To most of us, if we’re familiar with Soave at all, it’s the inexpensive “by the glass pour” at every Italian restaurant or the “value-play” white on every retail shelf. There’s nothing wrong with them, but not much to get excited about either as they tend to lack real depth and complexity and are made to be drunk as soon as you see them. This kind of Soave makes up the vast majority of the Soave market. But, there are smaller sub-regions like the hillsides of the Classico region or of Soave Colli Scaligeri, that can produce world-class white wines that cannot just last, but improve for a couple of decades - really! We’ll devote ourselves to this class of Soave.
The Soave region is located in Northeast Italy in the Veneto region directly east of the city of Verona. There are two key grape varieties that make up Soave: Garganega and the lesser known Trebbiano di Soave. Since the 1970s, the low-yielding, yet more interesting, Trebbiano di Soave has been replaced with the likes of Trebbiano Toscano, Pinot Bianco and Chardonnay, and the higher-yielding Garganega. Simple economics led large wineries to go the quantity over quality route leading to Soave’s diminished reputation.
Today, we are seeing an awakening in Soave in which the best wineries are bottling single cru wines from the best terroirs and taking advantage of Trebbiano di Soave once again. Vinous’ Eric Guido notes “Trebbiano di Soave adds savoriness, spice and elevated acidity to the wines, which nicely balances Garganega’s sweet florals, fruits and almond notes, as well as its more opulent palate presence.”
Last week I tried a number of great Soave wines from some of the region’s best wineries. Below I give you the cream of the crop. I’ve had good Soave before, but these wines were a revelation. These wines are so easy to enjoy on their own, but pair brilliantly with rich seafood like lobster, crab, scallops and salmon, not to mention a multitude of pork and chicken preparations. Let me know if you would like me to put together a selection for you.
“For lovers and collectors of the world's best white wines, it’s time to welcome Soave back to your cellars.” - Eric Guido, Vinous
We are offering six-pack discounts on wines below, including mixed six-pack for this offer. Six-packs, including those ordered through the website, will have discounts applied manually when we process your order.
