Giovanni Blason and his wife Valentina are nascent producers who shocked us with their price-to-quality ratio, earning tons of kudos in Gambero Rosso and beyond. They come from the Isonzo region, right up against the Slovenian border. Their Pinot Grigio is really sensational, full in the mouth, rich on the palate and extraordinarily drinkable at this price! 

Inventory: Hollywood Main Warehouse Redwood City San Francisco

This wine has been the #1 selling Italian wine for more than a decade at K&L! You can't get that kind of continued success without having a supremely consistent quality to price ratio. The South Tuscan coast is a breadbasket of wine making, stable temperatures, solid history of quality yet no fame and fortune. Our benefit is the incredibly price bargains that come out of the region! This wine is wonderful, soft, forward and easy to drink Sangiovese with an enticing mixture of cherry, plum and a hint of subtle soil character and it is affordable enough to... Read More » 

Inventory: Hollywood Main Warehouse Redwood City San Francisco

A second label of Valle dell'Acate's, the Case Ibidini range (pronounced ‘bidini) consists of varietally labeled wines from the estate intended for more casual consumption. The local name of the area where the estate is situated, Bidini, is drawn from the ancient root Bidis. This in turn referred to the name of a group of early Hellenic settlers who populated the area nearly 20 centuries ago. These wines provide a purity and authenticity reflective of the philosophy of the estate, all at an affordable price. Made from 100% Nero d'Avola grapes grown in me... Read More » 

Inventory: Hollywood Main Warehouse Redwood City San Francisco

Antinori moves south! Piero Antinori has been one of the leaders of the Italian wine industry for decades. He was involved in starting the Super Tuscan movement, developing coastal Tuscany and now he has turned his focus to Puglia. Antinori however sees the potential for quality at an exceptional price and with their incredible base of knowledge and skilled winemakers they have crafted some unique and delicious wines. The Tormaresca "Neprica" is made for 40% Negroamaro, 30% Primitivo and 30% Cabernet Sauvignon. Negroamaro and Primitivo by themselves some... Read More » 

Inventory: Hollywood Main Warehouse Redwood City San Francisco

This Barbera has been one of out most popular "Bargain Wines" for the last couple of years as well as Top 100 wine in the Wine Spectator. Fontanafredda has done an outstanding job of making a wine with real, vibrant flavors that just jump out of the glass. They've also done an amazing job of softening Barbera's sometime forceful acidity to make this wine supremely pleasant for anyone to drink! Try it with foods from the BBQ or your favorite pasta, it is a real winner! (Greg St.Clair K&L's Italian buyer) 

Inventory: Hollywood Main Warehouse Redwood City San Francisco

Sfuso means "bulk wine" in Italian, and this is just like the straightforward and simple wine you get in an Italian trattoria, or when you bring your bottles to the vino-olio store - just fresh Montepulciano, soft, easy and delicious. (Greg St. Clair, K&L Wine Merchants) The 2008 Contesa Vino Sfuso Rosso is everything that I want in an everyday red. This is made from 100% Montepulciano grown in the Marche. A vibrant nose with dark red and black fruits, the palate is dominated by lots of primary fruit tones and it has a modest finish with good acidity. ... Read More » 

Inventory: Hollywood Main Warehouse Redwood City San Francisco

According to Robert Parker's Wine Advocate: "Castiglione Tinella is a bit off the beaten track for visitors traveling to Piedmont, but it is here in this gorgeous hillside town that some of the most profound Moscatos are found, particularly those of the talented Paolo Saracco. While I generally advise drinking Moscatos young, I have also tasted a number of four to five year-old bottles here that have aged beautifully, although, of course at that age the wines no longer have the sheer charm they did when they were young. Simply put, Saracco is a reference... Read More » 

Inventory: Hollywood Main Warehouse Redwood City San Francisco

Ruby red with purple hues. On the nose, it is fresh, with aromas of currant, strawberry and raspberry. On the palate the wine is fresh and fruity, well balanced and smooth. Fermented in stainless steel, this is a great all-around red that goes with what you're eating! 

