Recently I was listening to a beautiful podcast in which the author Dan Saladino was interviewed about a book that he wrote, Eating to Extinction, on the subject of truly singular ingredients, plants and food that face the risk of extinction. As I listened to the podcast, engrossed, snuggling with my son as he drifted off to sleep, I felt a sense of pride, of doing the right thing, in taking the decision with my partner that Vinos Enteros would only work with Italy’s native grape varietals.

We have few rules when it comes to developing our portfolio (the most fun part of a wine importer’s job, by the way): the first is that the wines must be artisanal, the second is that they must be made of native varietals and the third is that they must be utterly delicious. So why these guiding principles, and more specifically why this zeal for autochthonous grapes? We wholeheartedly believe that most interesting and pleasurable wines are cultural products – they are shaped by and pay homage to anthropology, geopolitics, language, immigration patterns, culinary traditions, language and many other influences. When you drink wines that have a sense of place, made by small producers, you participate in a virtuous cycle that honors tradition, respects the environment, celebrates hardworking stewards and again, is likely to result in something delicious to drink. When we decide to drink such wines (and pay the higher prices that often go hand-in-hand with small batch products that are made by hand), we participate in something bigger than ourselves. Our purchasing decisions convey that we value diversity and origin stories, that we can about the stories and values of the winemakers. Drinking artisanal wine made from autochthonous varietals shows a reverence for the process, helps to preserve diversity and honors nature and tradition. However, as ardent hedonists, we would be remiss not to reinforce that these wines tend to provide some of the most exciting and pleasurable drinking experiences that one can have.

Don’t take our word for it though. Try some of these wines for yourself. We would love to hear what you think of them.