Review Date: 9-16-2012

Rosso di Montalcino is perhaps one of the greatest undiscovered values in Italy, made with 100% Sangiovese this baby brother to Brunello always seems to get overlooked but with the string of good vintages lately the Rosso category provides some outstanding choices. This 2009 San Filippo Lo Scorno is drinking great right now, the wine’s subtle aromatics, the wild cherry perfume and supple yet full feel on the palate shows its superb balance and is graced with a long finish. Absolutely a great food wine but is remarkably well adapted as a cocktail wine and will age well for another 5+ years.

Review Date: 9-5-2012

You don't see me reviewing Single Malt very often but when you do you should take note. This single barrel selection isn't about age it is about flavor and it has everything I look for in an Islay single malt. I enjoy the intense peatiness when it is supremely well integrated and the intense smoke in this spirit seems to be attached at the core. Powerful, layered and complex peatiness not a day old BBQ smell but saturated flavors that don't linger they camp out on your palate. Wonderful balance, not hot and with that hint of sherry wood it turns into something truly magnificent. You'll love it

Review Date: 7-24-2012

I visited this winery last September and it turned out to really be an eye opener. I’ve been tasting these wines for…. a long time and they were always classic with a modern twist but even after having had many trips to the winery over the last decades and tasting every vintage I wasn’t prepared for the quality jump. Starting in 2006 the Mazzei family built a new winery after doing years of research for what was best for their vineyards as well as how to handle the wines in the cellar, it was partially open for the 2006 vintage but the first complete vintage was in 2007. It doesn’t hurt to have a spectacular vintage like 2007 to emphasize your new winemaking facility that allows more individual care. The Mazzei family owns 120 different parcels of vineyard land around the village of Fonterutoli (BTW pronounced Fon te ROO toli) and the new winery has 120 different fermentation tanks to be able to coax the best out of each parcel without any worry as to space or time during the harvest. There are a series of new techniques they are doing in the winemaking but truthfully I find it takes away from what the wine is and what the Mazzei family is trying to do. They want their wines to taste like they come from their little piece of Tuscany and not be thought of as made; in the past although I liked their wines they lacked that feeling of place what Italians are now calling genius loci “the distinctive atmosphere or pervading spirit of a place”, a little beyond terroir. The 12 months the wine spent in barrique is the same as in the 2005 but the 2007 has so much more depth, originality, the fruit is more real, complex and energetic. I was really taken aback at the quality jump and the purity and wildness of the wine while still enamored with its lush body rolling across my palate you’re going to love this wine. You can drink it now or it will age for another decade, Enjoy!

Review Date: 2-9-2012

This is a really well made wine, it shows the classic earthy Sangiovese side but with lots of fruit behind it. Great mid palate balance with a long and lingering finish. This reminds me of wines from the 1990's as Chianti was going through big changes and quality wines were emerging all over, but at higher prices. This wine has all of that richness, spice and intrigue but at a bargain price. This is a buy a case kind of wine.

Review Date: 12-22-2011

Move over Rhone Valley, this Grenache based Sardinian classic is truly stunning. I love the classic Grenache aromatics, spice and richness while still having the perfect acidic balance to keep it fresh and vibrant. The wine has great palate presence, soft and rich even as the delicate tannins hold the fruit poised at the peak of drinkability. While drinkable now it will be great over the next few years with grilled meats or pasta .

Review Date: 7-9-2009

If you have never tasted this product you must. If you think you know what vermouth is think again; this will absolutely blow you away. Inordiately complex, so full of spice, balanced...it is really good. Try it on the rocks with a twist and a splash, straight up or in a Manhattan.

Review Date: 8-12-2008

While visiting Giovanni Blason in February we spied some odd boxes stacked in a corner. I asked Giovanni, “What the hell are these?” He responded, “You won’t want any of those; you Americans like bottles.” I responded, “On the contrary we Americans like bargains, how much is that 3-liter box.” An answer, some brief calculations on my part and I said, “Okay, we’ll take 'em"! $19.99 for 3 liters (that's four 750ml bottles). The winery can’t label it Pinot Bianco due to existing DOC regulations, but it is 100% Pinot Bianco. Crisp, clean, refreshing with a elegant fruitiness, touch of tarragon and a hint of mineral. If you don't want to do the math that’s $5 a bottle! Giovanni tells me it lasts for more than 3 months in the refrigerator, I told him that couldn’t happen in mine!