So, the other day I was at my OTHER favorite wine place, Applejack Wine and Spirits, (while I was on my way home from the mountains) and I bought FIVE bottles of highly rated wine for about $41.00! Anyway, one of my choices was a nice mellow red wine from ITALY. Yep, after SEVERAL requests from the Gentleman that I review an Italian wine, here it is! Falesco Vitiano, 2006 is a red blend of Cabernet, Merlot and Sangiovese.
This wine is a deep red color. It had berry notes in both the scent and taste. My first glass seem to slide down like water due to little or no alcohol taste on the finish. The winemaker notes on the back of the bottle said this wine is "Rick in black fruits and mint. It is mouthfilling with cassis, vanilla oak and a well balanced and ripe finish." Hmmm, well, the mint might have been what made it seem like water in the refreshing sense. Of course, the water thing might have been the Merlot portion of the blend (I generally find Merlots to be somewhat watery).
As I mentioned earlier, I bought five highly rated wines. The Wine Advocate and Wine Spectator each gave this wine 88 points (high 80's and 90's are very good wines). Since I bought this on sale for $7.00, that means this was a great value for the buck. Here's what Wine Spectator had to say about Vitiano, 2006:
This Italian red shows lots of blackberry and licorice, with raspberry notes. Full-bodied, with round tannins and a fruity finish.
I have to say I didn't notice the fruity finish, but the round tannins means that the wine was very smooth. Some additional winemaker notes:
"This is a blockbuster young red wine with explosive, luscious aromas. Vitiano Rosso is deep ruby red in color, and offers a wide range of fruit and spice aromas, including black cherry jam, licorice and tobacco leaf. This versatile wine pairs well with a wide array of food, including meat, pasta and pizza. "
6 comments:
well well... I'm flattered. You picked a nice one. It's a well known blend from Umbria a region located in the heart of Italy between Tuscany and Lazio.
I've never had myself but it sounds nice and tasty.
Being a blend is best when young (2-3 years max) so the 2006 was a good choice ;)
Of course I've to point out that only Americans had the guts to suggest a red wine with a pizza meal... :P
Gentleman...drinking wine with pizza elevates the pizza TO a meal! LOL Thanks for the added info. I knew that this wine was from the Umbria region, but of course, not being from Italy, I didn't know where that was.
Mm, that one sounds good. I suspect all the wines would be higher here, though - we seem to have really high alcohol taxes.
Citizen...well it's online for around $10 to $11, so I think it was just a really good sale! Bummer about the taxes though.
it elevates the pizza to a meal... what about the taco hell?
Lynt...once upon a time, when I was young and just starting college (at Ohio State, btw), I worked for Taco Hell. Complete with the polyester outfit and head scarf...heh. Anyway, I have my favs there. Actually, I pretty much only like the taco's and the combo burritos with the green sauce. Being originally from Texas and now living in Colorado, I'm otherwise picky about my Mexican food. Wine makes it all better!
Post a Comment