Inventory: Hollywood Main Warehouse Redwood City

Giovanni Blason and his consulting enologist Andrea Rossi have turned this 37-acre property into a juggernaut of affordable quality wines. Giovanni and his wife Valentina own this winery in Gradisca d’Inzonzo, 3.75 miles from the Slovenian border and about 20 miles north of Trieste. Generally I write about the easier-to-sell wines before the more difficult-to-figure-out. This Cabernet Franc is so good you won’t believe it! The flavor just bursts out of the glass, spice laden, black pepper, red fruits, vivacious, fresh and curvy all at the same time, and ... Read More » 

Inventory: Hollywood Main Warehouse Redwood City San Francisco

If you think Pinot Grigio has to be simple, neutral white with very little to no backbone, think again! Thanks to a direct import, K&L offers this Pinot Grigio from Muri-Gries at a price far lower than many a bathwater Pinot Grigio, but this one has such minerality, verve, acidity and length, as well as apple and pear notes. A wonderful white with or without food. 

Inventory: Hollywood Main Warehouse Redwood City San Francisco

The wine is pale straw in color, with aromas of almond, citrus and a hint of herbs. It is bone dry and finishes with a very attractive hint of apple-skin. This is a knockout everyday bottle of white wine, flavorful enough to stand up to a range of dishes but bright enough to make a good dry aperitif. 

Inventory: Main Warehouse Redwood City

Delicious, lively and very aromatic! Gallura is a peninsula on the northeast corner of the island of Sardinia that specializes in Vermentino (the grape is also grown on the coast of mainland Italy, on Corsica and in the south of France under the name Rolle). Mancini's version of the grape is very fresh and forward, with no oak or malolactic fermentation aromas, just grapejuice fermented at low temperature in stainless steel for the aromas. Drink either as an aperitif or with seafood (prawns with pasta?) Finishes with a delightful touch of tangerine. 

Inventory: Hollywood Main Warehouse Redwood City San Francisco

This is called the one-night wine, and not just because you won't have any left at the end of the night to store in your fridge until tomorrow! Montepulciano grapes are left to macerate with the must for just a few hours, all the time needed to give this wine its classic cherry (cerasa) color and all the fragrances of red fresh fruits, rendered even more refined by flowery accents of rose petal. 

Inventory: Hollywood Main Warehouse Redwood City San Francisco

One of Bon Appetit's Great Bargain Bottles! Marco Tintero is the proud owner of all 23 hectares in production from the Sori Gramella vineyard. (Apparently there is one other who owns one hectare but drinks all his production himself.) These are dramatically steep limestone cliffs facing southward. Moscato should be fresh and luxurious on the palate like this one, which shows ripe, juicy flavors of lime zest, apple skin, and pear. The finish is impeccably clean and refreshing. In fact, this is a perfectly balanced Moscato with a very light straw color, al... Read More » 

Inventory: Hollywood Main Warehouse Redwood City

The Giulietta is made from Pelaverga and has a nose full of strawberry, rose petals and white pepper. It's very delicate in a Pinot sort of way. Enjoy it now with aged cheeses and your favorite risotto. 

Inventory: Hollywood Main Warehouse Redwood City San Francisco

Ah, Piedmont! Home to Italy's most long-lived reds: Barolo and Barbaresco. Piedmont also lays claim to this frothy number, a semi-sweet sparkling wine that shares as much in common with Barolo as a turnip does with a root beer float. To begin with, there's the preponderance of wild strawberry fruit, and the effervescent goodness that is not totally dissimilar to Moscato, only this one is pink. Deep pink. Gulpable pink. And a nice note of acidity on the finish prevents tooth aches. After a certain age it is unseemly to drink cherry soda pop in public. Go ... Read More » 

