Deep in the reaches of Eastern Europe, somewhere near Croatia, a chill wind starts its journey, bobbing and weaving like a downhill skier towards the Adriatic. It skims the sea’s surface, and pushes its way up the rolling hills that carpet Italy’s Marche region cooling the tender grape skins of Montepulciano and Verdicchio grapes.

Here, in this quiet slice of Italy wedged between mountains and sea, “is the perfect place to make wine,” says Michele Bernetti, third generation winemaker of the family-owned Umani Ronchi. This dual dose of climatic (and scenic) perfection makes it all the more astonishing that wine lovers remain unaware of the quality of the wines and the destination.