2024 Pizzini Nonna Gisella Sangiovese, King Valley

Pizzini’s La Familia range is designed to be enjoyed with food, friends and family – this Sangiovese definitely hits the mark. Juicy cherries and blood orange aromas are joined by savoury dried oregano and basil, there’s a hint of ultra ripe tomatoes, fresh from the veggie patch and a blossomy lift that ties it all together. The gorgeous, silky texture gently carries moderate levels of fine pithy tannins that build on the back of the palate (as Sangiovese should). The texture and length speaks of a wine well above this price point. Pair it with… I want to say “life” – be it pizza, a grazing platter, pot-luck or just a chat with a friend; this crowd-pleasing Sangiovese promises to delight on all accounts. Drink to 2030.

92 points Nicoel Bilson for Wine Pilot, November 2025

This is lifted and energetic Sangiovese with a playful and exuberant air. Red cherry, cranberry, plum and red rose leap from the glass before a substratum of dried herbs and subtle dark-chocolate tones adds savoury bass notes. The palate is red-fruited and puckish, with notes akin to the perfume: red cherry, dried herbs, spiced plum, cranberry, red rose and subtly bitter chinotto-like tones. The tannins are fine but febrile as they spread across the tongue with a grainy feel to medium length. It’s fresh, varietally true and calling out for food. Good value on show.

91 points Tom Kline for Wine Pilot, November 2025

The Sangiovese fruit for this King Valley wine was selected from Pizzini’s sites that naturally produce medium-bodied styles.

From the, in the end, warm and dry 2024 season, the fruit was crushed into stainless steel vats for cold maceration and later inoculated with a cultivated Brunello yeast strain, with the ferments allowed to reach up to 30 degrees. The pressed wine was then aged in a 20/40/40combination of plastic, stainless steel and oak (well-seasoned barriques and larger format barrels), and the blended wine crossflow filtered in preparation for bottling in January 2025.

About this producer

The Pizzini family arrived in the King Valley from Trentino in northern Italy. Setting up as tobacco farmers, they began growing Italian grape varieties in the 1980s when few in Australia were doing so. They remain a respected Australian voice in Italian varieties and wine styles, maintaining a consistently high quality across a diverse portfolio that features everyday options as well as cellar-worthy benchmark wines.