Italy Comes On Strong With Zinfandel (Primitivo)

Matane Puglia 2009 Primitivo, $9.99 (I paid $11.04)-$12.99, 88 points, (87 points  Antonio Galloni Wine Advocate) tells the story: a very good Zinfandel for little money.

This is an exciting wine with fair complexity, brilliant magenta hues, rich grape aroma, early palate smooth with noticeable acidity and tannic prowess wound nicely into a bright flavor of red berries and cherry with the hallmark plum medium.

This is a food Zinfandel, as one would expect from Italy, but it is good enough as a stand-alone wine. A hint of bite smarts just a bit, but gets lost in a good spice finish.

Primaterra Puglia 2009 Primitivo, $9.00-$15.00, 87 points, is darker than the Matane, the aroma is more interesting (Spiced plum, earth, and a hint of clove), but the bite is stronger, though less so on day two and three (a bit green), it is less interesting, less bright, but smooth black berries comes through; this is a good wine, but not quite as good a stand-alone wine as the Matane;  the red fruit is missing, but  the spice finish is long and pleasing. Pair with roast beef, beef in rich sauces would be complimented, and I enjoyed it with a heavy sauce on chicken and dumplings. I tried the  Primaterra Puglia with both milk and dark chocolate, but was not happy with either of them.

Flaio Salento 2008 Primitivo, $7.64-$10.99, 89 points, is the richest of the Pirmitivo wines I've tried. It is darker, more earthy aromatic, smoother, more full-bodied, more plum-like, more Californian-like. The Flaio has a fair spice finish and complimented Asparagus in cheddar cheese sauce, and tenderloin well.
Flaio Salento 2008 Primitivo is a perfect example of QPR, and the bonus is that this is another Zinfandel wine (As are all three of these Italian wines) of good flavor, structure, and character for under $10.00 (A rare find indeed).

All of these Pirmitivo (Zinfandel) wines are 13.5% alcohol.

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