrea, which is in southwest Lazio close to the Mediterranean Sea, shows what's possible with the native malvasia, trebbiano and other grapes, as well as with Lazio's red varieties...The first of two whites was the 2007 Oppidum, a Moscato di Terracina Secco, made of 100 percent moscato grapes. This dry, full-bodied wine has lovely aromas and tastes of apricot, pineapple, sage and flowers. Deep straw in color, it finishes with a slightly peppery note. Made without oak, it will pair well with herbed chicken, fish and shellfish. It's 25."

- Edward Deitch, MSNBC.com (March 11, 2009)


2005

MAKES ME SWOON|
"In this case, love smells sweet, but in reality it's completely dry. In fact, Muscat is often misunderstood on these shores, mainly because the name is used for several different (though related) grapes. The Sant'Andrea Oppidum Moscato di Terracina Secco is one of the Muscat familiy's beauties, with delightful floral aromas and flavors along with Meyer lemon and apricot fruit. The note of rose it leaves on the palate makes me swoon."

- San Francisco Chronicle (April 27, 2006)

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