Wine of the week, February 09, 2014

VITIANO ROSSO 2011 UMBRIA, ITALY

Vitiano, consistently good vintage after vintage, is produced in the Umbria region of Central Italy, north of Rome. It is a blend of equal parts of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Sangiovese, rustic and earthy in character, medium-bodied, well-balanced (meaning that one characteristic does not dominate over the others), with a deep ruby red color, with aromas and flavors of black currant, black cherry, plum, licorice, smoke, and spice. It received 86 points by Robert Parker (whose opinion about a wine can make or break it) in The Wine Advocate. Ho-hum, another delicious, inexpensive wine from - where else but - Italy!