Vigneti Massa Derthona 2024

Derthona is the calling card of Vigneti Massa, made by Walter Massa in the Colli Tortonesi of south-eastern Piedmont. It takes its name from the old name for the town of Tortona, and it is built from Timorasso, the local white grape that Massa rescued from near extinction in the 1980s. The vineyards sit on calcareous clay and marl, soils that give Timorasso its weight and its firm mineral backbone, while the continental climate of warm days and cold nights preserves the grape's naturally high acidity. Timorasso yields little and ripens unevenly, but in the right hands it produces some of Italy's most structured whites. This wine is fermented and aged on its fine lees, which adds texture and a savoury depth to the palate without the use of new oak. It is straw yellow with golden highlights, showing white peach, ripe lemon, pear and a waxy, mineral note as it opens. The palate is full and dry, with a saline edge and a long, grippy finish. Serve at 10 to 12 degrees, and give it time in the glass.