Sardinia is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean and lies roughly 190 miles west of Italy's mainland. The vineyards of Argiolas are located in Serdiana in the Trexenta hills just north of the capital of Cagliari. Argiolas farms 600 acres of native Sardinian grapes including Nuragus, Monica, and Cannonau.

Costera is made from Cannonau (Garnacha or Grenache). It is the workhorse red grape of Sardinia where it is likely to have arrived centuries ago from Spain, although an alternative theory suggests that Cannonau originated in Sardinia. In either case, Cannonau is well-adapted to the warm Sardinian climate and gives a deeply-colored, full-bodied red wine.