This is a benchmark wine for this estate, and the 2018 vintage is certainly one of the best they've released. It is reticent when opened, so if you can, decant or serve in big glasses. There's a mix of dark cherry and dark plum, with some lovely floral and liquorice notes. Earthy, structured and yet still supple, this is aged in a mix of oak and steel, which gives both depth and freshness.

An estate full of history, whose origin is lost in the tales of knights, intrigue and countless battles and wars. It’s an estate which has seen a lot over the years, named after a bold (and wonderfully named) military leader, Sigismondo Pandolfo Malatesta from the mid-1400’s. The property was then taken over by Commander Giuseppe Ricci in 1941, an entrepreneur from Forli, Emilia Romagna. The recent history of the estate however, owes much to the daughter of the commander, Noelia Ricci, who in 1980 first thought of Pandolfa as a wine business and built their winery. The estate itself covers 140 hectares, of which 40ha are planted mainly to Sangiovese as well as Trebbiano and small pockets of other local varieties. Their aim here is to make a pure expression of Sangiovese, as well as a wine that is truly representative of the local countryside. Pandolfa’s property in Forli, just south of Verona and the closest wine growing region to Romagna’s coastline (there are fossils of sea shells and fish bones in the soil here), is one of majesty and significance (Mussolini was born just around the corner – but take that with a grain of salt!) It gives rise to wines that are paving their own way, and a style completely individual to this estate. Powerful yet with purity of fruit, these are brilliant wines.