Vasco Sassetti, Il Ginepro, Rosso Toscano, Sangiovese 2011

Recommendation: Inexpensive, OK at best.

Winery/Producer: Vasco Sassetti; Montalcino, Italy

Grape Variety: Sangiovese.

Geographic Region, Appellation: Tuscany, Italy.

Vintage: 2011

Price: $7.99 (with a 20% discount)

Purchased From: Total Wine; Winston-Salem, North Carolina

Paired With: Eggplant Parmesan and Caesar salad.

Tasting:

    He said: Opened 30-minutes before drinking. Clear, very dark ruby red color. Alcohol, cherry and plum aromas. Lots of very dry cherry and plum fruit taste, but a little sharp. Medium long mouth puckering bitter finish. OK but VERY rough around the edges. It would make a good house red wine at a spaghetti restaurant. It was dirt cheap, but just over the drinkable line. To me it tastes like a “New World” cheap Italian Chianti…dry and full of fruit flavor, but not much else. At $8.00 it’s “drinkable” but that’s about the best I can say.

    She said: I love Tuscan red wines so a bottle marked Sangiovese had great appeal as a pairing for this dinner. Sure enough, I enjoyed every sip, even with the salad. It’s ripe cherry aroma and taste lasted well into the medium long finish while the acidity and crispness complemented the tomato sauce and salad. With its dryness, medium body and firm tannins it made a good accompaniment for the dinner. Although lacking in nuances of flavor it is a bargain wine at $8.00

    Comments:

Alcohol: 13.5%

Bar code: 7 47505 00596 2