Times are a changing! Falesco have moved in and old guard producers have recruited fresh blood from France, Spain and California to revamp their vineyards and soup up their marketing efforts even bringing in foreign vines too. Now you can not just buy red wine from Lazio, you can buy great red wine, and not just Cabs, Merlots and Syrahs but even excellent blended wines AND the most happy news of all? They lack the price tags of Tuscanys ITG’s.

Lazio’s volcanic soils produce wonderful red wines and if Falesco have moved in we can expect other bordering giants to do the same, perhaps it won’t be too long before Antinori and Gaja begin showing an interest in this relatively cheap area. In the meantime we can enjoy the wines of the highly successful Casale del Giglio and Falesco a few of which are reviewed below.

Undoubtedly the best wine of the region is the Falesco Montiano, but sadly my local wine shop had sold out so I didn’t get to review it for this blog entry. :o(

San Marco Solo Shiraz 2005 – BUY – €8
Dark ruby red with some brown hues, nice colour of medium intensity. Spicy, flashy nose of cherries with a hint of orange, cinnamon and spicebox. A nice palate, very fruity with a good balance, a little acidic with medium body. A good value wine, a little too simplistic but pleasant and fruity nonetheless. Worth a try for the money. 88 Points

Casale del Giglio Chardonnay 2006 – PASS – €10
Light straw colour with some greenish hues. Not much of a nose with some strange earthy character with apples and citrus fruits. Not unpleasant but a strange Chardonnay, none of the normal qualities of the grape. Fresh and clean palate with a short finish. 82 Points

Casale del Giglio Cabernet Sauvignon 2003 – PASS – €24
Dark purple colour with some nice berry/cassis aromas with some dried fruits in there too. Very high quality nose and a great colour, the palate is not as impressive. Still has some nice tannins and plenty of fruit and a good thick body. I can’t recommend this wine simply because it isn’t as good as the ’01 or the ’04. Find the other vintages and then you have a great wine. 89 Points +

Falesco Tellus 2006 – BUY – €6
Smart, blended wine that ticks all the boxes for wine under $10. Deep ruby red, not far from a purple colour with a full nose of licorice, mint, cherries, tobacco and vanilla, even some espresso in there too. Charming palate with silky tannins and a lot of fruit. Its simplistic, there are not multiple layers to this wine but it’s a good quality solid red with excellent QPR. 87 Points

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