I love this wine, and for one evening it loved me back. Saturday afternoon, I discovered the little gem on sale at World Market. They were claiming to have a store-wide wine sale, which turned out to be mostly dreaded Chardonnays. Caitlin talked me out of the $3.97 Riesling I found. My eyes wandered. The tuttobene label was intriguing, and it was nearly half off. As you may have noticed, I have a hard time saying no to anything under $6.This blend of merlot, sangiovese, and canaiolo is grown in sandy clay soil of the Chianti region and aged for six months in concrete vats. The concrete method seems relatively new. The porous concrete allows the wine to breathe while aging, similar to wood (as opposed to stainless steel), but without changing the flavor in the process. Coupled with the paradigmatic climate of 2006, this bottle should taste as close to Tuscany as they come.
For dinner, hot italian sausage with onions and peppers in homemade tomato sauce over thyme-and-garlic-infused rice. Caitlin and I sat down in front of the TV, settled on Trapped, an old Kevin Bacon/Charlize Theron flick, and took our first bite. Yum. Onto the wine. I took a sip and nearly cried. It was perfect, like a peapod reunited with its italian sausage peas.
The rosso was a voluptuous maroon color, obviously full-bodied with fantastic legs. It was graceful on the tongue, in no hurry to leave. Soft and simple, reminiscent of a pinot noir up front. There was a slight kick on the inhale, but we couldn't pick out any distinct flavors. Perhaps it's because the bottle didn't give us any hints. Though not very complex, the tuttobene was sweetly satisfying at the finish and an ideal companion for spicy sausage. Caitlin suggested we go back and buy a case. I would, but that might make for a pretty boring wine blog.
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