Wine Collab of the Week: The Best Bottle to Welcome a Vancouver Spring

We’re ripe and ready to dive into a Vancouver spring; cherry blossoms are popping up and the mercury’s steadily climbing upward. What better time to nab a window table at a local, buzzy restaurant and enjoy a crisp, cool and juicy glass of white wine? May we suggest heading over to Osteria Savio Volpe and grabbing a glass of their eponymous Savio Soave 2021 from northern Italy?

The Collab: Savio Volpe x Tinazzi

Lisa Cook is the wine director of the beloved Fraserhood osteria, where for years now locals and tourists alike have been flocking for handmade pasta and killer fare from the wood-fired oven. Yup, the wine flows, as do spritzes and sours, but this season we’re leaning towards this blend of Garganega and Trebbiano produced by the Veneto’s Tinazzi family. This project found Cook working with the Wine Syndicate, a B.C.-based importer of international wines, hoping for a delicious pour of something Savio would be proud to put their name on. A whole slate of samples from both the Veneto and the family properties in Puglia were put on the water, and once arriving on our shores, the team got to tasting and eventually decided on this gem.

Why It’s Awesome

Once the wine was decided upon, the design team from Glasfurd & Walker hopped right to it, creating the shiny and sharp labels. The work then went back to Italy so bottles could be filled and labeled, and after a handful of supply chain delays, the shipment landed back on this side of the globe. The patience of it all coming together was rewarded, as the final result is pretty damn tasty. Cook was looking for the easygoing nature of a Pinot Grigio, but with a little more pizzazz. Mission accomplished. Think citrus fruit like Meyer lemon and pink grapefruit, awash with a bright bounty of pears. Bright acidity keeps that freshness on point.

How to Pair It

You cannot mess up pairing this wine with Savio Volpe’s cuisine. Burrata and mortadella, pistachio salsa verde and focaccia? Check. Their famous kale salad with pecorino, pangrattato and lemon pepper dressing? Do it. It marries those bitter greens and nutty cheese elements well. My personal pasta fave, the agnolotti dal plin with chicken and pork, red wine and crispy sage? Oh, hell yeah! At $12 a glass (and $60 a bottle), this is a super fun exclusive wine that’s worthy of a whirl. It indeed pairs well with the season.