Rome, Pipero restaurant. This is where Gambero Rosso closed the two-day presentation of the 2026 Italian Wines Guide with a special event: a masterclass dedicated to the four wineries that, over the Guide's forty-year history, have distinguished themselves for their excellence in all types of wine—sparkling, white, red, and sweet. Among these was Sella & Mosca , the historic Alghero-based winery that for over a century has represented the region through its grape varieties. "We wanted to pay homage to those wineries that over time have maintained consistent production and quality across all types of wine , without ever losing their identity and connection to the territory," explained Giuseppe Carrus, curator of the Guide and host of the evening. "It wasn't easy to find them: many wineries today complete their range with sparkling or sweet wines, but few have such a solid and cross-disciplinary history." The other four selected protagonists were Ca' Rugate (Veneto), Roeno (Veneto-Trentino) and Umani Ronchi (Marche): all family-run companies, which over time have made wine their mission.

In 2026, the Vini d'Italia Guide will turn forty : four decades in which Gambero Rosso has chronicled the evolution of Italian wine, from the first Tre Bicchieri labels to the current diversity of styles, terroirs, and languages: " Today, it's no longer enough for a wine to simply be good. It must have a voice, an identity, it must be able to express the place where it comes from . The wineries we discovered in the pages of the Guide and that are here today have succeeded in doing so, year after year."

Giovanni Pinna, general manager and winemaker at Sella & Mosca , spoke about Sardinia's wine scene, beginning with the 2022 Oscarì, a fresh, luminous classic method sparkling wine made from Torbato grapes: "Torbato is a grape variety that Sella & Mosca has always cared for and protected. Having arrived in Sardinia with the Spanish in the 14th century, it was at risk of disappearing, and today it represents one of our defining characteristics. With the arrival of the Moretti family, we wanted to give it a new voice, following the example of Franciacorta but remaining faithful to the local variety. It was a challenge and, at the same time, a way to reaffirm our identity." A wine, as Carrus also emphasized, that "demonstrates that long aging isn't necessary to achieve balance, but rather the ability to respect the grape variety and let it speak for itself ."

From the finesse of the bubbles, we moved on to the mineral elegance of the Terre Bianche Cuvée 161 2024, another tribute to Torbato, in a still version: a white that expresses the complexity of the limestone and sandy soils of the northwest of the island, with a saline note that prolongs its freshness. Then the glass deepened with the Alghero Cabernet Marchese di Villamarina Riserva 2021, the winery's flagship wine, born in 1989 from a pioneering project that found the terroir of Alghero to be the ideal habitat for an international grape variety like Cabernet Sauvignon. The tasting concluded with the long aging and age-old sweetness of the Anghelu Ruju 2009, a fortified wine of extraordinary complexity, served alongside the dinner's desserts and capable of evoking, like few others, the memory of the land and sun of Sardinia.

Throughout the evening, each winery presented a coherent journey, reflecting an Italy of wine that is changing yet remaining rooted in its landscape. From the Soave hills of Ca' Rugate to the Marche slopes of Umani Ronchi, passing through the Adige Valley of Roeno, the common thread was family: estates run by multiple generations, capable of innovating while remaining faithful to a shared heritage. A diverse yet united Italy is reflected in the glasses, made up of vineyards, families, and recurring gestures. And amid the bubbles of Torbato and the scent of the sea wafting from Alghero, Sardinia toasts a new milestone: being a vital part of these forty years of Italian winemaking.

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