Tour del Vino in Bicicletta 🇮🇹
To celebrate the Giro d'Italia 2022, we've teamed up with wine connoisseur and cycling enthusiast Adam Foster (@_wineguy) to bring you the perfect tipple for each and every stage, plus an exclusive Tour Del Vino t-shirt to celebrate every twist, turn and descent of the action. Starting in Hungary before winding up through the Italian Alps, expect some gutsy reds, sparkling finds and crisp whites to accompany every change in the GC. Get the t-shirt, order the wines and settle in.
🚩 Stage 1 | Budapest - Visegrád
Balassa Tokaji Extra Brut 2019, Tokaji, Hungary
It would be rude not to pop a cork on the opening day! Hungary is not known for its sparkling wine, but this wine will certainly get our juices flowing for what is coming over the next couple weeks. With a mouth feel nearly as rich as Dave Brailsford, this wine will get the party Started in Hungary and in your living room.
Balassa Tokaji Extra Brut 2019, Tokaji, Hungary
Stage 2 | Budapest - Budapest
Sauska, Cabernet Franc Siklos 2017, Villany, Hungary
Red wine, from Hungary? That’s right, and this full bodied Cabernet Franc can be served slightly chilled. I think we are going to need to keep the heat off for as long as we can, seeing as there are some big days ahead for us and the peloton. Pair this with a Goulash or rich tomato and aubergine ragù.
Stage 3 | Kaposvár - Balatonfüred
Royal Tokaji, 5 Puttonyos, Tokaji, Hungary
We start to get serious now – well the wines do, but today's flat stage can take a back seat until the last 10km. Tokaji is renowned for its sweet wine and this pairs very well with blue cheese….Gorgonzola…..coincidence?
Stage 4 | Avola - Etna
Al-Cantåra, Occhi di Ciumi, Etna, Sicily 2018
We're Italy, in the south and it's hot down here. To freshen us up on what will be a sweaty day in the peloton, we have a rich, spicy, fruity white to kick things off in Italy. Sit back and relax with some soft cheeses and olives while we roll through the lands of Sicily deciding whose kit we like best as we see leaders flex their muscles up Mount Etna and the GC starts to take shape.
Al-Cantåra, Occhi di Ciumi, Etna, Sicily 2018
Stage 5 | Catania - Messina
Planeta, Marmetino Rosso DOC 2009
The iconic producer of Planeta is taking Sicilian wine global. Today we kick things off with our first real Italian red that does everything you would expect. This wine has a velvet texture and well integrated tannins, with less grip than bar tape, but you certainly know it's there .
Stage 6 | Palmi – Scalea
Scala, Ciro Rosso Classico Superiore 2018
Originally founded in 1949, this iconic label is produced using the indigenous Gaglioppo grape variety. Drink it with roasted or cured meats, although it stands up beautifully against the local delicacy Peperoncini alla Calabrese if you want to push the boat out.
Stage 7 | Diamante – Potenza
Il Passo, Aglianico Del Volture DOC 2014
The Basilicata – powerful reds from the middle of nowhere. Aglianico is king here, a cult wine for those in the know. High ABV, high tannins and high in flavour! Let's hope the stage is as juicy.
Stage 8 | Naples – Naples
Piertracalda Fiano di Avellino DOCG 2020 Feudi di San Gregorio
In the shadow of Mount Vesuvius, the riders tackle a lumpy course, while we sip on a refreshing white wine. The Fiano di Avellino from Feudi di san Gregorio is the main protagonist of the southern Italian wine movement. This wine is clean, smokey and refreshing. As we are by the coast today, seafood must be on the menu – try barbecued sardines or spaghetti alle vongole.
Piertracalda Fiano di Avellino DOCG 2020 Feudi di San Gregorio
Stage 9 | Isernia – Blockhaus
Emidio Pepe - Montepulciano D'Abruzzo DOC 2009
By far the most underrated wine in Italy, Montepulciano D'Abruzzo is at its entry point easy drinking and great value for money. Emidio Pepe were making natural wine before it was cool and by far this is the best example of the Montepulciano grape! This wine is exceptional. While the riders hit 5000m of climbing today, I recommend eating 5000 calories of pizza with this.
Stage 10 | Pescara – Jesi
Cuprese Verdicchio Dei Castelli Di Jesi D.O.C. Classico Superiore
A wine grown metres from the finish line! Verdicchio may not be a household name, but it blows the watts off your boring Pinot Grigio!
