Natalino del Prete, Natali Primitivo 2022

Based in San Donaci in southern Puglia, Natalino del Prete farms about 10 hectares of vineyards alongside olive trees, keeping everything firmly rooted in Salento’s traditions. The family has been working this land for generations, and since 1994 the estate has been fully organic.

The grape varieties are as local as they come: Negroamaro, Primitivo, Susumaniello, Malvasia Nera and Aleatico. No international stand-ins, no buying fruit from elsewhere — just the classic voices of Salento grown in their own soils.

In the cellar, Natalino relies on concrete tanks above and below ground. Fermentations run with wild yeasts, additions are minimal, and oak is avoided. Sulphur is kept low, sometimes absent. The result is wines that feel raw and direct, a clear line from vineyard to glass.

His wines don’t aim for polish. They carry the rustic energy of the south, with dark fruit, herbs, earth and a savoury backbone, but always with freshness that keeps them alive and shning at the table. Honest, characterful, and unmistakably Puglian.