New online merchant, Independent Wine, is passionate about premium Italian wine. As well as travelling to Italy to meet winemakers, the team also selects stock based on objective proof of quality – and one of the key factors is whether the wine has won a Decanter World Wine Award.
Oleg Dmitriev, co-founder of Independent Wine, says: ‘Decanter World Wine Awards is the most influential wine competition in the world. Decanter doesn’t sell wines, and it doesn’t need to promote certain brands, so its verdict is impartial.’
Independent Wine works directly with wine producers, without any involvement by middlemen. Its team travels to Italy and thoroughly inspects each winery, vineyard and wine to make sure the process and products meet its high standards. This gives Independent Wine a unique understanding of Italian wineries.
While large distributors source from wineries producing at scale, Independent Wine represents boutique family winemakers. These small businesses produce very limited quantities of top quality wine, and many of the bottles stocked by Independent Wine are UK exclusives.
In Piedmont, Independent Wine works with Cantina Francone, a producer of Barbaresco (DWWA Gold Medal 2019) and Barolo (DWWA Silver Medal 2019). It also works with the remarkable K. Martini & Sohn in Alto Adige DOC: producers of fabulous Weissburgunder (DWWA Gold Medal, 2019), Maturum Lagrein (DWWA Silver Medal 2019) and Maturum Chardonnay (DWWA Bronze Medal 2019).
Another region well represented by Independent Wines is Tuscany’s renowned Chianti Classico DOCG, including Castello di Radda (Chianti Classico, DWWA Gold Medal 2019 and Gran Selezione, DWWA Gold Medal 2019), and La Castellina (Chianti Classico Riserva, James Suckling 93 points).
Independent Wine also specialises in Sardinia, representing the highly innovative winemaker Siddùra – producers of Beru Vermentino (DWWA Platinum Medal 2019), a dessert Moscato made in the Passito method (DWWA Gold Medal 2019), and Fola Cannonau (DWWA Bronze Medal 2019). It also sells wine from the award-winning I Garagisti di Sorgono – notable wines include Uras Cannonau (DWWA Gold Medal 2019) and Manca Cannonau (DWWA Silver Medal 2019).
Dmitriev feels that this is a niche that needs to be filled. ‘We believe that many professionals in the UK want to drink exceptional wine but don’t have the time to search for it. That’s why we are happy to do the hard work,’ he explains. ‘To us, Decanter World Wine Awards are the solid proof of quality, which helps our customers – and us – to choose truly outstanding bottles.’
Visit Independent Wine.
