Wine of the Week: Banfi Centine 2012-$10

Dwight The Wine Doctor

Rome, Italy--Turkey Day is here! Across the United States, families are gathering around the Holiday Table for a stomach-filling meal with turkey and all the fixin's. One of the most problematic meals to match a wine with, because of its kaleidoscopic blend of savory and sweet dishes,  Banfi has scored a home run with its 2012 Centine Rose ($10) from its flagship castle estate in Tuscany. This is a truly top-quality wine, delivered at a bargain-basement price. A blend of local treasure Sangiovese grapes, combined with the International varietals Merlot and Cabernet, so familiar to American wine lovers, Banfi achieves a bright, easy-drinking wine with a vibrant, eye-catching  color that literally dances with flavor. Along with that intense pink color comes some equally intense and delicious fruit.  Clean and fresh with hints of maraschino cherries, its flavor unfolds the more you drink it. It's kind of like the effect of stargazing  where, the longer you look into the nighttime sky, the more stars and constellations you see. For example, a second sip of Banfi Centine reveals mouthwatering wild strawberries and ripe raspberries. Then later, you detect a touch of kumquat or orange zest on the finish. This is a Rose' that defies your previous perceptions of what a rose' should be. This is definitely not your Aunt Susie's rose' or any of those dreadful "eye of the swan" permutations that were foisted upon an unwitting public a few decades ago. Rather than delivering a cloying sweetness, as you might expect from the color, the wine is full bodied and dry with an aroma of crushed red flowers, derived from the Cabernet and an intensity of flavor and even structure, provided by the Merlot. It also has a rich, earthy character, derived from that Tuscan king of grapes, Sangiovese. I guarantee that people who say they don't like Rose' wine will love this one. It's the perfect blend of indiginous grapes and international varieties that speaks to the best of both Italy and America. It goes perfectly with the Holiday Turkey and, what's even better,  at a great price!

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