2009 Erik Banti "Carato" IGT

The category of $10 and under wines is problematic at best. On the one hand, too much bad wine is tolerated at this price. "Well, it's not very good but at least it was cheap." And too many great wines are overlooked under the assumption that if it is cheap, it can't be any good. Don't make that mistake with Erik Banti's 2009 Carato. A terrific value for anyone looking for an affordable Sangiovese blend. Great producer. Great vintage. And buying directly from the producer allows us to offer it to you at a great price. Problem solved.

When I started in the wine business 41-plus years ago, a $6.99 price tag on a bottle of wine generally meant it was either a super-second growth (although we never used the term “super-second” then) from the Medoc or a “Reserve” type of bottling of Cabernet Sauvignon from Napa Valley. As this industry, both domestically and internationally, has grown during that time period, a combination of interrelated “things” (inflation, annual award events, domination by a handful of wine critics with their 100 point rating scheme, a rapidly growing public demand, and, most importantly, producers’ egos) have been introduced that has created a way of thinking by the public that price levels are directly related to a wine’s quality. In today’s market, when we see a wine priced at this level, it obviously cannot be very good. Doggie Poop! Produced mostly from Sangiovese (70%) with the balance being Merlot (15%) and Ciliegiolo (10%), this wonderful Tuscan blended Gem is medium-deep ruby in color, the nose is bright and flashy that is red fruit driven, with anise to mild cedary back notes. Soft, silky, and, again, bright, well-integrated fruit dances across your palate with excellent acid structure, opulent, fairly complex flavors, and a long, warm, fleshy finish, that demands that you go back for another glass. I have tasted wines that are priced $50.00 or more that don’t even come close to the brilliant quality of this Gem! And, that is why Rusty has insisted that I come home with cases of this puppy.

This little Sangiovese blend is made entirely of Morellino di Scansano fruit, grown on the hilly terrain within the Maremma. A minimum of 85% Sangiovese is required to bear the DOGC label, so the blend of 70% Sangiovese, 25% Merlot, and 5% Syrah qualifies it as Toscana IGT instead of Morellino di Scansano. The blend also qualifies it as PDG--pretty darn good--and PDC--pretty darn cheap--as plump, blue-fruited Merlot fleshes out Sangiovese's rustic, spicy cherry frame, delivering a delicious, balanced, and unapologetically gulpable wine at the eye-popping price of $6.99. Aged for ten months in a combination of Slovenian and American oak barriques ('carati' in Italian), this also hints of baking spice and clove and shows some actual depth and complexity - no joke! Whether you're smoking wild boar for the 'hood or prefer to enjoy calm, simple dinners at home, with a stash of this on hand nobody will go thirsty (or bankrupt).

As a buyer of Spanish wine for K&L I'm certainly not without my biases, but I think it's safe to say that many of my colleagues would agree with me that under $10 it is really hard to beat Spain for value reds. That said, I think Erik Banti has arguably done it with this wine here. $7 - are you kidding me? This sangiovese, merlot, syrah blend shows decent freshness and very tasty fruit for the price. Italy may have blown it against Spain in the World Cup final, but at least they can exact a bit of revenge over Spain in the $7 value red wine match-up!

Another amzing find for Greg's direct import portfolio. This wine has quickly turned into my one of my staple weeknight wines. With depth and complexity that betray the modest price tag, this wine has beatiful fruit and and more going on in the glass than one would imagine.

Saturated ruby in the glass. The nose is bursting with red cherry, clay soil, blue fruits & a hint of spice. This provides lip-smacking fruit on the palate with delicate tannin & plenty of acid as you would expect from an Italian Rosso from Tuscany. Not a multi-dimensional wine by any stretch but there is a lot happening in this glass for such a modest price tag!

Great value at $7!

I am always a little suspect of a wine that has such a "modest" price. In this case, I was wonderfully surprised at the quality of this wine at the $6.99 price point. It was good at first sip and maintained its flavor thru a second tasting a day later.