Atomos from Abruzzo
The de-stemming process means only a few hundred bottles are produced a year. Each retails for about 400 Euro.
Stefano and Maria Di Nisio, entrepreneurial winemakers, have released a new red and white wine under the prestigious Atomos label.
The wine is the result of a unique process of de-stemming. Each berry is harvested using a three-fingers method which means only the best fruit is chosen. It also means only a few hundred bottles are produced each year.
Because of the wine’s acidity and tannins Atomos can be cellared for more than 30 years, assuming they are stored in ideal conditions, Stefano said.
Atomos is based in Abruzzo in central Italy. The red is made from 100 per cent Montepulciano and the white entirely from Trebbiano. Vines are up to 65 years old.
Stefano Di Nisio, from Abruzzo, met Maria Kalafati from Athens while at university in 1994. While visiting Maria’s relatives in Crete in 2010 Stefano noticed three old ladies de-stemming grapes by hand to make the famous sweet-dry wine sultanina.
The berries tasted amazing compared with machine-harvested grapes, Stefano said. This revelation was the origin of the Atomos three-finger process.
The wine comes in a hand-sown pouch made of Alcantara textile.
Maria and Stefano worked on the project with their friend Giorgos Kolliopoulos, founder of the luxury olive oil, Lambda.
Find out more about Atomos in this video, which runs 7:37.