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Giovanni Mesina

Rozzo 2018

Price: $39.95
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Tasting notes

Rozzo delivers what Sangiovese does best at this scale: juicy red cherry, dried herb, and a fine dusty grip that keeps each sip honest. No oak, no additions, and a farm where the sheep far outnumber the wine bottles — it shows in the glass.

BodyFruitTanninAcidity
CherryEarthDried Tea LeavesThyme
  • Style: Dry, medium-bodied red; bright ruby; cherry, earth, dried herb; 13.5% ABV
  • Grapes & Terroir: 90% Sangiovese, 10% Montepulciano; Pianello, northeast of Perugia; hill soils at ~229-300m elevation; organic farming
  • Winemaking: Hand-harvested; native yeast fermentation; ~5 days skin maceration; 6 months in resin and fiberglass tanks; no oak; no added SO2; unfined, unfiltered
  • Serving: Serve at 60-64F; can be enjoyed with a brief 20-minute open or light decant
  • Pairing: Roast lamb, grilled pork, cured meats, aged pecorino, lentil soup, tomato-meat ragu
  • Similar To: For fans of lighter-styled Chianti or Cerasuolo d'Abruzzo who want something rawer and more farm-driven

Rozzo is a red wine from Giovanni Battista Mesina, made from 90% Sangiovese and 10% Montepulciano grown on the hilltop farm of Pianello, roughly 13 kilometers northeast of Perugia in central Umbria. The vineyards sit at approximately 229-300 meters elevation amid orchards, olive groves, and the family's working sheep farm. The blend varies slightly year to year, and this 2018 bottling falls under the Umbria IGT designation.

Winemaking is minimal by design. Grapes are hand-harvested, fermented with native yeasts, macerated on the skins for around 5 days, then aged for 6 months in resin-lined and fiberglass tanks with no oak contact. No sulfur is added at any stage. The wine is bottled unfined and unfiltered.

The result is a medium-bodied red with dusty, subtle tannins, bright red fruit, an earthy, herbal undertow, and good natural acidity. It is transparent about where it comes from — a small farm where sheep outnumber wine barrels — and drinks with honest, unpretentious energy. Around 2,000 bottles were produced.

Pair with roast lamb, grilled pork sausages, or a plate of cured meats and aged pecorino. Its savory, earthy character also works well alongside pasta with tomato-based meat ragu or a simple lentil soup.

Wine details

Dry/Sweet:, Dry
Wine Type:, Red Wine
Wine Style:, Medium Body
Grapes:, Sangiovese, Montepulciano
Farming:, Organic
Vintage:, 2018
Alcohol:, 13.5%
Country:, Italy
Region:, Umbria
Appellation:, Umbria IGT
Bottle Size:, 750ml
Sugar Level:, Zero Added Sugar

We will process and ship your order in 2-3 business days, you will receive a shipping confirmation email with tracking as soon as the Carrier scans the shipping label.

Ground shipping time depends on location, here's a breakdown:

West Coast: 1-2 business days
Midwest: 3-4 business days
East Coast: 5 business days

Process time is not shipping time. Shipping time starts from the days successive to the day of shipping, after the order has been processed.

See here our shipping policy.


Important Compliance Requirements

FedEx and other carriers we might occasionally use can only deliver wine to customers who are 21 years or older. Someone must be at the address to receive the package, carriers don't just drop a package and leave. They must ensure the person receiving the wine is 21 or older.


Re-shipping a Package

If a package is returned to us after three failed delivery attempts, we can only re-ship the wine upon payment of a re-shipping fee, to be determined based on the shipping address and number of bottles. Shipping wine is extremely expensive. We are sorry about this, but we have no other choice. Please make sure there's always someone at the address you enter as your shipping address.

If you'd like to receive a refund for a package that was returned to us after FedEx made three delivery attempts, we can do that but we must keep a $20 refund fee; FedEx charges us a lot of money for returns, unfortunately, I can't stress this enough.


Re-routing a Package

If you'd like to reroute a package after it's been shipped, we can do so for a $20 re-routing fee. We cannot re-route a package across state borders. For any change of address, please contact us as soon as possible, ideally within 1-2 days from placing the order or we cannot guarantee we'll be able to reroute or change your order's shipping address.


Canceling an Order

If you'd like to cancel an order after it's been shipped, we can do so upon payment of a small cancellation fee – the amount depends on the size of the order. Carriers charge us a lot of money to recall a package en-route.


Heat/Frost damage

We are not responsible for heat- or frost-related issues. We offer ice-packs upon request. Please let us know if you think that there could be heat-related issues. If we don't hear anything from you regarding weather issues before an order is shipped, or if you don't request a hold due to the weather, we are not responsible for heat/frost damage.


