Tony Margiotta

7.9

Citrus and white floral notes. Uneventful and borderline flat. It's a great choice to create a reference point for Etna Bianco wines but it's more on the commercial side. The wine doesn't express terroir very well. I think that the Etna Bianco wines are best expressed with the traditional blend with Catarratto and Carricante and grown by a small producer. Makes a good starter wine for Etna Bianco. I wish the big money in Etna would go away. — 7 years ago

Tony Margiotta

7.9

This Spumante is made with 100% Bombino Bianco, a native grape from the Puglia region in Italy. While I get it was well made with good body and balance, I felt it lacked nuance. Little difference between this and and generic sparkling wines. Very dry with some sour citrus on the finish. Very uneventful. I paid 18 euros for this in Italy. It would cost much more in the US. In terms of flavor, aroma, and structure, I'd say this bottle is worth $12. — 9 years ago

Tony Margiotta

9.4

Rich earth and red fruit. Very dry as expected but very impressed with the sophistication of a 1970 vintage. Bright lingering red fruit on the finish that fights for attention at an old age. — 9 years ago

Tony Margiotta

9.0

Excellent cerasauolo di vittoria from Sicily.
Nose: vanilla and bright red cherry-the usual suspects. Bright acidity and balanced fruit. Textbook balance of fruit and light tannins on the finish. Very enjoyable. — 8 years ago

Tony Margiotta

9.0

Carignano is a native grape from Sardegna. You can't find it anywhere else. Fantastic wine. Very dry with high alcohol. Big body. It could probably stay in the bottle another couple years. The heat from the alcohol was a touch too much but the acidity cut through beautifully with the pasta with sausage that I paired with it. — 9 years ago

Tony Margiotta

9.0

Awesome #aglianico del vulture from #Basilicata. This is a gem that consumers unfortunately ver look in #restaurants and #wineshops. This is a serious #wine. Complex aroma with sweet earth, cacao, light smoke, and red fruits. On the palate, it's smooth, structured, and and nice finish with red fruits. This wine will continue to create wonderful wine experiences as it ages the next 5 years. — 9 years ago

Tony Margiotta

7.9

Nero di Troia is a native grape in the Puglia region of Italy. This brands version has a subtle and singular nose of sour cherry. The flavor profile matches the nose without any surprises. It's simple and elegant wine. Adaptable with many foods. For me, this is worth $15. — 9 years ago

Tony Margiotta

7.9

Drinking the 2009, 8 years old. Very soft and full bodied aglianico del Taburno. This comes from an area near the Province of Taburno and makes very earthy aglianico. The texture, acidity, and nicely balanced which indicated the aglianico is reaching its best age. The only reason for a lower rating is that the earth/tar notes overpowered the red fruit making it almost non existent. — 8 years ago

Tony Margiotta

7.0

This is the typical California bomb. Everything you'd expect: full body, high sugar, high alcohol. All the flavors you'd expect: blackberry, smoke, cacao. At the price you'd expect: $35. It was a well-made wine and followed all the steps in the recipe book. It's only worth about $20 in my opinion. My biggest complaint is that a bitter character began to make itself known during the finish as I got closer to the end of the bottle and the flavors were fatiguing. One should always feel sad when a great bottle of wine is finished. That didn't happen for me on this one. — 9 years ago

Tony Margiotta

9.6

Gorgeous aroma of warm cherry and vanilla. The beauty of the nose is that it's nuanced, not obvious. Cutting acidity, full creamy body. Delicious sour cherry finish. Very refined. — 9 years ago