Italy

• Abruzzo
• Alto Adige
• Apulia
• Basilicata
• Calabria
• Campagna
• Emilia-Romagna
• Friuli-Venezia Giulia
• Liguria
• Lombardia
  • Franciacorta
• Marche
• Molise
• Piedmont (Piemonte)
• Sicily
  • Mt. Etna
• Trentino-Alto Adige
• Tuscany
  • Brunello di Montalcino
  • Chianti
• Umbria
• Valle d'Aosta
• Veneto
  • Prosecco
  • Soave
• Sardinia

Pop and pour, this took a few minutes to open and then drank well.  Deep ruby in color.  The nose has cherries, wet green tea, spice and slight char.  Full bodied.  A nice back bone of acidity.  Lots of cherry fruit layered with forest floor notes and a bit of anise.  Long finish.  This worked great with a pasta dish.  It also drank well on its own.  It won't get better but should be great drinking for the next ten to twelve years.  

Some of the best values in the wine world are from Chianti.  Figure out the best wineries, and buy the second or third best wines.  Of course, the top wines are great too, but they can be pricey.  This wine can be found for under $30 and it is excellent.  Purple in color, ruby at the rim.  The nose is nice with cherries, black cherries, tea leaves/tobacco and slight cedar.  On the palate, this has a lovely texture.  Nice acidity.  Black cherry fruit of char and forest floor.  Nice finish.  This is drinking well with light tannins.  It will continue for ten years, so no hurry.  A great match

Purple in color, ruby at  the rim.  The nose has cherries and spice.  With air some chocolate and slight craisin notes.  On the palate, this is ripe but not sweet.  Cherries and slight coffee notes.  Wide but not deep.  It is drinking well now but will certainly go for a while longer.  Seemed to be quite popular with those trying it.  It will work better with food but is nice on its own too.  Perhaps braised lamb?  

This is a relatively inexpensive red from northeast Italy.  That said, it is not  simple wine and needs to be cellared.  Purple in color, ruby at the rim.  The nose has black cherries with some smoke.  On the palate, this has a soft texture.  Black cherry fruit that turn slightly sour.  Firm tannins.  Nice finish.  This will need to be laid down for five to seven years if it is to reach its peak.  It can be drunk now but have some nice fatty foods to cut through the tannins.  If serving today, an eight hour decant is not too much.  Certainly, the score should improve with cellaring.  

This is one of the great wines of Italy even if relatively obscure to the general wine drinking public.  it is made from the Sagrantino grape which is tannic and needs time to develop.  This is 13 years old and still needs more time until peak.  Purple in color.  The nose has black cherries, plums, slight coffee and anise.  On the palate, a wall of black cherry fruit with firm tannins.  It is thick and delicious.  With air, some additional notes of anise and spice come out on the palate.  Good acidity.  Long finish.  

This is, perhaps, the top producer of Vino Nobile.  It is made in the Area of Montepulciano in Tuscany from the Sangiovese grape and not be be confused with Montepulciano d'Abruzzo which is made from the Montepulciano grape.  This is mature and at peak.  Deep ruby in color.  The nose has cherries, wet lea leaves, slight sandalwood and dust.  On the palate, this has fresh cherries, slightly sour cherries, and a slightly oxidized note.  Nice level of complexity.  Good acidity.  Long finish.  This is drinking at its best and should be consumed in the next three or so years but it certainly wil

Brilliant showing for this wine.  What a great value.  Everyone in the room commented on how good this was.  Perhaps a bit modern and fruit forward for a "traditional" Chianti, but it is delicious and affordable.  Purple in color with ruby swirls.  The nose has black cherries, slight chocolate, dust and slight loose tea.  On the palate, the chocolate and black cherries dominate at this point.  Medium tannins.  Enough acidity to counter the fruit.  Deep.  It unwinds in the glass.  Good finish.  This is delicious on its own and will work well with burgers or pizza.  It should develop for the

Franciacorta's are serious sparkling wines from Italy.  They are not to be confused with Prosecco's or some of the other lighter sparkling wines that are very popular these days.  The best Franciacorta's hold their own against sparkling wines made anywhere in the world.  Light golden in color.  There are a log of tiny bubbles.  The nose has toast, lemon and slight lanolin.  On the palate, this is slightly crisp.  Full bodied.  Nice, persistent lemon/lime notes.  Good finish.  This drinks well on its own and will work with all but the meatiest of dishes.  It should probably be consumed in th

Sadly, this was corked.  

This was my second time trying this wine.  The first time was on it's own, but this time was in a blind tasting of Sparkling wines (mostly Champagnes) and it did not fare as well.  It showed fine, but was the groups and mine's last place wine.  That could be because it was so different as this is made from Greco di Tufo while most were made from Chardonnay or that it had less acidity than the others.  Blind tasting offers some levels of objectivity and then introduces other prejudices.  Context when drinking wine is very important.  In any event, this is light yellow gold in color.  The nos