SANTA MARIA VALLEY | CALIFORNIA | $32
A complex integration of cherry and blackberry fruit with ginger-spice cookie and candied orange peel, plus notes of raspberry, plum, clove, graphite and tar. There’s a fruit cake-like quality at play here, and this makes for a most interesting wine. Enjoyable, complex, superbly integrated. It’s that garish early-Madonna fashion: many disparate components coming together to create something that works — but no undergarment as outerwear here. A very good wine. (Reviewed 12/30/12)
Category Archives: Italian Varietals
Foxen 7200 Sangiovese Guglielmo Grosso 2008
Filed under $21 to $50, California, Italian Varietals
Argiano ‘Non Confunditur’ Rosso Toscano 2009
TUSCANY | ITALY | $20
Concentrated blackberry and dried cherry with a savory earthy structure and notes of graphite, rosemary and citrus pith. Medium bodied and easy drinking, nicely integrated and reasonably complex with a smooth texture and a dry, tannic finish. Lean, dark and well-tailored, he moves easily and confidently through narrow, rustic streets — nothing to worry, always in the now. A Super Tuscan blend of 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot 20% Syrah, 20% Sangiovese. A very good wine. (reviewed 12/23/12)
Filed under $20 and less, Cabernet Sauvignon, Italian Varietals, Italy
Ruffino ‘Modus’ 2009
TUSCANY | ITALY | $25
Forward boysenberry, plum and pomegranate with flavors of dried cranberry, nutmeg, tar and camphor. A lively, medium-bodied wine showing focused fruit and nice acidity with a dry finish. Nimble on the corners, quick and responsive, a pleasure to drive — an Alpha Romeo. A Super Tuscan blend of 50% Sangiovese, 25% Cabernet Sauvignon and 25% Merlot. A very good wine. (Reviewed 12/9/12)
Filed under $21 to $50, Italian Varietals, Italy
Ortman Sangiovese ‘O2 Series’ 2009
PASO ROBLES | CALIFORNIA | $20
Light to medium bodied showing raspberry, plum and sour cherry fruit currant, forest floor and chalk. Fresh flavors, good balance and beautiful clarity. Lively with bright energy, like a child improvising a playful Spring dance. A good to very good wine. (Reviewed 7/8/12)
Filed under $20 and less, California, Italian Varietals
Stolpman ‘La Croce’ 2004
SANTA YNEZ VALLEY | CALIFORNIA | $40
Concentrated cherry with dried cranberry and wild berries backed by dry earth and cardamom. Notes of red beet, anise and pepper bring interest. Focused and fruit forward, but vertically complex with a laden mouth feel, drying tannins and a potent 15.2% alcohol. 50% Syrah, 50% Sangiovise: “The Cross,” they call it, and Parker blessed it with a 94. That’s his to bear; I say it’s a very good wine. (Reviewed 9/1/12)
Sean Thackrey ‘Pleiades XVIII Old Vines’
CALIFORNIA | $24
Bursting with boysenberry, blackberry and cherry fruit. An odd stockpot of Sangiovese, Mourvedre, Vigonier, Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon “to name a few,” it’s said. It all works for an enjoyable and accessible fruit forward sip with a tart fruit finish. Age or aggressive decanting will help smooth the sharp peaks. An eccentric one, both mysterious and charming — enjoyable company, though perhaps not frequently. A good wine. (Reviewed 10/30/10)
Foxen ‘Volpino’ 2007
SANTA YNEZ VALLEY | CALIFORNIA | $30
Sour cherry with raspberry and red plum, plus notes of camphor and graphite. Medium bodied, fruit forward and narrowly focused with a slight pucker on the finish. Paring with food shows its better side, but some may yearn for more. Consider Hercule Perot without the magnificence of his tiny grey cells, his remaining attributes might be arouse scant interest, no? Other vintages have shown more depth. 81% Sangiovese, 19% Merlot. Regrettably, this is merely a good wine.
Filed under $21 to $50, California, Italian Varietals
Cantine Valpane Perlydia Barbera del Monferrato Superiore 2003
PIEDMONT | ITALY | $18
A nose of dried fruit and wisps of barnyard and kerosene gives way to rustic berry, cherry and plum fruit with notes of vanilla, cedar and spice. Finishes with a natural bright acidity. Unrestrained and an exciting ride, but like an Alfa Romero, tiresome every day. A good wine and an excellent value. (Reviewed 1/8/11)
Filed under $20 and less, Italian Varietals, Italy
Villa di Geggiano Chianti Classico 2006
TUSCANY | ITALY | $28
Vivid dark berry fruit with woody spice notes. Soft and approachable with a rounded but firm structure. A perk of acidity welcomes enjoyment with food. Pleasantly lacks the musty-cave quality of inferior Chiantis. And yet, a lack of bad manners does not, of its own, a debutante make. A good wine. (Reviewed 2/26/11)
Filed under $21 to $50, Italian Varietals, Italy
Colosi Nero D’Avola 2009
SICILY | ITALY | $15
Light cherry and blueberry fruit with a backbone of earthy minerals, cedar, black tea and green tannins. Medium bodied and nicely balanced, if given ample time to breathe. Otherwise heavy, impertinent acidity and bitter tannins rule. A child, as such, would be sent to bed sans supper. Decant or allow some air, and the wine matures quickly into a well-mannered, entertaining and youthful drink. A good wine. (Reviewed 9/13/11)
Filed under $20 and less, Italian Varietals, Italy
