Fattoria di Fubbiano San Gennaro, Colline Lucchesi DOC, 2007 ($24.99) - Tuscany produces a plethora of exceptional wines. Many, such as Chianti and Brunello, are famous. Others, such as Collini Luchesi and Vino Nobile de Montepulciano, deserve to be. C-L overlooks the celebrated city of Lucca with its vineyards nestled in the foothills of the Apennine Mountains. This wine is a blend of 80% Sangiovese, 10% Canaiolo, and 10% Ciliegiolo. The bouquet alone is worth the price of admission, but the wine delivers much more with a softness that belies its power, a sense of refinement that belies its price, and an outstanding balance of fruit, ripe tannin, and acidity. It was aged in a mix of botte and barrique for 12-14 months. Serve it with braised and roasted meats, game, and mature cheese. Don't miss it!

Collemattoni Rosso di Montalcino, 2008 ($24.99) - Brunello di Montalcino is typically released five years after the harvest; the 2006s arrived in late 2011. Many Brunello producers also make a Rosso that they release earlier to help their cash flow. Collemattoni made 500 cases of this exceptional Rosso. People laugh when I tell them that 50% of the pleasure I get out of a wine comes from its bouquet, but it's true; a wine with a wonderful bouquet is much more satisfying than a wine that just tastes good. The bouquet here is exceptional with a flamboyant Sangiovese perfume of violets, black cherries, and wild black fruits. This is an impressive young wine that will greatly benefit from decanting for 1-2 hours or aging for another year or two. It has serious character and concentration. Yummy! The small property was started by Aldo Bucci and is currently run by his son, Marcello. The Collemattoni vineyard is located on the south side of Montalcino at an altitude of 1,000 to 1,200 feet. The wine is fermented on the skins for 30 days in stainless steel tanks. It is then racked into small Slovenian oak casks where it ages for 12 months. The wine then ages for 6 month in the bottle before release.

Ken Wright Cellars Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, 2009 ($29.99) - There are many reasons why KWC single vineyard wines are among the best Pinots produced in America. One reason is severe pruning and crop thinning (see www.kenwrightcellars.com/philosophy.shtml for more details) to keep yields below 2 tons per acre. Despite their best efforts, 2009 was such a bountiful harvest that KWC decided to use only the smallest clusters of grapes for the vineyard designated wines; the remaining grapes went into this "Willamette" bottling. It is still an excellent wine. It puts on color and weight as it airs, but it doesn't put on airs; it is an honest, lightly oaked Pinot that clocks in at an appropriate 13.5% alcohol.

J.L. Chave St.- Joseph "Offerus," 2009 ($34.99) - The big brother of Chave's wonderful Mon Coeur Côtes du Rhône! Parker: 90 "One of the finest examples of this cuvée Chave has yet made, the 2009 is performing fabulously well from bottle. Produced from purchased grapes grown on the hillsides behind the village of Mauves as well as from further north on the hillsides above Tournon and St.-Jean de Muzols, this St.-Joseph reveals copious aromas of licorice, bay leaf, bouquet garni, roasted meats, black cherries, and raspberries. It has an attractive texture as well as lots of fleshy, fat flavors, and good acidity and freshness. Now-2021." Limited

Ken Wright Pinot Noir "Carter Vineyard." 2009 ($54.99) - The exceptional 2008s are almost sold out, but Ken Wright's 2009s are also wonderful. Wine Advocate: 91 "The 2009 Pinot Noir Carter Vineyard is a dense, broad-shouldered Pinot with plenty of spicy dark fruit flavors, good balance, and a lengthy, pure finish. It will benefit from 1-2 years of additional cellaring and will offer a drinking window extending from 2013 to 2021+." Wine Spectator: 92 "Velvety and generous, delivering a lithe mouthful of orange peel-scented raspberry and guava flavors that linger effortlessly against creamy, polished tannins. Drink now through 2019."