Inventory: Hollywood Main Warehouse Redwood City San Francisco

90 points Wine Spectator: "Shows sliced apple aromas, turning to flowers. Full-bodied, with mineral and honey character, fresh acidity and a bright finish. Try this over Pinot Grigio. Drink now." (07/09) ETA: Wine is due in Sept 10, 2009 

Inventory: Main Warehouse Redwood City San Francisco

Collestefano is situated in a hilly belt in the hinterland of the Marches, 420 m above sea-level. This narrow land is watered by the Esino river and bounded on the east and on the west by the mountain range of the Appennini Umbro-Marchigiani (1479 m above sea-level). Not being affected by the mitigating influence of the Adriatic Sea, the region is characterized by a cold, dry microclimate with high temperature ranges, ideal for the growing of Verdicchio di Matelica, which has been grown in this district since ancient times and here ripens late from the s... Read More » 

Inventory: Hollywood Main Warehouse Redwood City San Francisco

The red wine grape of Lagrein is a traditional local variety of the Süd Tyrol (a cousin of Syrah), which produces a deep and complex wine that is at once both broad-shouldered and elegant. This is the workhorse red varietal of the monastery, and in the hands of the estate’s current winemaker, Christian Werth, this beautiful varietal is beginning to gain an international following for its compelling character and impressive complexity. The Lagrein vineyards are meticulously taken care of by hand, with most of the vineyard work still done by the monks of t... Read More » 

Inventory: Hollywood Main Warehouse Redwood City San Francisco

According to Robert Parker's Wine Advocate: "Villa Sparina’s 2008 Gavi di Gavi offers attractive weight and depth in an expressive core of ripe, perfumed fruit. The finish is long, crisp and refreshing. Anticipated maturity: 2009-2011." (10/09) This classic Gavi has a pale straw golden color with a floral nose and hints of peach fragrances. It has wonderful peach, pear and lemony citrus flavors with hints of wet stone and a long finish. Fantastic as an opener to any meal, this really shows its stuff when paired with fried calamari served with aioli. 

Inventory: Redwood City San Francisco

According to Robert Parker's Wine Advocate: "The 2008 Chardonnay-Pinot Grigio Beta Delta is a steely, mineral-driven wine with an attractive combination of varietal fruit, expressive aromatics and bright acidity. Ideally it is best enjoyed over the next few years. The Beta Delta is a new wine from Lageder made exclusively from estate-owned vineyards that are Demeter-certified biodynamic. If this wine is any indication, the move towards biodynamic farming seems very promising to say the least. Anticipated maturity: 2009-2011." (08/09) 

Inventory: Hollywood Main Warehouse Redwood City San Francisco

This lovely summer white is a pale yellow color with a green glint and hard-to-define aroma of grass, herbs, tangerine, and wet stones. It's medium weight in the mouth with good lively acidity and a long, very clean finish. This one's an excellent general-purpose aperitif or wine for antipasti, salame and green olives. 

Inventory: Hollywood Main Warehouse Redwood City San Francisco

With the exception of sparkling Moscato, Piedmonte is not known for its white wines. But when the sun beats down on these northern hills and the temperatures swell above 80° you can be sure the locals are not reaching for a glass of Barolo to cool them off. And Barbera doesn't exactly do the trick, either. Arneis, on the other hand, is exactly what you'd want on a warm evening, as an aperitif before a big dinner or as an accompaniment to appetizers of smoked fish or asparagus crostini. Nearly translucent in color, Vietti's Arneis is medium bodied with dr... Read More » 

Inventory: Hollywood Main Warehouse

This rosé, typically named 'Cerasuolo,' is a shocking value given the prices of some of the well-known rosés from southern France. (The Montepulciano grapes are crushed, the skins macerage for 12 hours or so, then the wine is vinified off the skins like a white.) Good solid deep pink color; aroma and flavor of strawberry, with some herbal notes; lively and fresh on the palate but flavorful enough to stand up to all sorts of food. Grilled chicken or salmon come to mind. 

