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Sale
Rapid Ship
Red
750ml
Bottle: $15.93 $16.76
12 bottles: $15.92
Sleek and elegant, this Barbera boasts rose, cherry, raspberry and iron flavors. Linear and bracing, with fine...
WS
92
JS
91
Sale
Rapid Ship
White
750ml
Bottle: $35.93 $37.20
12 bottles: $35.34
The 2022 Santorini Assyrtiko, the flagship 100% Assyrtiko (usually producing around 100,000 bottles), is unoaked and...
WA
94
Rapid Ship
White
750ml
Bottle: $14.85
12 bottles: $14.55
This is a vibrant white showing aromas of pears, white flowers, puffed rice and lemon verbena. Medium-bodied, so...
JS
91
Rapid Ship
Red
750ml
Bottle: $16.90
12 bottles: $16.56
Stewed damson, licorice root and a faint waft of dried tobacco leaf, the calling card of aglianico. Mid-weighted and...
Rapid Ship
Red
750ml
Bottle: $17.93
Plum and cherry aromas are ripe and rich with intense fruitiness. Sleek attack, quite concentrated and assertive, but...
DC
92
WA
90
Rapid Ship
Red
750ml
Bottle: $30.90
12 bottles: $30.28
An outstanding example of Barbera from old vines, some dating back to 1949. Strained, deeply rooted plants produce...
12 FREE
Rapid Ship
White
750ml
Bottle: $38.90
Reveals baked melon, Marcona almond, pastry cream and lime blossom flavors that exude a toasty edge -- a rich profile...
12 FREE
WS
91
Rapid Ship
Red
750ml
Bottle: $19.50
12 bottles: $18.53
The 2020 Aglianico del Vulture Superiore Gricos lifts from the glass with a pretty bouquet that mixes dusty rose with...
VM
91
DC
90
Sale
Rapid Ship
Red
750ml
Bottle: $24.50 $28.00
Ruby-red color with purple hues. A suitably intense bouquet of red berries and syrupy fruit with traces of tobacco...
Rapid Ship
Red
750ml
Bottle: $23.94
A youthful nose of sweet strawberry and damson. The supple and vibrant palate shows succulent black fruits and herbs....
12 FREE
DC
92
Rapid Ship
Red
750ml
Bottle: $23.94
Fresh and stylish, with abundant cured tobacco, ground anise and white pepper accenting ripe black plum and currant...
12 FREE
WS
90
Sale
Rapid Ship
Red
750ml
Bottle: $21.99 $23.94
This has an attractive nose of blackberries, olives, charcuterie, peppercorns and cloves. Some iodine and lemon zest....
JS
94
WA
92
Sale
Rapid Ship
Red
750ml
Bottle: $14.33 $15.00
12 bottles: $14.25
A silky, succulent red, with pure blackberry and black cherry fruit shaded by a graphite note. On the elegant side,...
WS
92
DC
90
Rapid Ship
White
750ml
Bottle: $28.99
12 bottles: $28.42
100% Assyrtiko grown in volcanic soils in the villages of Pyrgos and Imerovigli. Vines are 40-60 years old, grown on...
12 FREE
Sale
Rapid Ship
Red
750ml
Bottle: $15.92 $16.66
12 bottles: $15.83
Tart cherries, potpourri, raw spices and hibiscus flowers on the nose. This is fresh and bone-dry on the palate with...
JS
91
Rapid Ship
Red
750ml
Bottle: $21.84
12 bottles: $20.90
Notes of ripe plums and blackberries with dark spicy chocolate, moist bark and wet asphalt. Juicy and racy on the...
JS
92
VM
91
Sale
Rapid Ship
Red
750ml
Bottle: $14.84 $15.41
12 bottles: $14.64
The 2021 Barbera d'Asti Tre Vigne is a fabulous, explosive wine. Sumptuous dark cherry, ripe plum, mocha, licorice...
VM
92
JS
91

Aglianico Assyrtiko Barbera In-Store or Curbside pickup

Aglianico is a black skinned grape most commonly associated with the exquisite wines of the Campania region of Italy. It thrives most happily in hot and dry climates, and as such, has had plenty of success in the New World, particularly in the United States, where it is used to great effect in many red wines. It was believed to come from Greece several thousand years ago, brought by Pheonician tradesman, and was wildly popular in Roman times, when it was used in the finest wines made by the Roman empire. Aglianico grapes produce full bodied red wines which have a high tannin and acid content. As such, it has excellent ageing potential, and with a standard amount of time in a barrel, it rounds out and mellows to produce beautifully balanced wines.

Cultivated since at least the middle of the Byzantine era, the Assyrtiko grape is generally considered to be one the finest of the Greek grape varietals, as a result of its multi-purpose properties and ability to flourish on a wide range of terrains. The ancient Byzantines used it in conjunction with Aidani and Athiri grapes for the production of their unusual and naturally sweet Vinsanto wines, which are still produced today in Santorini, and continue to be popular. However, the Assyrtiko grapes are used for many different AOC wines across Greece, and are favored by wine makers who want to maintain a dryness and acidic punch to their produce.

The Assyrtiko grapes are renowned for their ability to maintain their acidity as they ripen beneath the blazing Mediterranean sun, resulting in wines which have a distinctive dryness and a range of citrus fruit aromas, as well as great structure and high tannins. Often, Assyrtiko grapes will produce wines which leave an unusual after-taste reminiscent of the mineral rich, volcanic soils they are grown in on the slopes of Santorini, making them a favorite for wine drinkers looking for something full of character and interesting attributes. The past twenty five years have seen Assyrtiko vines planted all over the Greek mainland, and even in Attica and Macedonia, where the softer terrain often produces more fruit forward wines with a milder, less astringent character. However, wherever this fine grape varietal is grown, it is rare the results will be anything less than excellent.

Additional Information on Greek Wines


Greek Wines
Ancient Greek Wines – A Brief History of Wine in Greece
The Myth of Dionysus, Greek God of Wine
What is Retsina?

For centuries now, the beautiful red grapes of the Barbera varietal have been grown in Italy, where they are prized for their unusual high acid content and low tannins, brought about by their thin skins. The Barbera grape varietal thrives in warmer climates, and has had some success overseas in the new world, where its strongly aromatic flavors of intense hedgerow fruits make it a favorite with wineries and wine drinkers looking for a grape which offers plenty of interesting characteristics. Interestingly, the differences between young and aged wines made from this varietal are quite significant, with younger bottles holding a plethora of berry flavors, including blueberry and raspberry notes, and oak aged wines made from the Barbera grape being much loved for their ability to become extremely complex and spicy, and picking up vanilla flavors from the wood they are barreled in.