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Stefano Amerighi

Syrah 2015

Price: $45.95
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Tasting notes

This is Syrah with a distinctly Old World personality — black pepper, iron, tobacco, and dark cherry rather than jammy fruit. The combination of whole-cluster and foot-pressed fermentation in concrete, followed by aging in wood and cement, gives it textural grip and savory depth without sacrificing freshness. At 14% ABV from a warm vintage, the tannins are firm but integrated.

BodyFruitTanninAcidity
Taste profile
Black CherryBlack PepperTobaccoLicorice
  • Style: Full-bodied Cortona DOC red; 100% Syrah; dark fruit, black pepper, tobacco; 14% ABV; Demeter biodynamic
  • Grapes & Terroir: 100% Syrah; Poggiobello di Farneta cru, Chiuso di Cortona; southeast-facing; silty clay and chalk soils; 7,000 vines/ha; Rhône clones
  • Winemaking: Foot-pressed and whole-cluster; spontaneous fermentation in concrete vats; 14 months in wood and cement; unfined, unfiltered; 29 mg/L total SO2
  • Serving: Serve at 62-66F; decant 45-60 min; can continue to develop in bottle
  • Pairing: Braised lamb, grilled beef, aged Pecorino Toscano, olive tapenade, cured charcuterie
  • Similar To: For fans of northern Rhône Syrah (Crozes-Hermitage, Saint-Joseph) who want an Italian terroir expression

Stefano Amerighi's Cortona DOC Syrah 2015 is 100% Syrah grown at his estate cru of Poggiobello di Farneta, in the Chiuso di Cortona subzone of southeastern Tuscany. The vineyard was planted in 2002 at a density of 7,000 vines per hectare on southeast-facing hillsides with a mix of silty clay, chalk, and silt over a base of active microorganisms. Clones were sourced directly from the southern and northern Rhône Valley by Amerighi himself. The estate is Demeter-certified biodynamic, with all vineyard operations — pruning, soil work, treatments — governed by lunar and planetary phases. Only minimal copper and sulfur are applied in the vineyard, distributed in part by hand-carried backpack sprayer without tractor when soils are wet.

In the cellar, hand-harvested clusters are partially destemmed, with a portion left whole and another portion foot-pressed. The must is transferred manually into small concrete vats — without pumps — where fermentation proceeds spontaneously with indigenous yeasts and no temperature control or sulfur additions. The 2015 was aged approximately 14 months in a combination of wood and cement before being bottled without fining or filtration. Total sulfites on the 2015 are documented at 29 mg/L.

The nose offers deep dark fruit — black cherry, blackberry, and plum — with well-defined notes of black pepper, tobacco, licorice, and iron-inflected minerality. The palate is concentrated and tannic with good structural grip and a long finish. This is Cortona Syrah with clear ties to the northern Rhône in its savory, peppery character rather than a fruit-forward, extracted style.

Cortona's terroir, at nearly 600 meters above sea level in the foothills near the Val di Chiana, retains natural acidity through cool nights even in warm vintages. The 2015 vintage in Tuscany was warm and dry, producing ripe, concentrated fruit with firm structure.

Best alongside slow-braised or grilled red meats — lamb shoulder, beef short rib, or entrecôte. The savory, peppery character also works well with cured charcuterie, aged Pecorino Toscano, or dishes with black olive tapenade. Avoid delicate preparations; this wine wants a counterpart with equal weight.

Wine details

Dry/Sweet:, Dry
Wine Type:, Red Wine
Wine Style:, Full Body
Grapes:, Syrah
Farming:, Organic and Biodynamic
Vintage:, 2015
Alcohol:, 14%
Country:, Italy
Region:, Tuscany
Appellation:, Cortona DOC
Bottle Size:, 750ml
Sugar Level:, Zero Added Sugar

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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.

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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

Stefano Amerighi

Stefano Amerighi is from Cortona and comes from a farming family. He began his project in 2001 after a geological investigation of the Chiuso di Cortona area identified Poggiobello di Farneta as a site suited to serious Syrah: two well-exposed hillsides oriented south to southeast, with silty clay and chalk soils and a dense population of soil microorganisms. He planted 8.5 hectares of Syrah in 2002 at 7,000 vines per hectare, using clones sourced personally from estates in both the southern and northern Rhône Valley. His first commercial vintage was 2006. Today he serves as president of the Cortona DOC consorzio.

The estate is certified biodynamic by Demeter. All vineyard operations — pruning, soil cultivation, and phytosanitary treatments — follow lunar and planetary calendars. Only copper and sulfur are used for disease protection, applied in minimal quantities and sometimes distributed manually by backpack sprayer to avoid compacting wet soils with a tractor. Rows are alternated between worked and rested, with some rows left completely undisturbed — including for treatments — for a full year at a time. The farm also raises Chianina cattle, pigs, geese, and hens, and maintains over 200 heirloom fruit tree varieties, operating as a closed agricultural ecosystem.

In the winery, hand-harvested clusters are destemmed, with a portion left whole and another foot-pressed and transferred manually into small concrete vats without pumps. Fermentation is spontaneous, using only indigenous yeasts, with no sulfur additions and no temperature control. After fermentation, the wine ages approximately 14 months in a combination of wood and cement tanks before being bottled without fining or filtration. No corrective measures or enological additives are used at any stage. In exceptional vintages, Amerighi produces a separate Apice cuvée from the upper section of the de' Canonici vineyard, aged an additional 30 months in bottle before release.

Wine region

Tuscany, Italy

Cortona is a hilltop town in eastern Tuscany, situated at nearly 600 meters above sea level in the province of Arezzo, roughly equidistant between the Adriatic and Tyrrhenian coasts. The surrounding vineyards sit on soils of Pliocene and Pleistocene origin, rich in clay, silt, and sand, with absorbent clay layers that buffer vines through dry summers. Altitude brings meaningful diurnal temperature swings that preserve acidity and slow sugar accumulation overnight, moderating what is otherwise a warm, dry growing season. The Val di Chiana below creates a distinct local microclimate that further differentiates Cortona from other Tuscan growing zones.

Cortona DOC was granted in 1999, largely on the strength of ampelographer Attilio Scienza's nearly 30-year study of the zone, which found the terroir geologically and climatically similar to the Rhône Valley. Syrah has been grown in Cortona since the late 1700s and is today the dominant variety in the appellation, accounting for the majority of DOC production. Under DOC rules, varietal wines must contain at least 85% of the named grape. Sangiovese, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, and several whites — including Grechetto and Chardonnay — are also permitted, but Syrah defines the appellation's identity.

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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