Vino e Cucina d'Italia

Cantina Giardino - The Touch of Excellence

Neil Duarte

The best Aglianico wine from the Campania region of Italy? It may be the wines produced by a small six-person winery called Cantina Giardino, in the town of Ariano Irpino, says Neil Duarte. He recently paid them a visit. Here's his report.

Incanto

Incanto 2010 Chianti Classico Riserva ($10.99)

Clear dark ruby, with bright red-orange glints along the edge. Black cherries and a subtle touch of oak, far from woody but a distinct scent of earth and spice. Well balanced on the palate, black cherries and dried fruit, palate-cleansing acidity and rather astringent tannins. It will likely benefit from a few years' aging, up to five years or more assuming good cellar conditions. Meanwhile, the simple measure of an overnight stay at room temp in the recorked bottle worked wonders, softening the astringency and bringing up the fruit-to-oak balance

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Gamay finds its natural home in Beaujolais

Richard Fadeley

Here at WineLoversPage.com, we didn't say a word about Beaujolais Nouveau this year. Did you miss it? We didn't think so. Once a popular November wine ritual, that ship has pretty much sailed. But that doesn't mean that we don't love Beaujolais! Columnist Richard Fadeley takes a close look at some regional treats. Read article.