($22, Banfi): Rosso di Montalcino, often dubbed “Baby Brunello,” gives consumers a glimmer of the grandeur of the more prestigious appellation at a more affordable price.  And, unlike Brunello itself, wines carrying the Rosso di Montalcino name are ready to drink upon release.… Read more

($14): Castello di Fonterutoli’s 2013 Chianti Classico is a riper and fleshier rendition, without going over the top.  It’s a very clean and pure expression of Chianti Classico with an attractive succulence in the finish.  Freshness in the finish holds it all together. … Read more

($19): Castello di Ama, a top producer of Chianti Classico, make a splendid range of wines from this one, to their Chianti Classico Riserva to their Chianti Classico Gran Selezione. This 2013 is a traditionally framed Chianti Classico that conveys a mixture of dark slightly bitter cherries and a savory earthiness. … Read more

($45): Máté, a relative newcomer to Montalcino being founded in the 1990s, made a stellar Brunello in 2010.  Powerful, without being overdone, their 2010 is more fruit forward and accessible than many of the other Brunello from the 2010 vintage.  A dark core of minerality balances and enhances the ripe dark cherry fruit favors. … Read more

($40): Mocali made it into my list of top Brunello of 2010 with its impressive aromatics and gorgeous initial impact of dried and ripe fresh cherries offset by dense dark minerality.  A lovely firmness and hint of bitterness round out this beautifully balanced wine. … Read more

($60): Mastrojanni’s 2010 Brunello, one of the top wines of the vintage, has gorgeous power balanced by suave elegance. An engaging floral aspect suggests greatness.  What follows doesn’t disappoint.  Polished, almost sweet, tannins surround a core of dark earthy minerality.  Succulent dark black cherry-like flavors emerge with time. … Read more

($60): No doubt I will say more than once that the 2010 vintage for Brunello is outstanding — as good as it gets.  Lisini, a traditional producer who rarely falters, made one of the star wines of the vintage.  With an enormous initial aromatic impact, their 2010 delivers an alluring combination of flavors — earth and cherries — wrapped in firm, but polished, tannins. … Read more

($85): The 2010 Caiarossa, an extraordinary wine and the best from this estate since its commercial debut with the 2004 vintage, shows how far this producer has come in a very short time. Owned by same Dutch family who own the Margaux classified growths Château Giscours and Château du Tertre, and whose general manager, Alexander Van Beek, runs those two Bordeaux properties, Caiarossa uses a seeming mishmash of grapes — Bordeaux varieties, Syrah and even Alicante — to make this impressive Super Tuscan. … Read more

($18): The wines from Castello di Uzzano always show well at the comprehensive tasting of Chianti Classico held in Florence every year.   They use only Sangiovese — Cabernet need not apply — for their Chianti Classico and avoid small oak barrels to allow the flavors of the region to shine. … Read more

($20, Winebow): Castellare di Castellina, one of my favorite Tuscan producers, succeeded again with their 2013 Chianti Classico.   Not gussied up with new oak or Cabernet Sauvignon, Castellare di Castellina sticks with traditional techniques to produce an easy-to-recommend wine replete with herbal and earthy flavors that offset and complement its bright cherry signature. … Read more

($25): Paolo de Marchi, who, along with his family, owns Isole e Olena, and is responsible for the wines, is a thoughtful, ever-questioning man who makes exceptional wines.   Rare, perhaps unique, in the region, he makes no Chianti Classico Riserva — only this one and his Super Tuscan, Cepparello, which is made entirely from Sangiovese and which is truly super. … Read more

($32, Artisans Wines, Inc.): Carato, another Vernaccia di San Gimignano from the exemplary producer Montenidoli, is fermented and aged for a year in barrel before bottling.  The winemaking here is so precise that you don’t taste woodiness.  Rather, you feel the effect of wood on the wine — it’s a fuller, richer version of Vernaccia di San Gimignano that retains finesse and vigor. … Read more

($25, Artisans Wines, Inc.): Montenidoli is one of the very best producers of Vernaccia di San Gimignano.  Anyone who has been disappointed by this category of Italian white should taste their wines to see how grand this DOCG can be. Montenidoli makes three Vernaccia di San Gimignano; this one, made from free-run juice and labeled Fiore (flower) is, indeed, floral, fresh and clean. … Read more

($34, Dalla Terra Direct): Since the 2010 vintage was superb in Chianti Classico and Badia a Coltibuono is one of the star producers in that region, it is not surprising that this wine is stellar.  Not boisterous, this is a classically proportioned Chianti Classico Riserva with great elegance and a seamless combination of bright red fruit flavors and earthy notes. … Read more

($14, Dalla Terra Direct): This Chianti Classico reminds us that Badia a Coltibuono consistently makes attractive wines.  The vintage was difficult in the Chianti Classico region because of less-than-perfect weather.  Nonetheless, Badia a Coltibuono has fashioned a traditionally framed — that is, not overdone — Chianti Classico. … Read more