Poggio Trevvalle Santippe, IGT `09 $12.99 ***

Poggio Trevvalle Santippe made a liar out of me.  I used to say that I don't like Sangiovese but I really liked this Tuscan 100% Sangiovese. It it light, easy to drink and fruit forward (rich strawberry) with a subtle earthy finish and very light tannins.  The joke is on me though... it is 14.5% ETOH.  It goes down waaaaayyyy too easy.  This is a wine that I need to watch myself with, it is beguiling and wonderful but could lead to a regrettable morning after.

Made by two Italian brothers at their vineyard Poggio Trevvalle in Maremma, Tuscany, between the towns of Grosseto and Campagnatico, this wine shows their commitment to the area "terroir".  It s a delicious, straightforward juicy wine that could easily be our house wine for Spring 2012. (JPH ran out to buy three more bottles after we polished off the first one with the dinner pictured above)

We paired it with chicken cutlets filled with buffalo mozzarella and parsley, wrapped in prosciutto,; eggplant cubes sauteed in olive oil with a hint of garlic and pasta with a simple red sauce. It was a delicious meal.

This wine can even make you smarter. (if you are lucky enough to have a brilliant Ph.D at the table)  After she had a sip and liked it, S. looked at the bottle and exclaimed "This is named after Socrates's wife!".  Well, that is fascinating (after all, I have always been quite fond of Socrates - as a child, my pet white goat after him)  History was not overly kind to his wife though.  For the original Xanthippe "strong willed" is one of the kinder sentiments that have survived the ages.  Shakespeare mentions her in the Taming of the Shrew which is what has really put her reputation to the test over the centuries. Jet Wine Bar wrote a great review of this wine that touches on a lot of history. I'll let you click over there to read more if you want to.


As for me, as soon as I hit "publish", I'm going to take the glass of Santippe here on my right and go take a walk in S's garden on this beautiful sunny Spring day. I think that Socrates and the brothers Umberto e Bernardo Valle won't have a problem with that!