Wine of the week: Feudo Arancio Stemmari Sangiovese 2010

The display at the wine shop did its job: “Sangiovese from Sicily!” How could the Wine Curmudgeon pass that up?

That’s because Italian sangiovese usually comes from just one place, Tuscany, and it makes some of the most famous wines in the world. It’s also not cheap. The Stemmari ($8, purchased), on the other hand, was cheap and comes from a part of the world hardly known for sangiovese. But regular visitors here know how much I appreciate the Sicilian wine renaissance, and Feudo Arancia is a top-notch Sicilian producer.

The Stemmari did not disappoint. No one will ever confuse it with a high-end Chianti or Super Tuscan, two of the best-known Tuscan sangioveses, but it tastes exactly like sangiovese. To be honest, I had my doubts whether it would. The wine is a little short, in that its flavors end abruptly, but what is there is varietally correct – sour cherries, a little earthiness, a little cedar. It’s just not as well developed as in a better quality wine.

Which does not imply there is anything wrong with the Stemmari, and especially at this price. You get more than $8 worth. Drink this with any red sauce, pizza, and even burgers. Just don’t tell a wine snob it’s from Sicily until after they taste it.

Comments

[bburnsey]

At first i thought you were going to write about truth in labeling with a Sangiovese from Sicily, but they really do grow some in Sicily. I am never to old to learn sometning new. Thanks.
Some of the bargain wines are better on the second day. Would this be one of them?

[Jeff Siegel]

No, Burnsey, I think this wine has all it has to give in the first day -- in the first couple of hours, in fact.