The Essential Guide 2026: work in progress

This is it, our summer of “guiding” is in full swing. These are the months in which all the work we have been carrying out since the first months of the year comes to fruition. The first phase, that of the tastings, is concluded. A few re-tastings await us, it is true, but by now the games in the glasses are done. We have tasted thousands of wines blind (that is, with covered bottles), almost always in protection consortia or producers’ associations. But we have also heard wines in public tastings, in fairs – Vinitaly in primis – , in competitions, in wine bars.

We are now in the second phase, that of editorial work, the more obscure one, involving the editing of all the forms sent in by the various contributors, which is my endeavor flanked by the tireless editorial secretary Iolanda Maggio, which also takes care of uploading to the general database. Then there is layout and proofreading.

Many regions are already paginated: Emilia, Calabria, Molise, Valle d’Aosta, Romagna, Liguria, Alto Adige, Campania, Basilicata, and Lazio. Others are in the home stretch : Puglia, Sardinia and Veneto. For the others we are still in the middle of processing, but as usual we should be able to close the layout before mid-August.

The graphic choice of 2026

Meanwhile, it was created and prepared, by our graphic designer Stefania Serra, the cover. It is a delicate and very important moment, but we are extremely pleased with the result and hope you like it too. You can see it in the opening photo. Pantone Moka, which represents the earth, was chosen as the carrier color to emphasize the connection between wine and the land from which it comes. As an image, a winemaker “caressing” his vineyard.

After last year’s celebratory 10-year red and nature green, this year we wanted to emphasize the importance of soil and land in wine production.

Preparations for the guide’s presentation are also in full swing: the one in Milan (with the awards ceremony on October 4 and two tasting days on Saturday, October 4 and Sunday, October 5); the one in Rome, on Saturday, October 11; and finally London, on Wednesday, October 22. This is the realm of Elisabetta Solinas, who like a panzer continues in the organization.

Over everything, there is the supervision of director Daniele Cernilli and curator Riccardo Viscardi, as well as – for events – the sole administrator Marina Thompson. A small team dedicated to the preparation of what is our main product: the Guide 2026, which chronicles the Italian wine you will find on the market starting in the last months of this year and next year.

We hope to succeed again this year in intriguing you and enticing you to taste.