Sourced from 65 year old vines, sitting in rich clay soils. Medium Ruby with complex aromas of berry fruits, oak and fresh floral scents. On the palate dried tart cherry, tobacco, licorice, espresso and fresh herbs give this full-body wine grace and elegance. Soft fine tannins, long finish ending with fruit and earthy notes, well balanced, enjoyable now and has room to run over the next decade. Very Nice! — 7 months ago
Great Friulano, especially during colder weather. Floral, pear, honey - sweet nuttiness with a dry mineral finish to keep it from being cloying. Full-bodied. End of Thanksgiving weekend back in NY.
Second bottle with a super great meal: Smoky Cannellini beans and kale, red cow Parmigiano Reggiano, Di Palo’s fresh linguine, and homemade sourdough. A+ — 10 months ago
2017 Castello di Ama L’Apparita was the wine that I pulled for the evening. Italian Merlot. Ama is an old, fortified village situated near Radda and Gaiole in the heart of the Chianti Classico region. On the nose, intense dark berries. A full bodied wine with layers of beautiful ripe fruit. Perfect balance. Stellar finish. Stunning. — 2 years ago
Popped and poured; enjoyed over the course of three hours. The 2015 pours a beautiful garnet color with a transparent core; medium+ viscosity with light staining of the tears. On the nose, the wine is developing with notes of ripe and some tart red fruits: Morello cherry, raspberry, blood orange, black tea, red flowers, licorice, leather, exotic spices, and dry stony earth. On the palate, the wine is dry with medium+ tannin and medium+ acid. Confirming the notes from the nose. The finish is long and savory. This needed about an hour in the decanter before it really began to strut its stuff but when it did, holy smokes, it was out of this world. A brilliant wine and a beautiful expression of Sangiovese and Montalcino. What a lovely treat. Drink now through 2045. — 6 months ago
Medium bodied, aromatic nose, petals, earth, a bit of leather. Very nice. — 8 months ago
Martinelli family has been farming in Sonoma County since 1860. Deep Ruby color with aromas of red berry fruit and sweet spices. On the palate ripe cherry and blueberry flavors, with some dried fruit notes, oak, cinnamon spice and cola tones. Fine mouth coating tannins with balanced acidity carry this rich wine to a long finish. Good now will age a bit! — a year ago
This is the 2013 Ar.Pe.Pe Valtellina Superiore Sassella Riserva ‘Nuova Regina’. It’s 100% Chiavennasca and aged 39 months in cask.
It is PALE ruby in color with pronounced aromas and flavors of red and black cherry, bright raspberry, mulberry, pomegranate, purple fig, stewed strawberry rhubarb, rose, potpourri, black licorice, black tea, anise seed, fennel, tri-colored peppercorns, peat, vanilla, cardamom, nutmeg, forest floor, and mushroom.
On the palate, this wine is dry, w/ medium (+) acidity, a medium body, medium alcohol (13% ABV), & medium (+) tannins that are smooth and velveteen; it has a lingering finish.
It’s an outstanding wine, incredibly fresh now with runway to age & gain complexity in the bottle. — 8 months ago
Lev Lavrichtchev
Aug 2025: PnP ready, very good nose, almost lost fruit, strong tannins. Very nice first 30 min, then faded away quickly in one hour — 9 years ago