Stage 11 | Santarcangelo di Romagna – Reggio Emilia
Cantina Paltrinieri Lambrusco
The most overlooked sparkling wine in the world, today we drink Lambrusco, an off-dry, red, fizzy wine with notes of violet and cherry. Don’t knock it until you've tried it! Serve it chilled with some parma ham and burrata to see it as its best!
Stage 12 | Parma – Genoa
Aschero Riviera Ligure di Ponente Vementino 2019
Liguria is one of the smallest DOCs in Italy and one of the trickiest to grow in. Steep slopes by the coast don’t make it easy. Small production numbers make it hard to find it exported abroad, but within Italy you can find Vermentino from Liguria that lends itself perfectly for sunny days by the coast.
Stage 13 | San Remo – Cuneo
Guiseppe Rinaldi, Dolcetto d'Alba
Here we are, we've made it; we've hit the land of the wines with more power than Cav's pins. Piemonte; the choices here are infinite and can range from £ to ££££. For value, choose a Langhe Nebbiolo – it's very similar to Barolo for a fraction of the price. For something close to the route though, it has to be a Dolcetto d'Alba. Small fruit equals rich tannin. This wine needs red meats or rich tomato pasta.
Giuseppe Rinaldi, Dolcetto d'Alba
Stage 14 | Santena – Turin
Pinerolese Ramie DOC "Arcansiel" 2019
Vineyards wrap themselves around the south of Turin and the peloton travel through a fair few today. The Barbera grape is growing in notoriety for its light body with nice ripe tannins and notes of violets and red fruits, so we'll be sipping on that as the race rolls on.
Stage 15 | Rivarolo Canavese – Cogne
Fontanafredda - Asti DOCG NV
Today is not for the faint hearted. After a day of full gas ascending in the mountains, I can't think of anything better than having a freezing cold glass of Asti. Known for generally being cheap fruity fizzy wine, this interesting production method leaves sugars in the wine and a very nice effervescence. Fontanafredda is not cheap but it has beautiful complexity that makes it worth the price. Paired with some nice mango gelato, for me that would be perfect after cycling up three mountains!
Stage 16 | Salò – Aprica
Sforzato di Valtellina "5 Stelle" 2017 - Nino Negri
If yesterday hurt the peloton's legs, today will not be nice. The "Sforzato wine Stage", there are many interesting winemaking technique's in Italy and this one, Sforzato, is one where grapes are semi dried to concentrate sugars. This creates a rich wine with great complexity and high ABV.
Stage 17 | Ponte di Legno – Lavarone
Alois Lageder, AM SAND, Gewurztraminer
The Alto Adige has much more in common with German and Austrian wines than with those from the south of Italy. Fresh, crisp, high acid floral wines are created here and are perfect tipple for today. Today we will try something off the beaten track...Gewurztraminer. Try this with gnocchi with some speck and aromatic herbs.
Stage 18 | Borgo Valsugana – Treviso
Tenuta di Collalbrigo Extra Dry NV
We are nearing the end of the tour and we don’t want to pop too early, but we are in the beautiful UNESCO Dolomites, home of Prosecco! When in Rome... Prosecco gets a bad wrap but there are some beautiful examples if you care to look past the aisles at Tesco. You must, if you can, try prosecco with fritto misto on the streets of Venice. It is to die for. However, today we sip it nice and chilled form the comfort of our home.
tenuta di collalbrigo extra dry nv
Stage 19 | Marano Lagunare – Castelmonte
Roberta Borghesa, Fruliano DOC
Down from the mountains to the coast today into a wine region with plenty of international, well known, varietals. Fruliano is on the menu today; often mistaken for Sauvy B (that's Sauvignon Blanc to you and I), this fruit forward white wine pairs superbly with something like an artichoke salad with hard cheese.
Stage 20 | Belluno – Passo Fedaia/Marmolada
Pieropan Soave Classico
We are not near any vineyards today as we are simply too high in the mountains! So we will drink an iconic wine. Gargenega is not commonly known but this food friendly varietal lends it self to rich pasta or burrata salad. Serve this nice and chilled while the men split from the boys in the final climb of the tour!
Stage 21 | Verona – Verona 🏁
Allegrini, Amarone delle Valpolicella DOCG 2016
We made it! Sorry, they made it. The final day and 17.4km of being in the red to get to the finish line. As there are no vineyards in Venice, we will be going into the red too, a big red to end a big few weeks: Amarone della Valpolicella. This beautifully crafted wine is made using semi-dried Corvina grapes, intensifying flavours and body. This wine is not for the faint hearted, normally at around 16% ABV but it embodies everything that Italy is about! Drink this on its own or with the biggest plate of tomato-based pasta and settle in for what could be make or break for the leaders!
