One of the most compelling visits of my 2024 in wine was with winemaker Giovanna Trisorio who runs the Cincinnato cooperative in Latina province south of Rome.

I’d tasted the wines over the years and after she and I connected at Vinitaly last year, I wanted to get my boots on the ground and try to wrap my mind around why Cincinnato’s wines and so many other wines from this area are so good.

For the record, the Cincinnato cooperative is located just off the ancient Appian Way about an hour south of the capital. It’s one of the most stunning drives you’ll ever make.

First you travel through the Castelli Romani where it’s hard not to miss the renaissance of grape growers there. Make sure you stop to look at the gorgeous lakes which were formed by the ancient craters of a volcano. It’s such an important element to understanding the volcanic legacy of the winemaking there.

But then you drive down into the Latina plains. The best vineyards, I discovered, are those that rise up in the foothills on the eastern side of the valley. There, where you can feel the maritime influence of the sea, the volcanic soils make for some of the best wines produced in central Italy. It’s such an amazing place to see. Check out the topographic map of the area below.

As you can see from the images, the soil is richly volcanic. But as you can see in the photo of a newly planted vineyard, there is also a limestone component.

These soils were created thanks to the eruptions of a volcano that would form the high-altitude lakes, Albano and Nemi, in the Castelli Romani.

Giovanna’s wines are fantastic, very focused, and very market ready. The whites in particular really impressed me. But the reds have the power and depth — again, thanks to the soils and unique exposure there — that the market looks for.

For the record, the cooperative is named after Cincinnatus, the ancient Roman statesman and farmer whose story inspired our own George Washington.

The coooperative also has one of the best tasting rooms and hospitality programs in the region. I highly recommend the wines but also encourage you to make the journey yourself. You won’t be disappointed!