WTN: '99 & '00 Allegrini Palazzo Della Torre

[geo t.]

2000 Allegrini Palazzo Della Torre ®, Veronese IGT, $15.99, 13.5% alc.: We've always liked previous vintages of this wine, but never took the time to take notes. Kim described this big bold dark garnet as "eminently drinkable, right out of the bottle," and she was correct. It exudes an effusive, almost overripe bouquet of black cherry, black berry, plum and chocolate, with hints of tar lurking in the background. The flavors echo nicely, with somewhat better manners, where the chocolate morphs into a cocoa - ish character. Not too tannic, with just enough acidity and a fairly long finish that finally turns tarry right towards the end, this wine could easily be mistaken for an Aussie of Californian red, but don't hold that against it.

1999 Allegrini Palazzo Della Torre ®, Veronese IGT, $18.99, 13.5% alc.: This deep, dark garnet shows less dusty cocoa than we remember from our last taste, but like its successor, gives lots of deep dark fruit on the nose, with some barnyard, licorice, tar and underbrush to mix things up. The dense, intense flavors echo with medium tannins that aren't intrusive, and a nice long finish. This is a big powerhouse that can continue to develop for a good five years anyway, but you might have trouble keeping your hands off now.

Allegrini Wines Imported by Winebow, Inc., New York, NY

(From Tasting Notes from the Underground - Random Italians)

Reporting from Day-twah,

geo t.