Nebbia e Sabbia Lambrusco Ancestrale

Forget the 1970s sweet Lambrusco stereotype. Ancestral-method, bone-dry: sour cherry, red berries, earth, real savouriness. Slightly chillable. The way they drink it in Emilia-Romagna.

Podere Crocetta sits at Zibello, in the flat Parma lowlands just south of the Po. The soils are sandy, and locals have prized them for vines since the 1800s. The name means fog and sand, which is the whole terroir in three words. The Restelli family farm it, and the house set out to revive the local grapes in their old, fresh, savoury form.

The grape is Lambrusco Maestri on its own, a minor variety that once grew wild along field margins. The Ancestrale is new to the range in 2024. One fermentation, a filtering, then bottling, where the second ferment finishes with no added sulphites. It comes in at 11 percent.

Zibello is the home of culatello, and the estate pours its Lambrusco beside the region's cured pork. Serve it cold, around 8 to 12 degrees, with salami, cotechino, a cheese board or a Friday pizza.