Lady Pink (2023)

About this wine

Lady Pink is a rosé with real personality, built from 100% Aglianico in the Taburno hills of Campania. It opens with scents of sour cherry, hibiscus, pomegranate, and blood orange, then follows with flavors of red currant, cranberry, cherry skin, and pink grapefruit. There is a lightly grippy edge on the palate, which gives it more shape and energy than many easygoing rosés. That little touch of structure is part of the charm here, since Aglianico naturally brings color, freshness, and a bit of grip even in pink form. This bottling stands out because Aglianico del Taburno Rosato was one of Italy’s earliest rosés to earn DOCG status, and Cantine Tora gives it a style that feels both bright and serious without losing its drinkability. The overall impression is lively, savory, and polished, with a floral streak that keeps the wine feeling lifted from start to finish.

About the grape

Aglianico is an ancient southern Italian grape believed to have Greek roots, and in this bottling it is used as 100 percent of the blend to make a rosato rather than a red. The variety is known for thick skins and late ripening, so vines are planted on the Torrecuso hills at about 350 to 400 meters on clay and calcareous pockets to balance ripeness and acidity. Vine training at Cantine Tora favors espalier with Guyot and spurred cordon pruning, which helps control yields and expose the fruit for even maturation. For the rosato style the winery limits skin contact and favours controlled temperature fermentation and stainless steel aging to highlight the grape s fresh aromatic traits in this wine.

Quick facts

• 🌸 Lady Pink is one of Italy’s standout rosés because it is produced as a DOCG rosato from 100% Aglianico, a grape usually kept for big reds, making the bottle a bit of a regional icon.
• 👨‍👦 Cantine Tora’s Lady Pink comes from a family project started by the Rillo brothers in 2004 but built on more than a century of local vineyard history, giving the wine a strong storytelling pedigree.
• 🎨 Despite Aglianico’s reputation for bold tannins, Lady Pink pours a delicate, onion-skin pink that surprises many drinkers who expect a heftier color from the variety.
• 🏅 Lady Pink has punched above its price point in tastings and guides, earning solid scores and appearing in Italian rosé roundups, which helped raise its profile outside Campania.
• 🌋 The grapes for Lady Pink are grown on the volcanic soils of the Taburno foothills, which help the rosé keep lively acid and mineral lift uncommon in many southern Italian rosés.

Palate profile

Producer

Cantine Tora is a family winery in Torrecuso, Campania, founded in 2004 by brothers Giampiero and Francesco Rillo who built on their father s century long vineyard experience. The estate cultivates about twelve hectares of vineyards on the slopes of the Taburno, focusing on native varieties such as Aglianico and Falanghina and a cru called Spartiviento. The company combines traditional peasant techniques with modern winemaking and promotes sustainable agriculture while offering tastings and visits by appointment. Over time Cantine Tora has become a noted local producer for the Taburno area, aiming to valorize the region s enological heritage through careful vineyard work and small production runs.