The Preamble
The other night we enjoyed an inexpensive red from the people at Castello Banfi, the same top producer of a top notch Brunello di Montalcino. I’ve tried to look through old notes to find what that Brunello was like – but no luck. What I do remember was – it was very tasty, but we drank it too young.
The Centine comes highly acclaimed having won Best of Show at the Critics Challenge International Wine Competition, 2012. 17 wine critics chose it over bottles that cost $100 or more!
After doing a little research on the winery, it’s definitely a place I’d like to visit some time. It looks beautiful – it’s a freaking castle on a hill that overlooks thousands of acres of planted vines.
This Tuscan beauty is a blend of 60% Sangiovese, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon and 20% Merlot.
There are not many left at Vintages right now, but you can look for it with this number 947440. The bottle I have lists the alcohol at 14% alcohol/volume, but the LCBO site has it 12.5. The sugar content is 8 g/L, and it’s considered a dry red wine.
The Review
In the glass – it had a concentrated crimson colour.
In the nose – I found red berry undertones, spice and a touch of prune.
In the mouth – it was chewy and smooth, with a hint of tea and oak.
We enjoyed this after dinner, oddly enough – we wanted to eat with it. There was something about it that lent itself to food, either way it was easy to drink.
I have to tell you, there is incredible value in this bottle. I strongly suggest getting some before they all disappear. For a $15.95 bottle it showed surprising structure and depth – it’s not going to last long!
I can easily recommend this wine and rate it 3.5 just on the finish alone.
Grape Stains by Jimmy 