Monte Antico Toscana IGT

Wine: Monte Antico Toscana IGT

Grapes: sangiovese (85 percent), merlot (10 percent), cabernet sauvignon (5 percent)

Region: Tuscany, northern Italy

Vintage: 2007

Price: $7.99

In the glass: Monte Antico is a deep garnet-red color with a semi-opaque core going out into a lighter, still dense garnet rim definition with a slightly tinged edge and medium-high viscosity.

On the nose: It is immediately apparent that we're dealing with a highly quaffable wine, as it exudes concentrated cherry compote, black cherry liqueur, powerful smoky notes of aged wood, fresh crushed mint leaf notes, smashed black plums, pipe tobacco, lead pencil and earthy minerals, all characteristic of sangiovese-based wines.

On the palate: The wine immediately impresses with its soft intensity and full-bodied structure showing concentrated plums, morello cherries and raw cherry juice, roasted herbs and fine earth-driven minerals. The midpalate is powerful with excellent concentration of black cherry fruit going into a long, slow-building finish that embellishes the great quality of this superb value wine. It is still on the palate a full minute afterward, showing supple tannins, great delineation and fine purity.

Odds and ends: Wine importer Neil Empson, who represents one of the most desirable portfolios in Italian wines in the United States, started a collaboration with renowned Italian oenologist Franco Bernabei nearly 10 years ago and created this "baby Super Tuscan," which they call Monte Antico. IGT is the normal denomination for most of the Italian so-called "Super Tuscans" because they are made from either indigenous or international grape varietals and do not adhere to the strict DOC laws of Italy. This wine qualifies for IGT status, however, because it is made from a blend with sangiovese. Since IGT became a sort of quality standard all on its own, there was prestige in not going for the DOCG designation. Either way, this is great stuff from the phenomenal 2007 vintage for Tuscan wines, and at a price that is an excellent value. It's a great pizza wine and should be good through 2015.

Gil Lempert-Schwarz's wine column appears Wednesdays. Write him at P.O. Box 50749, Henderson, NV 89106-0749, or email him at gil@winevegas.com.