Primitivo

Affectionately known as the ‘early one’ in its native Italy as it matures early in the season, this dark-skinned grape variety is renowned for producing inky, tannic wines brimming with ripe fruit notes.

Primitivo’s true home is Southern Italy, particularly the vineyards of Puglia. It has also conquered California, where it is known by another name – Zinfandel.

Primitivo generally produces big and bold, full-bodied wines, showing off flavours of dark fruits such as plum, blackberry and black cherry, often coupled with notes of black pepper, liquorice and dried herbs.

Barrel-ageing Primitivo wines adds delicious notes of vanilla and cinnamon, black pepper, liquorice and sweet tobacco.

The wine’s aroma often mirrors its taste, with notes of dark fruits dominating, often layered with hints of spice, tobacco or chocolate, especially if the wine has been aged in oak.

Selecting a Primitivo? Top-quality Primitivo often comes from the Primitivo di Manduria DOC, where regulations stipulate that the wine must be at least 85% Primitivo. Primitivo di Manduria Dolce Naturale, a naturally sweet and sometimes fortified style, is also well-respected and can be a delicious dessert wine.

Beyond this, vintage can play a role in quality, with warmer years often resulting in richer, fuller wines.

In the US, oak barrels can take the spotlight when it comes to ageing Primitivo, infusing Italian Primitivo with those iconic California-esque notes of dark chocolate and spice.

Not all Primitivo wines are oak-aged, however – and many winemakers in Italy use traditional methods that might include different types of oak or other ageing methods. Some are made in a fresher style that emphasises the fruit character, using stainless steel for fermentation and ageing.

The day of your delivery will depend on which option you’ve chosen at checkout.

• For a standard delivery, we will deliver your order within three working days. Delivery to the Scottish Highlands, some other areas of Scotland, Northern Ireland and offshore islands can take an extra few days.
• Usual delivery times are between 07.00 and 21.00.
• You can select Next-day or Named-day delivery at checkout – but do bear in mind we don’t deliver on Sundays or Bank Holidays.

Top tip: For the best experience we recommend you subscribe to our Unlimited service. A one-off payment of £29.99 entitles you to free delivery for a year – including free Next-day delivery. There’s no minimum order – you’ll get free delivery even on a single bottle. And you can get delivery to multiple addresses, so it’s perfect for gifting!

We want you to enjoy every bottle you buy from us. If you are not completely satisfied with any wine, for any reason, just let us know and you’ll receive a refund.  

Plus, we always want you to receive exactly what you need. If we deliver a case and it’s not wanted, just email us at customerservice@laithwaites.com and we’ll take care of it.

100,000 customers already love our wine subscriptions, and enjoy lower prices on their favourites all year round.

With a Laithwaites wine subscription, you can tell us what kind of wine you prefer, and how many bottles you’d like to receive on each delivery.

You can then choose how often you’d like to receive your case – every four or eight weeks. And delivery is free too!