Borgo del Tiglio wines are models of precision. Even actuaries love them. And yet they are intensely expressive at every age - with the ability both to move and to age built into every wine that Nicola Manferrari creates. We stocked them for about eight straight years across the millennium and then they disappeared never, we thought, to be seen again. So you see how delighted we are to welcome them back to the fold.

How are the wines so good, even by Friuli's often high standards? The answer is a balanced combination of the outwardly dour, ex-pharmacist Nicola and his tireless focus on every aspect of the winegrowing process, and his superb terroirs.

Who better to help the relaunch of these quintessentially Italian whites than Michael, who knows most of the country's hillsides and has been sniffing out top wines like these for years, though he's still a callow youth. /CW