2016 La Valentina Montepulciano d’Abruzzo DOC

This Montepulciano is the small winery’s anchor, with an annual production of about 18,000 cases and a reasonable $15 price tag. The fruit is grown on twenty- to forty-year-old vines anchored in clay soils. It’s vinified with cultured yeast, and the wine ages in a mix of stainless steel and oak vessels. The result has a ruby-garnet robe animated by blue glints and redolent of cranberry and black currant, rosemary and sage. The wine’s even-textured black and red fruits render it drinkable with a wide range of flavorful fare.

2016 La Valentina Montepulciano d’Abruzzo DOC

13.5% abv | $15 (sample); Imported by Dalla Terra