Placed an order. What next?

1. You will receive an order confirmation email with your order summary.*

2. As soon as your order ships from the warehouse, usually within 2-3 business days, this applies to all shipping rates, you will receive a shipping confirmation email with your tracking information. 2DAY shipping refers to shipping time; we still need 2-3 business days to prepare an order. We need to pick and pack, QA, add printed collateral, and palletize the orders.

3. Please track your package using the tracking service.

4. The carrier will attempt delivery a maximum of 3 times. After 3 delivery attempts, your package will be sent back to our warehouse.**

*Please ensure your email address is correct; otherwise, you will not receive the order and shipping confirmation emails.

**If delivery is attempted 3 times without success, or if you fail to retrieve your package from the carrier depot by the stated deadline, the shipping fee will not be refunded to the customer.

Returns Policy

If you are not satisfied with your purchase, please contact us at (424) 414-2040 or via e-mail at hello@primalwine.com between 9 am and 5 pm Pacific Standard Time, Monday through Sunday, we would like to understand and try to solve your concerns. We can offer refunds only as store credit.

Producer profile

Giovanni Mesina

Giovanni Battista Mesina grew up on the rugged terrain of Sardinia's Barbagia Mountains, where his family has raised sheep for three generations. He moved with his family to Umbria as a child and has remained there, continuing the sheep farming tradition on a hilltop farm in Pianello, a small hamlet northeast of Perugia. Today the farm supports over 1,000 sheep, producing milk, cheese, wool, and pasture-raised meat alongside the wines.

At the time of his first bottled vintage in 2017, Mesina farmed just 3 hectares of vines. The vineyard is surrounded by orchards, olive groves, and woodland. Red varieties include Sangiovese, Montepulciano, Ciliegiolo, and Vernaccia Rossa; Vermentino — a nod to his Sardinian roots — is the sole white grape planted. Before 2017, wine was made strictly for home consumption and direct sales to locals. Winemaking guidance came from Danilo Marcucci, one of the region's respected natural wine figures.

All wines are made with minimal intervention. Grapes are hand-harvested and fermented with indigenous yeasts. For Rozzo, skin maceration runs approximately 5 days, followed by 6 months of aging in resin-lined and fiberglass tanks. No oak is used. No sulfur is added at any point. Wines are bottled unfined and unfiltered. The labels are printed on paper made from grass.

Wine region

Umbria, Italy

Umbria is the only landlocked region on the Italian peninsula, bordered by Tuscany to the west and north, Marche to the east, and Lazio to the south. The landscape is predominantly rolling hills and mountains, with vineyard elevations typically ranging from 200 to 500 meters above sea level. The climate is Mediterranean with continental influence: cold, wet winters and hot, dry summers, with meaningful diurnal temperature swings at elevation that help grapes retain acidity. Soils vary considerably across the region, from clay and sand in the valley floors to limestone and marl on the hillsides.

Umbria holds two DOCG designations — Montefalco Sagrantino DOCG and Torgiano Rosso Riserva DOCG — along with 13 DOCs and 6 IGTs including the broad Umbria IGT. Sangiovese is the most widely planted red grape, accounting for roughly 22 percent of total vineyard area, and is the backbone of Torgiano Rosso Riserva. The native Sagrantino grape, grown almost exclusively around Montefalco, produces some of Italy's most tannic and age-worthy reds. Other significant red varieties include Montepulciano, Ciliegiolo, and Canaiolo Nero, while Grechetto and Trebbiano Spoletino lead white grape production.

Frequently asked question

We will process and ship your order in 2-3 business days, you will receive a shipping confirmation email with tracking as soon as the Carrier scans the shipping label.

Ground shipping time depends on location, here's a breakdown:

West Coast: 1-2 business days
Midwest: 3-4 business days
East Coast: 5 business days

Process time is not shipping time. Shipping time starts from the days successive to the day of shipping, after the order has been processed.

See here our shipping policy.

Signature on delivery is mandatory for wine deliveries. Please make sure someone is at the shipping address to sign for the package.

If applicable, please consider delivering the package to a business address to ensure someone is available to sign for the package.

We also have the option of delivering the package to a Carrier's store for pickup. Please reach out to us to coordinate.

Carrier will try to delivery a package up to three times before returning the package to us.

See here our shipping policy.

If you miss a delivery and a package gets returned to us we have two options:

1) Reship the package right away: due to the very high cost of shipping and returns, we must charge a re-shipping fee to be determined based on package size and shipping destination.

2) Consolidate the returned package with your next order: this option is free of charge and it's the most popular option.

See here our shipping policy.

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