2006 Villa da Filicaja Chianti Superiore

Dear Rene, It's hard to believe you can still get a wine this good for $12.99. Our e-mail price is even better! Start with a grand estate in the famed Chianti hills of Tuscany that has been making wine for 550 years. Add in a Count and Countess as owners who devote their (considerable) resources to improving their wine slowly but constantly, just as their family has century after century. Combine this with a fantastic Tuscan vintage that received Parker's highest vintage score in Tuscany(tied) since Parker started rating Tuscan vintages in 1970, 96 points. What is the result? A majestic $200 trophy wine? Nope, it's my new favorite Chianti for weekday pasta or pizza or roasted chicken, or just about any other uncomplicated meal. It's a great deal at $12.99 but today, just for our e-mail customers, we've made the price as low as $9.99. This is pure, delicious, full-flavored and an absolute joy to drink, with absolutely nothing heavy or harsh. Get your case today. Jim Cutts 2006 Villa da Filicaja Chianti Superiore 2006 Villa da Filicaja Chianti Superiore DOCG Reg. $12.99 Six Bottles: $10.99 each Case Sale Price: $9.99 per bottle This wine has lots going for it: A winery with over five and a half centuries of experience, family owned since 1452! The resources of the forward thinking Count Antonio and Countess Marita Nardi-Dei da Filicaja Dotti. A philosophy of constant improvement and the understanding that neither tradition nor innovation alone, but the expert combination of both, can produce top-quality wines. Perfectly located vineyards, with excellent climate and stony soils, growing near Montaione, 36 miles SW of Florence at elevations of 354 meters. Quality standards for the new "Superiore" designation that are much stricter than for regular Chianti. The standards are very close to (and in some ways even more rigorous than) the standards for Chianti Classico. A great vintage. 2006 is tied as Parker's highest rated year ever in Tuscany. Here's just one example of how this winery masterfully combines tradition and innovation: They still harvest their grapes by hand, the traditional method of harvest that, while not as fast as mechanical harvesting, allows them to be selective with the quality, ripeness, and cleanliness of the grapes they choose. Their experienced pickers avoid immature grapes, broken skins, leaves and other things a machine can't. To improve on the traditional harvest, though, they have an innovative transfer system which assures that each crate of hand-picked grapes is de-stemmed and put into fermentation tanks within 15 minutes of the time each grape is picked. If you've ever seen truckloads of grapes parked in smoggy traffic in the hot sun waiting, sometimes for hours, to make their way to a winery, you'll understand what a difference this innovation makes to freshness. And it shows in the purity of the wine. Here's how it tastes: This Chianti Superiore, a traditional blend of 90% sangiovese, 5% canaiolo and 5% merlot has a beautiful bright ruby color. The aromas are of refreshing red and black cherries and savory cooking spices. The flavors are pure, bright, and refreshing, not at all heavy. They're reminiscent of black cherries, red berries and subtle spices. The finish is refreshing and palate-cleansing. This beautiful glass of wine, full of flavor yet not at all heavy, is perfect for rinsing the palate with uncomplicated meals like spaghetti bolognese, pizza or roasted chicken. Many of us eat a little lighter as the weather warms up and this light to medium bodied, but extremely flavorful red wine is perfect with these lighter meals. On a hot day you can even give it a light chill to make it even more refreshing. Order this by the case. To order please call 703.525.0990. We need your Visa or MasterCard information including expiration date. Wine arrives tomorrow, April 8th. Thank you for reading. Jim Cutts