The Luigi Veronelli collection
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Michaela Morris reports on an exclusive tasting of rare Italian wines from the personal collection of the late journalist Luigi Veronelli...

Luigi Veronelli (1926-2004) was a legendary Italian wine journalist who encouraged, counselled and brought deserved recognition to many of Italy’s smaller wineries.

A true champion and defender of Italy’s gastronomic culture, he was also an avid wine collector and amassed more than 70,000 bottles in his lifetime. In 2017, Astor Wine & Spirits acquired a portion of this incredible personal collection.

I was invited to The Study at Astor Center in New York City on 3 November 2017 for a tasting of these treasured bottles. Speaking at the event were Veronelli’s daughter Elena, his long-time assistant Gian Arturo Rota and a handful of producers from Italy, some of whom had been close friends with Veronelli.


The Luigi Veronelli collection:


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Fèlsina, Fontalloro, Tuscany, Italy, 1985

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Bruno Giacosa, Metodo Tradizionale Spumante Extra Brut, Italy, 1993

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Maculan, Breganze Torcolato, Veneto, Italy, 1982

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Livio Felluga, Terre Alte, Friuli, Colli Orientali, Friuli Venezia Giulia, Italy, 1986

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Braida, Bricco dell'Uccellone, Barbera d'Asti, Piedmont, Italy, 1989

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Emidio Pepe, Montepulciano d’Abruzzo, Abruzzo, Italy, 1975

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Baron de Cles, Maso Scari, Teroldego Rotaliano, Trentino-Alto Adige, Italy, 1977

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Tenuta di Fiorano, Vino Rosso, Lazio, Italy, 1964

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Michaela Morris
Italian Expert, Decanter Premium, Decanter Magazine and DWWA Judge 2019
Michaela Morris is an international wine writer and educator. Based in Vancouver, she teaches about Italian wine across Canada and abroad. Michaela is a regular contributor to Decanter Magazine and Meininger’s Wine Business International as well as Canadian publications Taste and Quench. She is a panel chair for Vinitaly’s 5StarWines competition and was international guest judge at the Australian Alternative Varieties Wine Show in 2019.