Winemaker Notes
This big, bold wine is recommended with red meats but the winemakers preference is roasted venison or pheasant. Also excellent with aged cheese.
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The staggeringly rich, complex 1997 Rubino vino da tavola (a blend of 80% Cabernet Sauvignon and 20% Merlot, aged in 100% new oak, and bottled unfined and unfiltered) exhibits a dense ruby/purple color in addition to a sumptuous nose of blackberries, raspberries, and cassis intertwined with toasty new oak, minerals, and licorice. Full-bodied, ostentatious, and flashy, with loads of glycerin, and a 35+ second finish, it can be drunk now and over the next 15 years. Bravo!
Italian Red Wine
While picturesque hillsides, endless coastlines and a favorable climate serve to unify the grape-growing culture of this country. The apparent never-ending world of indigenous grape varieties gives Italy an unexampled charm and allure for its red wines. From the steep inclines of the Alps to the sprawling, warm, coastal plains of the south, red grape varieties thrive throughout.
The kings of Italy, wines like Barolo and Barbaresco (made of Nebbiolo), and Chianti and Brunello di Montalcino (made of Sangiovese), as well as Amarone (mostly Corvina), play center stage for the most lauded, collected and cellar-worthy reds. Less popular but entirely deserving of as much praise are the wines made from Aglianico, Sagrantino and Nerello Mascalese.
For those accustomed to drinking New World reds, the south is the place to start. Grapes like Negroamaro or Primitvo from Puglia and Nero d’Avola from Sicily make soft, ammicable, full-bodied, fruit-dominant wines. Curious palates should be on the lookout for Cannonau (Grenache), Lagrein, Teroldego, Ruché, Freisa, Cesanese, Schiopettino, Rossese and Gaglioppo to name a few.