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Buy any 6 bottles and save 5%. Buy any 12 bottles and save 10% (excludes wines on offer). Free UK delivery on orders over £100. Tel: 02922 337454
Buy any 6 bottles and save 5%. Buy any 12 bottles and save 10% (excludes wines on offer). Free UK delivery on orders over £100. Tel: 02922 337454
2022 Amativo, Cantele Wine Republic

2024 Amativo, Cantele

Salice Salentino, Puglia, Italy

Opulent, dark-fruited and wonderfully inviting, Amativo wraps the warmth of southern Italy in layers of blackberry, ripe cherry and fig preserve. Rose and violet lend a fragrant lift, while vanilla, cocoa and a touch of caramel weave through the fruit. As it opens, hints of clove, black pepper and balsamic herbs bring a savoury dimension, giving this generous red an appealing complexity beneath its sumptuous first impression.

The palate is full-bodied and enveloping, with a creamy texture and ripe, polished tannins that give the fruit a luxurious feel. Primitivo provides the richness and roundness, while Negroamaro adds structure and a gently bitter, savoury counterpoint. Fresh acidity keeps the flavours moving towards a lingering finish of dark berries, toasted oak and spice. This is a bottle for leisurely dinners and proper comfort food, immediately rewarding with a little air, yet with the substance to develop further complexity over the coming years.

For when: The evening is drawing in, the ragù has been simmering for hours, and nobody is in a hurry.

Pairs with: Slow-braised beef cheeks, pappardelle with wild boar ragù, rosemary-roasted lamb shoulder, grilled rib-eye steak, Puglian pork bombette stuffed with cheese, or mature pecorino.

Amativo’s name combines “ama” from Negroamaro with “tivo” from Primitivo, neatly capturing the partnership at the heart of the wine. Conceived by Augusto Cantele and first produced in 1999, it brings two of Puglia’s defining grapes together, balancing Primitivo’s exuberant fruit with Negroamaro’s firmer, more savoury character.

Whats in the bottle
40% Negroamaro and 60% Primitivo

Notable Awards
92 points, James Suckling

£27.95 - £27.95
£27.95
£27.95 - £27.95
£27.95
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Cantele’s story began with Giovanni Battista Cantele and Teresa Manara, whose move from northern Italy to Salento laid the foundations for a family wine business. Their son Augusto studied winemaking in Conegliano and gained experience in northern wineries before returning south. In 1979, he founded Cantele with his father and brother Domenico, bringing technical expertise and a belief in the potential of Puglia’s wines to their base in Guagnano.

The family began acquiring vineyards in the early 1990s, building a closer connection between the cellar and the land. Amativo draws on vineyards around Guagnano, Sava and Manduria, where calcareous, clay and tuff-derived soils provide varied growing conditions. Local grapes remain central to the range, with Negroamaro and Primitivo offering contrasting expressions of Salento’s warm southern landscape.

Today, the third generation, Gianni, Paolo, Umberto and Luisa, runs the business, with Gianni overseeing winemaking. Their approach combines expressive fruit with careful attention to freshness and texture. Vineyard research, including partnerships with universities and climate specialists, supports the family’s work towards more sustainable growing practices and a better understanding of how to adapt to changing conditions.

The 2024 Amativo is a blend of 60% Primitivo and 40% Negroamaro from Salento. Vineyard sources include Guagnano, Sava and Manduria, with both bush-trained vines and spur-pruned cordon systems used. The varieties ripen at different times: Primitivo is generally harvested from late August into early September, followed by Negroamaro in the second half of September.

After destemming and crushing, fermentation takes place in stainless steel, with skin contact lasting at least eight to ten days at controlled temperatures of 22–26°C. During the early stages, daily délestage, draining the fermenting wine away from the skins and returning it, helps extract colour, flavour and tannin. Malolactic fermentation follows, softening the wine’s acidity.

Maturation takes place in barriques, combining new French oak with barrels on their second and third use, alongside a small proportion of American oak. This adds layers of toast and spice while allowing the generous fruit and tannins to settle together. The finished wine is approachable when young, with the concentration and structure for further bottle ageing.

Alcohol: 15%. Residual sugar: 6g/L. Total acidity: 5.5g/L.

Wine-Searcher Retailer Awards 2026/27 Gold, Overall List in Cardiff