Monday, September 15, 2008

Agricole Vallone Salice Salentino Vereto Rosso Riserva, 2000

After pouring the DOA Spanish Garnacha down the drain, I had the courage to reach for a wine four years older and even more deeply discounted--this Salice Salentino from Agricole Vallone. Originally priced at $11.99, the wine was marked down to $4.79 at Harding's Markets, presumably because someone figured that an inexpensive eight-year-old Italian wine belongs in the throw-away bin. Not true.

The color is deep and dark, and the wine is bursting with vibrant aromas of black and red cherries and a hint of roses--spicy and intense. It's a full-bodied wine, ripe at entry with flavors of dark cherries, earth and licorice on the mid-palate. The finish is more than decent, and the ripe, bold fruit serves as a good foil for a lasagna made with hot, spicy sausage. I stocked up on this wine and plan to enjoy it frequently. If a bottle or two is still around five years from now, I feel certain it will still be offering a lot of enjoyment.

(See previous notes on this wine from April 22 and May 21).

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