Blog: A Mano | Apulien

The micro-winery A Mano is new to the Wine Depot range and part of a refreshing counter-trend compared to the big wine producers from Puglia. As the name 'A Mano' suggests, Elvezia and Mark produce their wines purely by hand and in small quantities. Together with their family team and with the help of some local winemakers, they cultivate only four hectares.

At 'A Mano', Elvezia takes care of the organization and field service, while her husband Mark devotes himself entirely to viticulture. Trained as an enologist with Californian roots, Mark was able to realize his vision of modern, Apulian wines by growing Primitivo. His signature is evident in all of his wines and is rather unusual by Pugliese standards: clearly dry-fermented (i.e., fully fermented) and lean, his Primitivo and even Appassimento come across.

Also worth mentioning are the white wine (a Fianco-Greco Cuvee) and the Primitivo Rosato, always light and refreshing, dry and also extremely attractively priced. In the test tasting I was particularly impressed by the Primitivo Rosato, with a great bouquet of ripe fruit and the delicate but refreshing taste.

By the way: At 'A Mano' they work close to nature, but the winery is not officially certified because the effort involved would be too great. No wonder, because only 4 hectares are cultivated, vanishingly little compared to the Apulian large farms.

'A Mano' is my personal recommendation for all Puglia fans who are curious about wines 'away from the jammy one-size-fits-all'. In addition to the high quality, the family atmosphere of the winery, the manageable production, the natural farming methods and the extremely accommodating prices have paved the way to my assortment. Chapeau! - Tobias [TS03/23]