Antinori Santa Cristina Sangiovese IGT

Grapes: Sangiovese (90 percent), merlot (10 percent)

Region: Tuscany, Northern Italy

Vintage: 2006

Price: $7.99

In the glass: Santa Cristina wine is a deep garnet-red color with a fairly dense core going out into a lightly tinged rim definition with high viscosity.

On the nose: There are indicators that the famous terroir from which this wine’s fruit is sourced shines through with powerful forward stewed red fruit dominated by ripe Morello cherries and cooked sloe fruit, with underlying notes of leather, plums, earthy minerals, herbs and dried red flowers.

On the palate: It is a nicely ripe and mature mouthful of wine right off the bat with red cherries, rhubarb compote, pomegranate juice and slightly rustic undertones, but all well-balanced. The midpalate and the supple finish confirm this with soft tannins and a pleasant lingering finish. It is medium-bodied in style and highly drinkable.

Odds and ends: The Antinori family has made wine in Tuscany for more than six centuries. “Age-old roots play an important role in our philosophy, but they have not served to inhibit our innovative spirit,” Marchese Piero Antinori said. This train of thought has enveloped the entire Italian winemaking industry for the past 20 years or so. To succeed on a worldwide basis, beyond the chianti in the straw flask, Italian winemakers must think in modern terms and be sensitive to the markets that buy their wines. At less than $8, Santa Cristina wine fits nicely in that category. Try it with spaghetti Bolognese. It should drink well through 2011.

Gil Lempert-Schwarz’s wine column appears Wednesdays. Write him at P.O. Box 50749, Henderson, NV 89016-0749, or e-mail him at gil@winevegas.com.