Inventory: Main Warehouse Redwood City

Considering the myriad grape varieties of Italy, it's not surprising that many of us have not even heard of more than a few of them. Chances are good, however, that we'll all be hearing a lot more about Inzolia, one of Sicily's native grapes found mainly in the region surrounding Mt. Etna. This stupendous new arrival is vibrant, fresh, balanced yet soft and luscious, and a great value 

Inventory: San Francisco

If you ever wondered what to do with Panettone, those odd Italian cakes sold in huge colorful cardboard boxes around the holidays, here's a tip: Enjoy a slice of Panettone with a chilled glass of this excellent dessert wine from La Caudrina. At 5.5% alcohol, you could have the bottle without too much harm. A nice balance between sweetness and welcome acidity makes it dangerously easy to do just that! 

Inventory: Hollywood Main Warehouse Redwood City San Francisco

91 points Robert Parker's Wine Advocate: "The 2008 Gruner Veltliner is another superb white. This is one of the more complete wines in the line up as it offers both gorgeous aromatics but is backed up with terrific depth and richness in its fruit. Passion fruit, lime, flowers and spices all come together in this superb, complex and subtle Gruner. Anticipated maturity: 2009-2012" (10/09) Antonio Galloni ... Andreas Huber is the young owner and winemaker of this beautiful small estate high on the slopes of the Val d’Isarco. The vineyards lie 700 meters ab... Read More » 

Inventory: Hollywood Redwood City

Grown on its own roots and vinified and aged in stainless steel, this is a very distinctive example of how delicious Campanian white wines can be. It delivers a crisp minerally character while also showing appealing aromas and flavors of citrus, flowers, and tarragon. This is an excellent seafood wine, and its brineness works incredibly well with olives, especially green ones! 

Inventory: Hollywood Main Warehouse Redwood City San Francisco

Cherries galore, wrapped with very subtle tannins. This is an elegant red wine made to go the distance from informal backyard barbecues to formal dinners Famiglia Cielo has made a wine that can truly do it all. All this for a very reasonable price. 

Inventory: Redwood City

The bold and dramatic flavors in this scintillating wine won't let you take Rosé lightly anymore. Outside of Bolzano in the middle of the Italian Alps is one of the best wine zones in Italy, producing powerful red wines made from Lagrein, a genetic descendent of Syrah. This wine has been one of our favorites ever since it was first imported. Perfect for fowl, pork, salmon, pasta and BBQ. Kretzer is Rosé in the local dialect. 

Inventory: Main Warehouse Redwood City

90 points Wine Spectator: "Very spicy, with peach and mineral on the nose and palate. Full-bodied, with good acidity and an aftertaste of peach skin and apple. Drink now." (07/09) ETA: Wine is due in Sept 10, 2009 

Inventory: Hollywood Main Warehouse Redwood City San Francisco

And you thought Malvasia was white, right? It turns out, not always. This is made from the obscure Malvasia di Schierano, and it makes a slightly effervescent, extremely aromatic sweet red wine with low alcohol (5.5%). Gilli's version shows off an unusual marriage of freshness, weight, and aromatic complexity. Wild red berry fruit is gloriously evident on the nose, along with fascinating hints of blossoms, particularly wisteria and iris. Served will chilled, it is ideal with any sweet or dessert as well as with summer's finest fruit! 

Inventory: Hollywood Main Warehouse Redwood City

According to Robert Parker's Wine Advocate: "The 2008 Soave Classico opens with a beguiling, sweet bouquet that leads to an expressive core of perfumed fruit. It is a very pretty, entry-level Soave with excellent balance and a harmonious, polished finish. Anticipated maturity: 2009-2012." (08/09) 

Inventory: Hollywood Main Warehouse Redwood City

A superb blend of hand harvested Nerello Mascalese and Nerello Cappuccio from the northern slope of Mt.Etna. Elegant, bracing, supple and mineral laden this wine stretches the boundaries for rose'. A beautiful color and a truly complex wine, the perfect accompaniment for pasta, fish or grilled chicken. 

