Editorial
DoctorWine’s editorial is a Monday regular feature with an in-depth article, analysis and commentary on current topics from both the wine and food worlds of the Italian and international scene.
Fans and wine guides
Controversy over wine guides often stems from a territorial cheer that biases judgments. But awards are not about parochialism: what matters is widespread quality, critical recognition and the time it takes for an area to really establish itself. Daniele Cernilli...
Resilience is not enough
The year 2026 promises to be a crucial year for the world of wine and food. Amid wars, economic tensions, climate change and changing perceptions of wine, the key word will be resilience. But resilience will not be enough: it...
Michelin-starred wineries
The arrival of Michelin in the wine guide industry introduces a “starred” rating system applied to wineries and not to individual wines. A choice that opens up questions: how will wineries with large productions be evaluated? How will this method...
Acidic drift ten years later
Daniele Cernilli picks up on an editorial from ten years ago that deals with a topic that is still on the agenda among experts, critics and even winemakers. I confess that that article of mine seems less old than I...
The lost classicism of the Brunello, but not only that
Before talking about classicism of Brunello, one should consider the great changes that have taken place in the last 30 years. Not only climate change, but also the evolution of viticulture and enology. Filippo Paoletti, winemaker-and certainly not a runaway-went...
Again origin or process: what really defines a wine’s identity?
The link between a wine and its origin is the foundation of its identity. The recognizability of a wine comes primarily from its terroir, soils, climate and grape varieties. That is why personal taste can never override the analysis of...
Anachronistic Brunello. Daniele Cernilli reflects on criticism
A young critic calls Brunello di Montalcino wines from the southern area, from Sesta to Sant’Angelo in Colle, “anachronistic,” accusing them of being too alcoholic and full-bodied. But wine, like art, should be interpreted, not bent to the taste of...
Wine world: a complex picture
Understanding what is happening in the wine world at this time is not easy, but certainly the phenomenon should not be trivialized and brought back to a single element. This is a perfect storm. Simplifications are useful if they do...
Caps, Heels and Miracles
This is the title of a booklet written by Maddalena Mazzeschi, a professional in the field of communication, public relations and marketing, which collects memories, anecdotes and stories from forty years of experience in this world. I know Maddalena Mazzeschi...
Second wines
We have already talked about the qualitative growth of “second wines,” but it is one thing to recognize their quality, and another to reward them as being better than first wines. In this case, a kind of short circuit is...
Avatar DoctorWine: the digital voice of Italian wine
Daniele Cernilli’s new “collaborator,” an interactive virtual alter ego, was unveiled at the presentation events of The Essential Guide 2026. It will soon be fully operational, marking a new era for wine popularization. After nearly 15 years of success in...
A toast of gratitude
Thank you for sharing with us the magic of Italian wine at the great tastings in Milan and Rome for the presentation of the Essential Guide to the Wines of Italy 2026. We want to raise our glass to make...
Are we really sure that young people do not drink wine?
Stefania Vinciguerra offers some thoughts on wine consumption by Gen Z youth and Millennials. It is wrong to say that they don’t drink; you have to try to understand how and why they drink. Surrounded by people who keep repeating...
Enoteca Ferrara has closed
It has closed (but the promise is to reopen elsewhere) the Paolillo sisters’ historic Enoteca Ferrara, an eatery of excellent cuisine and stellar wines in Rome. The causes? The transformation of Trastevere, between movida and overtourism. Daniele Cernilli tells us...
White people singing the blues
Just as in the modern musical tradition there are singers with vocals reminiscent of blacks, so there are white grape varieties-very traditional and territorial-from which white wines are produced that look like reds. Do you remember Joe Cocker? The “gas...
The color match
A few simple rules inspired by the principle of color matching. A system based mostly on experience and common sense and that normally works. Daniele Cernilli‘s word. With my longtime friend Silvano Prompicai, a.k.a. “the legendary Prompi,” we have been...
DoctorWine Guide 2026: the countdown begins
You are beginning to write to us in the editorial office or via social to get more information about the Guide 2026 presentations. Let’s start with the first previews. As I write this, we are just over a month away...
Not just duties
For months the word “tariffs” has monopolized the discourse of wine world insiders. The most schizophrenic assumptions have not allowed for serious analysis of what is really happening in the wine world outside of the duties to the U.S. Of...
Remembering Stefano Bonilli again
As he does every year in commemoration of his passing, Daniele Cernilli turns his remembrance to Stefano Bonilli, a lifelong friend and companion in his professional and food and wine adventures. On the evening of August 3, 2014, eleven years...
Wines and scores: repetita iuvant
Daniele Cernilli reposts an editorial from two years ago about whether or not wines should be evaluated with numerical scores. At a very sensitive time, for wine and for the world, that of wine scores may seem perhaps a futile...
The Essential Guide 2026: work in progress
As always in July, work on the new edition of the Essential Guide to the Wines of Italy, 2026, is in full swing. Stefania Vinciguerra tells us the behind-the-scenes story. This is it, our summer of “guiding” is in full...
Mama Ais’s 60th birthday
Exactly (or almost) 60 years ago, on July 7, 1965, the Ais, Italian Sommelier Association, was founded in Milan. We must never forget, recalls Daniele Cernilli, the contribution of Ais education to the growth of the wine sector. On July...
Small producers
Speaking of small artisanal producers, Daniele Cernilli reminds us how “small is beautiful” is primarily an Italian concept. And it is good to remember that small producers are more subject to various difficulties, climatic and market, bureaucratic and cost of...
Not just little brothers
In the past, “second wines” from the more established appellations were often referred to as the “little brothers” of the great wines. Today this is less and less true: in many cases the “little brother” is the wine that is...
“Wines for the Summer 2025” has arrived
To start the summer with the right glass, there is only “uncorking” the new edition of “Wines for Summer” by DoctorWine. It is also a way to try not to think only about the problems the wine world is going...
Traditions or admixture?
The constant appeal to ill-defined “traditions” suggests as much a need to lean on something reassuring, though perhaps untruthful, rather than venture into the unknown terrain of innovation. Eric J. Hobsbawn, a very famous British historian, wrote an enlightening book...
Still on the trail of the Black Rooster
“On the Trails of the Black Rooster,” the book written on behalf of the Chianti Classico Consortium in collaboration with Paolo De Cristofaro, won the Bruno Lunelli “a wine book” literary prize. Forgive me some self-referentiality this time. Only because...
What it means to write about wine
Writing is a profession. Not everyone can do it, even though we all went to school and learned to read and write. But that is like saying that getting a driver’s license means then knowing how to drive well. That...
Best wishes, Bruno Gambacorta
The best wishes of Daniele Cernilli and the editorial staff of DoctorWine are for Bruno Gambacorta, creator of the Eat Parade column, aired weekly on Rai2, inside TG2. Because Bruno is first and foremost a fellow journalist. Now retired. But...
Wine consumption and health: experts speak (4)
We conclude this roundup of articles on the relationship between wine consumption and health with one last paper on the topic. Today we discuss the principle of proportionality and balanced risk communication. In formulating health policies and messages to the...