#65- Montepulciano

Montelpulciano, Montepulciano, Montepulciano. It's just such a fun word to say don't ya think? It's such a long word that by the end of it you're convinced you're fluent in Italian. I know you want to say it out loud don't you?

Wine #65 is Tre Saggi (love that name too- it means Three Wise Men!) from the Cantoni Talamonti Winery in Italy. The website does a great job of describing each wine in great detail of how they come up with the name. The vintage is 2006.

The winery itself isn't that old, having only been around since 2001. The Montelpulciano d'Abruzzo is this delicate but amazing wine that has numerous flavours that mix in the mouth and leave your tongue excited for the next sip. This wine is also oaked and is just a beautiful balance of oak, fruit and hints of flowers...the site says it best- dark ruby-red with violet undertones. Complex wild berry notes framed by elegant oak spices. Blackcurrant, spicy cherry integrated with hazelnut and coffee.

I paired this red wine with a few slices of vegetarian pizza (made by some high school students I might add and they did a great job) that I had at a lunch meeting earlier in the day. The pairing of the wine and cheese just upped the whole Tre Saggi experience.

The Montepulciano grape is similar to the Sangiovese grape and is often confused with it though it is a completely different grape. I can't wait to finish this bottle off and I will definitely be trying some of their other wines in the near future.