Inventory: Hollywood

This lovely Frascati is a typically central Italian blend of Trebbiano Toscano, Malvasia di Candia, Chardonnay and Bombino. The careful attention given to the Pallavicini vineyards and their knowledgeable vinification have produced a straw-colored wine, with gold-green reflections, a delicate aroma that is slightly fruity and floral, dry, fresh elegant and medium bodied. Excellent with spaghetti alle vongole. 

Inventory: Hollywood Main Warehouse Redwood City San Francisco

Along with its proverbial pleasantness, this year’s Anthìlia is also more complex. Thanks to the territory’s great potential, this was accomplished through research conducted on new plantings and definition of a new blend. In the Anthìlia 2008 besides the traditional Ansonica and Catarratto grapes (accounting for 80%) were added other varieties that have proven to go together best. The year’s fine weather enabled the grapes to ripen without a high degree of sugar content and to reach good acidity. The Anthìlia 2008 is fairly low on alcohol and rich in fr... Read More » 

Inventory: Main Warehouse Redwood City San Francisco

The Sella wine estates are one of the oldest active Italian wine producers. The Sella family has produced wine in Lessona from their own vineyards since 1671. The documents from that period are still preserved in the Sella Foundation. Over the next three centuries, the Sella family has kept the estate intact and its cellars still hold old vintages of these wines, including Lessona dating back from as early as 1881. Today the estate still maintains its original artisanal scale and is still devoted to the limited production of high-quality wine. Majoli is... Read More » 

Inventory: Main Warehouse Redwood City San Francisco

The winery has been producing grapes in the sunny hinterland of Albenga since time immemorial and, starting from the year 2000 harvest, they have begun to make their own wine. Within a few years - thanks to the excellent quality obtained - the wines have become very popular with the best wine shops and restaurants in Liguria and beyond. The Vermentino variety does particularly well planted in proximity to the sea, from where it takes its saline character. This amber-yellow grape yields a wine of clear gold with green highlights, elegantly aromatic and f... Read More » 

Inventory: Redwood City San Francisco

An unusual blend for this richly fruity pink wine, 70% merlot and 30% franconia, however the taste is anything but bizarre. Strawberries and spice mix with flowers and lots of refreshing acidity, which makes this the rose to wash down cheese-rich foods like ricotto-stuffed ravioli. Minerals and stone fruit make for a fascinating finish on this value-packed rosé. 

Inventory: Hollywood Main Warehouse Redwood City San Francisco

The Germano winery is a few hundred yards north of Serralunga. Sergio Germano is typical of the new generation of producers in the Langhe; after completing six years of study at the school of Enology in Alba he made wine for a few years at Fontanafredda, one of the largest wineries in the area, before returning to the family winery in 1993. This is an unusual white for the region, made of Riesling from Sergio's new vineyards in the village of Ciglié, about thirty minutes south of his estate in Serralunga. The property is a steep chalky south-facing hills... Read More » 

Inventory: Main Warehouse Redwood City

Made of Schiava (90%) (in German, Vernatsch) with a small amount of Lagrein(10%), this wine is fermented and aged in stainless steel. Notes: pale red color; aroma of strawberries and tomato leaf, very appetising; the palate is bigger and more assertive than the color would suggest but still very drinkable. A faint hint of apple-skin bitterness on the finish adds to its appeal with food. It is delicious paired with most any pork dish, especially ham. I've heard it can be drunk with grilled salmon as well. Very small quantities. This (Schiava) delicious ... Read More » 

Inventory: Redwood City San Francisco

According to Robert Parker's Wine Advocate: "The 2008 Sauvignon Terlaner reveals a typical varietal bouquet wedded to a fairly ripe expression of apricots, peaches, and flowers. This mid-weight, steely Sauvignon possesses lovely balance if not quite the harmony of the Weissburgunder. Anticipated maturity: 2009-2012." (10/09) Ignaz Niedrist is one of the most respected small producers in the Alto Adige. His wines are very expressive, brilliantly made examples of their type, including a fine Pinot Bianco (an underestimated variety that makes minerally, ag... Read More » 

Inventory: Main Warehouse Redwood City

Pale and clear yellow in color, the bouquet of this interesting white is at once herbal and floral, with a distinctive note of orange tree blossoms. Soft and fresh on the palate, it's wonderful with or without food. 

