Join us at home with your own wine tasting party (up to five people) or just come for the presentation by the respected wine importer Dalla Terra. Dalla Terra specializes in imports from family vineyards in Italy.

Rupert Billins will be presenting from San Francisco; he is an expert on Italian wines and will take you on a journey through Italy’s wine growing regions. Mr. Billins will have a cheese and salumi recommendation or create your own feast!

We hope this is the beginning of a series that will include presentations directly from Italy.

RSVP: Required by December 10.

Wine order: As part of the registration, we will be taking orders for either a set of four or just the ones you want (or none if you want to attend the presentation only). You will pay Tamura directly at the time of the pickup: 

• Marco Felluga Pinot Grigio 2018: $18-19 
• Inama Soave Classico 2019: $17-18
• Selvapiana Chianti Rufina 2017: $18-19
• Masseria Li Veli Primitivo 2018: $16-17 

Wine pickup: As part of the registration, we will be taking orders for pickup between December 14 and December 17 at Tamura’s on Waialae or in Kailua.

Presentation fee: $10 per party hosted by a Member; $15 for a party of non-Members

Zoom: Registered guests will receive a unique link prior to the wine tasting. Please setup your Zoom and familiarize with its features. You can review its short video tutorials (e.g., join a meeting, configuring audio/video, meeting controls, more topics) or full training (e.g., Zoom for education).

Presenter: Rupert Billins, Southwest Regional Manager, Dalla Terra, CA, NM, AZ, HI
Rupert Billins is on a constant quest to find the most aromatic, mineral infused, higher acid wines possible. Based in San Francisco, CA, Rupert has been in the wine industry for twenty-five years, with a nearly ten-year experience with Dalla Terra. Born and raised in England, Rupert moved to the United States after completing a BA in Theatre Arts at Leeds University. Rupert has held various roles in the wine industry, including as an import specialist at distributors Wine Warehouse and Southern Wine and Spirits. A Certified Wine Educator, Rupert has travelled to all of the wine regions of the world, but will always avow the supremacy of Italian food, wine and culture. Rupert can be found foraging for fungi and seafood on the Northern California coast.

Dalla Terra: Dalla Terra is one of this year’s nominees for Importer of the Year for Wine Enthusiast Magazine’s 2020 Wine Star Awards, the publication’s annual awards program that recognizes individuals and companies that have made outstanding achievements in the world of wine and beverage alcohol. This is the second time Dalla Terra has received this prestigious nomination, the first being in 2009.

Wine tasting selection:

• Marco Felluga Pinot Grigio 2018
  One of the most interesting hotbeds of white-wine production in Italy is Collio Goriziano, a stretch of the hilly border of Friuli with Slovenia. Good growing conditions for white grape varieties, a penchant for experimentation, and talented winemakers combine to put this out-of-the-way area on the wine map. Two of the top producers in Collio are the Marco Felluga winery and Russiz Superiore, both of which are now under the leadership of winemaker Roberto Felluga (and both of which are imported by Dalla Terra). 

• Inama Soave Classico 2019
  Mount Foscarino, a dormant volcano now covered with grapevines. In the 1960s, Giuseppe Inama began buying up small vineyard plots on this peak in the heart of the Soave Classico zone, and as a result, the Inama winery today owns most of the vineyards on Mount Foscarino. Giuseppe Inama saw the great potential of these old, traditional vineyards at a time when others were more intent on producing larger quantities in the plains for inexpensive exports. At a distance, it is easy to spot the crenellated walls and towers of Soave Castle as it keeps watch over the town. In the foreground are Inama’s tidy vigneti di Foscarino (Foscarino vineyards). And to the left, over the vineyards and across a broad valley, are a set of hills that are the home of Inama’s other project. These hills—the Colli Berici—are composed of iron-rich terra rossa, a soil type that is prized worldwide as being ideal for growing red winegrapes, and indeed this is where Inama gets its red wines.

• Selvapiana Chianti Rufina 2017
  Selvapiana is among the best-known and most respected of the two dozen growers in Rùfina—the smallest subzone of Chianti—and as it happens is also one of only two wineries to produce wine from the tiny Pomino DOC. The Selvapiana winery, like all of Chianti Rùfina, lies close to the Sieve River, a tributary of the Arno upriver from Florence. The air is cooler and cleaner here than in the city, which is why these hills have long been a retreat for aristocrats escaping Florence’s summer heat. During the Renaissance, one noble Florentine family constructed the Selvapiana residence by enlarging a medieval watchtower that was one of the outposts guarding Florence from invading enemies.
  
  
• Masseria Li Veli Primitivo 2018
  The crumbling Masseria Li Veli was acquired in the late 19th century by Marchese Antonio de Viti de Marco (1858–1943), an important economist and professor who was influential in the theory of public finance in the Kingdom of Italy. In 1895, the masseria was restored to serve as a model wine cellar, demonstrating an ambitious concept for economic development for all of southern Italy. It stayed in operation until the 1950s.The masseria is once again functioning as an important winemaking facility, having been renovated and modernized into an up-to-date production center for the Li Veli wines. The Falvo family, former owners of the Avignonesi winery in Tuscany but with Puglian roots, purchased the masseria and its 128 acres of land in 1999 and breathed new life into de Viti de Marco’s project. The vision is to establish a new quality benchmark in the region, through both vineyard management and vinification.

Members: Login in order to receive discounted pricing (directions for Logging In).

Your guests: Will automatically be assigned the non-member fee. If you want to register other members (including your Family Membership's spouse/children), you need to register each of them separately, under their own name and UNIQUE email (Note: Update your Family Membership account accordingly, if family names/emails are missing--Directions for Bundle Administrator Guide).

Safety policy: All participants will comply with the latest guidance for group gatherings.

Note: The Friends of Italy Society of Hawaii is not responsible for any liability, cost, and damages which could arise from the programs; and does not provide any refunds, except if it cannot deliver the program, for instance in the case of insufficient enrollment.

Questions: Email us at info@friendsofitalyhawaii.org.