Cardedu Praja Monica de Sardegna 2021

Sergio Loi is a 4th generation Sardinian producer whose family winery has always practiced no-chemical farming in the vineyards and minimum intervention in the cellar. The Cardedu vineyards are located on 6 hectares of crumbling granite soils on the island’s sparsely populated southeast coast, and on schist soils in the hills and cliffs around Jerzu. The local Monica grape (which likely originated in Spain) is fermented with native yeasts in room-sized cement tanks from the 1950s under the family house. It’s bottled unfiltered with 20mg/L added at the end of vinification. 

This is a rustic, spicy, light/medium bodied red with dried-herb notes and a touch of dark cherry fruit. Goes well with pasta, olives, spicy clams and sausages…