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

Ruby in color.  The nose is very nice with cherries, slight floral notes and tar.  On the palate, this has a nice complexity.  Layers of cherries, dried cherries and forest floor.  Good not great acidity.  Long finish.  This seemed to coming right along, so we left about 1/3 of the bottle, recorked and on the counter to follow.  On night 2, the nose of this was model airplane glue.  Very hard to get past.  It was fine on the palate, but the nose was terrible.  Not sure what that means about ageing but I wouldn't let this get a ton of air once its opened.  That said, on Night 1, it was outst

Purple in color, ruby at the rim.  The nose is dusty with cherries and sour cherries.  Good acidity.  Very food friendly.  Went great with an "Impossible" Burger.  Tart cherries, layered with forest floor.  Good finish.  This is still young and has some upside in terms of development.  Plenty of fruit with light tannins right now.  

Ruby, clear and bright.  The nose has nice cherries to it.  Slight licorice and char.  On the palate, this shows a nice complexity.  Certainly outperforming vintage expectations.  Tart cherries and cherry juice.  Good acidity.  nice finish.  Food friendly.  

Chianti doesn't get the recognition it deserves.  Some of the best Chianti's (and this is one of them) are as good as most Brunello's or most other wines.  Factor in price, and these are some of the great red wine values of the world.  This was opened and allowed to breathe for an hour.  Ruby/purple in color.  The nose is very nice with dark cherries, some forest floor/tea leaves and a bit of tarragon.  On the palate, juicy acidity.  This went great with Grilled Polenta with a three pepper sauce.  Flavors of sour cherries, some black cherries with a bit of tea.  Nice finish.  This is just s

A very unusual wine.  It's hard for me to put into context.  Sort of like a sweet Barolo mixed with good Vermouth.  Ruby/purple in color.  The nose has botanicals, herbs and slight raisin notes.  On the palate, this is sweet with herbal qualities.  It is very enjoyable but a little goes a long way.  

This is remarkably approachable at this point.  Ruby in color, clear and bright.  The nose has cherries and rose notes with a bit of dust and spice.  On the palate, there are silky tannins.  Nice cherry fruit layered with dry forest floor.  Great acidity.  Long finish.  It was decanted for a few hours and that seemed to do the trick.  No hurry on it, but with some air, it is ready to go.  

Despite a four hour decant, this still needed more time.  After a few hours more in the glass, it really started to open up.  Ruby in color.  Gorgeous nose of cherries, slight dried cherries, rose and slight tar.  Firm tannins.  The palate has depth with layers of cherries and some forest floor.  Great acidity.  Long finish.  Plenty of upside here.  Hold for a few more years.  

Bought on release for $19.99 and consumed in 2017, this is what value wines are all about.  Sure, its not Barolo, but it drinks in that style and is excellent.  Ruby in color.  The nose is mature with cherries, dust, tar and dried roses.  On the palate, this does not have much depth but nice cherry and dried cherry fruit.  Good acidity.  Certainly at its peak or slightly past.  It begs for food and delivers at the table.  Great value.  

Light green gold in color.  The nose has minerals, limes and slight steely notes.  On the palate, this is easy drinking.  Minerals and slight citrus.  Nice texture with good acidity.  Clean.  Good with food.  Around $7 per bottle is hard to beat.  

This is under $10 per bottle so it is a fair value.  Purple in color.  The nose has dark cherries and slight hay notes.  On the palate, this is a bit sweet with black cherry fruit.  Easy drinking.  Enough acidity to work with food.  Clean.  Nice for a party or Italian bistro.  Casual fun.