Il best white wine of the year? It's the Alto Adige Sauvignon Gran Lafóa Ris. '21 – Colterenzio produced in a vineyard that in the 450s began a qualitative revolution: “an extreme selection of the portion of the vineyard most suited to this variety, at XNUMX metres above sea level, which gives a powerful, intense and at the same time extraordinarily elegant white”.
It is from Tuscany instead the best red wine of the year, is the Chianti Colli Fiorentini Molino degli Innocenti Ris. '19 – Torre a Cona which “perfectly embodies the paradigm of the great red, classic and modern at the same time. A structured but not imposing wine, obtained from a historic terroir and an indigenous grape, all played on depth, on the finesse of details, on elegance”.
We then move to Oltrepò to find theBest Bubble of the Year: OP Pinot Nero M. Cl. Pas Dosé Poggio dei Duca '19 – Calatroni, “A splendid example of what Pinot Noir, in this case from a single plot at 550 metres above sea level in the municipality of Rocca de' Giorgi, can give in a terroir as suited as Oltrepò”.
Best Bubble of the Year: OP Pinot Nero M. Cl. Pas Dosé Poggio dei Duca '19 – Calatroni; Best Rosé RGC Valtènesi Chiaretto Antitesi '23 – Avanzi
The Gambero Rosso Guide to Italian Wines 2025 “photographs” as every year the state of health of the Italian wine world, a rrich panorama of excellence that emerges from 24.772 references, compared to approximately 40 thousand wines tasted. A precious panorama for wine enthusiasts in which 498 Tre Bicchieri stand out, the highest recognition awarded by the experts of the Guide to Excellent Wines including 52 on debut at the top, with a new section dedicated to Rare Wines, intended to also give space to the smallest winemaking entities, characterized by a very limited run of bottles and therefore doubly precious. Fifty large limited-run bottles capable of sparking the curiosity of collectors: true wine treasures that range from prestigious cuvées aged for 40 years on the lees, to single parcels or meditation wines for a truly unique wine list.
498 Three Glasses awarded out of approximately 40 thousand wines tasted
Continuing with the special prizes we find how Rosé of the Year: RGC Valtènesi Chiaretto Antitesi '23 – Avanzi, “A seemingly delicate and subtle wine, Antitesi is part of the nouvelle vague of Italian winemaking that has revolutionized the style and image of Rosé in Italy. A revolution that began in Valtènesi, where Avanzi creates this delicious Chiaretto based on Groppello: extraordinary ease of drinking, fine fruity notes, sharp and mineral. It also has a great capacity for evolution over time”.
We then go down to Calabria to find the best Meditation Wine of the Year: it is the Moscato Passito al Governo di Saracena '15 – Feudo dei Sanseverino by the Bisconte brothers who have signed another small masterpiece of spectacular depth and complexity, a true meditation wine to be discovered slowly in its thousand nuances”.
Best Value for Money Award to Lambrusco di Grasparossa di Castelvetro 7Bio – Settecani
An award that always draws a lot of attention from consumers who are more careful than ever about their wallets these days is the one for the Best Value for Money, award goes to Lambrusco di Grasparossa di Castelvetro 7Bio – Settecani, “a Cooperative that works in an exemplary manner and succeeds – thanks to the commitment of its members and the team that manages it – in creating authentic products, which perfectly describe the territory of origin and which are offered at a truly affordable price”.
For the section Solidarity Project the award went to Lis Neris of the Pecorari family “which is headed by the Fondazione Fancesca Pecorari ONLUS, which for years has been involved in projects to assist children in Myanmar, Andhra Pradesh in India and Uganda. With their fundamental contribution, 34 schools have been built.
It is in Sicily, according to the judges of the Gambero Rosso Guide the Emerging Winery of the Year in the Etna area where Renato Maugeri and daughters Carla, Michela and Paola, “in the rapid course of three harvests it has established itself as one of the most significant in the denomination, an achievement that ranges from vineyard-based winemaking to a complete hospitality system. And it has big development plans”.
In the list of special prizes we find the one for the Sustainable Viticulture awarded this year to Resistenti Nicola Biasi creator of the introduction of the new “resistant” varieties in viticulture, “an oenologist with a long curriculum who has combined words with facts, creating and contributing to creating the most interesting and innovative labels with the new varieties under the banner Resistenti Nicola Biasi. A well-deserved award”.
The other special prizes went to Belisario as Cooperative of the Year, for having been able to tell "the territory of Matelica with wines of a careful and impeccable cut, often unforgettable and capable of defying time" while that of Winemaker of the Year was awarded to Mario Fontana "Heir to a long tradition of winemakers"; and the Cellar of the Year award went to San Leonardo with this motivation "For over 300 years the Guerrieri Gonzaga family has been the custodian of this splendid estate, which thanks to the passion and personal commitment of Carlo, winemaker, and now of his son Anselmo has earned an international reputation for the quality of its wines".
“The work behind the Guide is immense,” comments Lorenzo Ruggeri, editor-in-chief of Gambero Rosso. “I am proud of a team of almost 70 experts, coordinated by curators Giuseppe Carrus, Gianni Fabrizio and Marco Sabellico. Never before has it been more urgent to tell the story of the beauty condensed in a good glass of wine. We are not just talking about territory, landscape and human value, but about a real lifestyle: a curious look at the world. After tasting almost 40 samples, we are able to take a high-resolution photo of the world of Italian wine, which faces great challenges. A universe of fascinating complexity, in constant evolution. Like our Guide.”
Another new feature of this year's edition is finally a new and ambitious course dedicated to the Wine of the Future, coordinated by Professor Attilio Scienza, “with a transversal, rich and highly innovative educational program to enhance an Italian wine-growing industry in a time of great transformation. The training project, divided into 4 remote modules for a total of 150 hours of on-demand lessons, in addition to in-person seminars, represents a complete journey of the supply chain: from the innovations in the vineyard to those of the market, business models and new languages between storytelling and the digital world”.
Piedmont and Tuscany, with 91 and 75 awarded wines respectively, on the podium for number of Tre Bicchieri
Considering the national wine panorama that emerges from the Guide, Piedmont and Tuscany, with 91 and 75 awarded wines respectively, are as usual on the podium for the number of Tre Bicchieri. For Piedmont it should be emphasized that wine consumption seems to have shifted to whites and therefore first and foremost it is the golden moment of Timorasso; for Tuscany it is Chianti Classico the most represented denomination with more than 20 award-winning labels, but there is no lack of memorable labels, among other areas, also from Montalcino, Bolgheri, San Gimignano.
For the other regions, making a quick excursus from North to South of our peninsula, we can say that among many confirmations and wines awarded for the first time, Lombardy boasts the national primacy on the classic method in terms of Tre Bicchieri, with many Franciacorta and Oltrepò Pavese. In Veneto, labels with an often more streamlined and agile character emerge in the Valdobbiadene district. In Abruzzo, despite some problems, the Montepulciano sector is the majority within the list of award winners.
In Campania, positive signals are coming from the red wine sector, which is more focused than last year. In Puglia, despite the early harvest and the drought that caused a drop in yields, producers who worked well obtained satisfactory to excellent results. In Calabria, the return in grand style of Cirò is noted, which thanks to many excellent producers, both historic and new, is establishing itself as a great wine.
Finally, In Sicily, Etna, as anticipated, plays the lion's share, especially on its red side with nine wines reaching the top step of the podium
