As a self proclaimed lover of Italian wine, I'm the first to admit that some of Italy's wines need a bit of  explaining. Vin Santo, or "holy wine," is an amber colored dessert wine produced throughout Tuscany. It is most often made from a blend of Trebbiano Toscana and Malvasia Bianco. Once harvested, the grapes are dried on mats over the winter before being pressed and fermented until the yeast dies off naturally.

Aging takes place in small wooden casks which are not topped up giving the wines an oxidative oloroso sherry character. In addition the Italians have a habit of keeping the barrels under the roof of the winery in a space called the vinsantaia. As the weather warms up each year this encourages refermentation of any unfermented sugars that remain in the wine. Nicolas Caramelli, the winemaker at Fattoria La Ripa, told me that making Vin Santo goes against everything he ever learned about producing clean, technically correct wine.

Vin Santo comes in a bewildering range of styles from bone dry to ultra sweet depending on how long the winemaker dries the grapes. The longer the drying process, the greater the evaporation and the sweeter the must. From my own personal experience, most Vin Santo falls somewhere in the middle of the flavor spectrum.                                                                                                                                              

La Tancia Vin Santo del Chianti has an intense, spicy bouquet of raisins and dried fruit. The palate has apricot, honey and vanilla tones with just the right amount of sweetness. Have an open mind and try this unusual wine with hard cheese or Cantuccini (Tuscan almond biscuits) at your next dinner party.

Paul Quaglini, ABC Fine Wine & Spirits Wine Supervisor

Follow him on Twitter @abcwinepaulq