Sylvaner - Sepp's Alte Rebe - Spitalerhof

The Sylvaner Sepp's Alte Rebe by Spitalerhof is arguably one of the rarest and most authentic wines in the entire Emporio Divino selection. The name says it all: "Sepp's Alte Rebe" translates literally as "Sepp's Old Vines" — a heartfelt tribute to the family patriarch who tended these plants in the Val d'Isarco for decades, long before old-vine viticulture became fashionable.

Sylvaner is the emblematic grape of the Val d'Isarco, Italy's northernmost wine valley, where it finds its most authentic expression thanks to high altitudes (over 700 metres above sea level), porphyry and granite soils, and the extreme day-to-night temperature swings that define this breathtaking Alpine valley. The old vines — some over 40 years of age — yield very few bunches per plant, concentrating all their aromatic intensity and extract into grapes of exceptional quality.

On the nose it is unusual and captivating: fresh Alpine herbs (tarragon, wild fennel), lime, mountain wildflowers, Williams pear and a granite mineral undercurrent that evokes the dramatic landscape from which it comes. On the palate it is dry and lean, with a clean, cutting acidity and an Alpine sapidity that makes it remarkably easy to drink despite its complexity. The finish is long and persistently herbaceous, with a lingering freshness that surprises for a variety so often underestimated.

A wine of absolute niche appeal, for those who recognise the value of a unique territory and the heroic viticulture required to work it.