Tenuta Sette Cieli

At dusk on a clear day at Tenuta Sette Cieli, the sea and sky become indistinguishable and form an even backdrop of indigo blue—a view that inspired the name for their inky, plum-hued Indaco (Italian for indigo) wine. Erika Ratti—the mother of our aforementioned host, Ambrogio Cremona Ratti—purchased the estate in 1994 and six years later, the first vineyards were planted. Now the winery is home to 17 acres of cabernet sauvignon, cabernet franc, merlot and malbec, with each variety separated by terraces crafted of stone dug up from beneath the estate. The vineyards are organic and farmed manually, which CEO and winemaker, Elena Pozzolini, compares to homeopathic medicine; instead of a quick cure through pesticides, she prefers the natural route for long-term gain. Sitting at the highest point of the estate with Pozzolini and Ratti, we learn about the importance of the balance of the vines and the balance in the glass, and the joy of profiles shifting slightly from one vintage to the next. “It’s not like we’re making T-shirts,” Pozzolini says. “Wine shouldn’t always be the same.”