WINE & SPIRITS MAGAZINE 100 BEST FOR $20 OR LESS

Fresh floral scents lead into this wine's flavors of honeycrisp apple, yellow pear and white peach. It's wrapped in a satiny mousse and just enough sweetness (10 grams per liter) to amplify those juicy fruit tones. It's an elegant wine, perfect for a high-end by-the-glass program.

Aromas of cedar, toasted oak, violet and camphor come to the forefront on this savory red. On the concentrated but elegant palate, velvety tannins envelop ripe Morello cherry, fruitcake and licorice. Fresh acidity keeps it bright. Drink through 2026.

The 2009 Alta Langa Metodo Classico Pas Dosé Riserva Zero 140 (a blend of 85% Pinot Nero and 15% Chardonnay) is not quite full-bodied but almost, showing plenty of rich layering and texture. The number 140 in the sparkler's name refers to the number of months this special bottle ages on the lees. This is a real beauty with peach, orchard fruit, baked bread, toasted pine nut and hints of dusty mine

The 2015 Barolo Riserva is a new wine from Vietti conceived as a blend that changes every year, a sort of Riserva of the Castiglione, in that it is a Barolo made from the many lots Vietti has at their disposal. Exotic red fruit, blood orange, spice, leather and cedar are some of the aromas and flavors that emerge from the glass. The 2015 shows the aromatic complexity of a wine that has been in bottle for a few years, naturally it does not offer the singularity of the vineyard designates. I won't be surprised if this bottling improves in future vintages as the direction becomes even more clearly defined.

Lushly textured, fresh and harmonious, this red features cherry, plum, sanguine, mineral and herbal aromas and flavors. The finish is persistent, leaving a savory impression. Sangiovese, Colorino and Canaiolo. Best from 2024 through 2032. 2,100 cases made, 200 cases imported.

A deep set of red plums and berries with some fine tobacco leaf and savory herbs, mineral and porcini. Juicy and intense on the palate with lots of chalky, nicely chewy tannins and a juicy finish. From organically grown grapes. Drinkable now, but better after 2023.

The 2018 Barolos are absolutely beautiful.

Readers will note the addition of two new wines that have been thrilling since the first day I tasted them. The first is from a choice parcel in Cerequio Vietti acquired from Michele Chiarlo.T

he 2018 Barolo Cerequio is a new wine in this range. Soaring aromatics and bright, red-toned fruit give the Cerequio its effusive personality. Nuanced and deep, with tremendous complexity and tons of character, the Cerequio is dazzling. This is everything a great Barolo from Cerequio should be. In other words: textbook. More over, it's one of the best wines of this very uneven vintage.

Gorgeous scents of cherry, raspberry, rose hip and white pepper are augmented by leather, tobacco and chalky, mineral flavors in this detailed, complex red, which starts out fresh and inviting, before the dense matrix of tannins puts a lock on the finish. Nonetheless, this has length, harmony and stellar potential.