Inventory: Hollywood Main Warehouse Redwood City

According to Robert Parker's Wine Advocate: "The 2008 Kerner offers up attractive perfumed varietal fruit on a medium-bodied frame. Though delicious, the Kerner is one of the simpler wines in this lineup." (10/09) Andreas Huber is the young owner and winemaker of this beautiful small estate high on the slopes of the Val d’Isarco. The vineyards lie 700 meters above sea level, just above the ancient Abbazia di Novacella monastic complex. Very old vines planted in gravel and sandstone soil produce wines of vibrantly aromatic character, bright, steely and e... Read More » 

Inventory: Hollywood Redwood City

Fontanavigna is in the locality of Castel Campagnano, close to the winery's cellar, where, in ancient times, there used to be a fountain and wash-house in the midst of the vineyards. the wine is light straw-yellow in color, with highlights; its perfumes include notes of fresh apples, pineapple and melon. On the palate the wine is balanced, with persistently aromatic flavors, and a long finish of dried apricots. 100% Pallagrello Bianco 

Inventory: Hollywood Main Warehouse Redwood City San Francisco

Giovanni Blason and his consulting enologist Andrea Rossi have turned this 37-acre property into a juggernaut of affordable quality wines. Giovanni and his wife Valentina own this winery in Gradisca d’Inzonzo, 3.75 miles from the Slovenian border and about 20 miles north of Trieste. Franconia is rarely seen in the U.S. (the name of the grape has nothing to do with Franken wines of Germany), and it's a shame. This is a ruby red wine, with a distinctively herbal aroma and flavor, and a velvety mouth feel. Best of all, it is quite low in alcohol, making it ... Read More » 

Inventory: Hollywood

89 points Robert Parker's Wine Advocate: "The 2008 Weissburgunder Terlaner (Pinot Bianco) is wonderfully fresh and nuanced in its crisp, floral fruit. Medium in body, the mineral-driven Weissburgunder reveals notable elegance and a long, zesty finish. This is a classy effort from Niedrist. Anticipated maturity: 2009-2012." (10/09) Ignaz Niedrist is one of the most respected small producers in the Alto Adige. His wines are very expressive, brilliantly made examples of their type, including a fine Pinot Bianco (an underestimated variety that makes mineral... Read More » 

Inventory: Main Warehouse Redwood City

Aromas of white sambuco, mint, tomato leaves, tropical fruit (banana, mango). Fresh and elegant with good acidity and a long refreshing finish. Pairs well with antipasti, fish, vegetable soups, omelettes with herbs, risotto with asparagus. 100% Stainless steel, 30% Malo-Lactic fermentation, Aged 6 months on the lees with weekly batonage. 

Inventory: Hollywood

This is classic Dogliani Dolcetto, fermented and aged in stainless steel. It shows great color, reddish purple and violet-tinged, aromas of blueberries and tealeaf, and some tea tannins to go with the abundant fruit on the palate. Dolcetto is a great table wine, so grill some lambchops, pour everyone a glass, and all will be right with the world. 

Inventory: Hollywood Main Warehouse San Francisco

Cerasuolo di Vittoria is a simple red wine, best consumed young; a typical terroir-driven expression of fruit fruit and more fruit. It is made from of 60% nero d'avola & 40% frappato, macerated ever so briefly to bring out the bright fruit of both grapes. This red smells of cherry and peach with a beguilingly salty and refreshing palate. 

Inventory: Hollywood