That would be the magnificent and strange Proietti “Vignalibus”
Cesanese from Olevano Romano Italy, now available at Soif retail for a worth-every-penny-of-it $28.
This blood red bottle of vintage 2005 Cesanese grapes offers a rich, musty nose like old roses and deep raspberries, before unpacking its elegant stash of tannins. A lovely creation full of restraint, that doesn’t give itself too quickly.
At times it tends toward zinfandel, yet it remains true to its own idiosyncratic character. I found more rose bouquet as it opened, and a persistant perfume of bricks and geraniums with a hit of vanilla at the bottom. At 13.5% it is an adult wine for stylish and endless summers.
