Hello and welcome to my weekly dig through the pile of wine samples that show up asking to be tasted. I’m pleased to bring you the latest installment of Vinography Unboxed, where I highlight some of the better bottles that have crossed my doorstep recently.

This past week included a few more Albariños from Uruguay, all of which are worth your time if you enjoy the crisp qualities of that grape. The Bouza version has a classic profile and a nice price. Viña Progreso, an offshoot of Bodega Pisano, takes things to the next level, with electric acidity and alluring aromatics. The Garzon Single Vineyard bottling is perhaps not as demonstrative but does an admirable (and delicious) job of expressing one particular slice of the Uruguayan coastal countryside.

Next I’ve got a couple more new releases from Troon Vineyard in Oregon’s Applegate Valley. Over the past couple of weeks I’ve tasted their Druid’s White and Druid’s Pink wines, and this week I’m recommending their Druid’s Red. Like its siblings, the Druid’s Red is designed to be an inexpensive, easy-drinking red at an attractive price. Like those wines it is biodynamically produced and farmed with Gold Regenerative Organic certification. It has a dark berry character that balances more earthy and savory notes along with fruit. The winery’s Syrah has a similar, if more complex and nuanced personality, with a strong stony aspect.

I recently listened with interest to a press conference given by the Consorzio del Vino Brunello di Montalcino, in which they explained the recent, somewhat esoteric, changes that they’re making to the Brunello di Montalcino appellation. Most wine lovers won’t be familiar with the minutia of regulations governing how Brunello and its sibling Rosso di Montalcino get produced each year. In short, an additional 870 acres of land that historically has been unable to produce Rosso di Montalcino under current regulations will now be able to produce Rosso di Montalcino. What’s more, the Consorzio has invested an impressive amount of time and effort in creating a rigorous and data-based assessment method for each vintage of Brunello di Montalcino, that will replace the Consorzio’s 5-star rating system with something more nuanced. You can look for this in the coming years, but for the time being, I’ve got a few wines to recommend from the 5-star 2019 vintage and the 4-star 2018 vintage.

The 2018 Frescobaldi Castelgiocondo bottling offers a classically old-school expression of Brunello with its dusty herbs and cherries. The Canalicchio di Sopra from 2019 is still young yet, with some time needed to integrate its oak influence with the very ripe fruit it offers. My favorite of the three Brunellos I tasted this week was the 2019 Fanti “Vallocchio” Brunello, which the estate produces only in the best vintages. The Vallocchio site is one of the oldest referenced by name in the history of Brunello, with mentions as far back as the 14th Century. Fanti’s five oldest vineyards sit in this little valley and are used to produce this very refined expression of Sangiovese.

Lastly, I can recommend two wines made by the Dunn Family, whose name is best known for their eponymous Cabernet Sauvignon made high on Napa’s Howell Mountain. Randy Dunn’s son Mike and his wife Kara run Retro Cellars, where they quite distinctly do not produce Cabernet, and instead make wines from Petite Sirah, Syrah, Zinfandel, and, quite interestingly, Peloursin (the obscure grape that is one of the parents of Petite Sirah, along with Syrah). I tasted their Syrah and their Petite Sirah this week, which are both big-boned, brawny wines, but with surprisingly restrained alcohols given their flavor profiles and tannin structures.

That’s all for this week. Notes on these wines below.

Tasting Notes

2024 Bouza Albariño, Uruguay
Pale straw in color, this wine smells of honey, golden apples, and wet chalkboard. In the mouth, lean green apple and golden apple flavors mix with a touch of warm hay, as excellent acidity keeps things fresh and faintly saline. Crisp and bright. 12.5% alcohol. Closed with a screwcap. Score: 8.5. Cost: $26. click to buy.

2023 Viña Progreso “Overground” Viognier, Progreso, Uruguay
Pale gold in the glass, this wine smells of lemon and unripe peaches. In the mouth, orange peel, unripe apricots, lemon peel, and lemon pith flavors have a wonderful zingy salinity and fantastic acidity. Juicy and mouthwatering with a great crisp snap and lively aromatics. Delicious. 12.5% alcohol. Score: 9. Cost: $29.

2023 Bodega Garzon “Single Vineyard” Albariño, Garzón, Uruguay
Light gold in the glass, this wine smells of lemon pith and white flowers. In the mouth, floral flavors of lemon and grapefruit mix with a hint of green apple and wonderfully saline wet chalkboard minerality. Silky textured and bright. Very delicious. 14% alcohol. Score: between 8.5 and 9. Cost: $45. click to buy.

2023 Troon Vineyard “Druid’s Red” Red Blend, Applegate Valley, Southern Oregon, Oregon
Very dark garnet in the glass with purple highlights, this wine smells of blackberries, dark mulberries, and potting soil. In the mouth, juicy blackberry and blueberry flavors are shot through with a hint of barnyard and are wrapped in a light, gauzy blanket of tannins that hang at the edges of perception. Juicy acidity makes the wine lively on the palate, and a distinct note of purple SweetTarts lingers in the finish. A blend of 30% Syrah, 27% Grenache, 20% Cinsault, 19% Mourvèdre, and 4% Carignane. Demeter-certified biodynamic and Gold Regenerative Organic Certified. 12.5% alcohol. Score: 8.5. Cost: $25. click to buy.

2022 Troon Vineyard Syrah, Applegate Valley, Southern Oregon, Oregon
Dark garnet in the glass, this wine smells of blackberries, black cherry, and a hint of barnyard. In the mouth, wonderfully stony flavors of ripe and unripe blackberries mix with a faint smoked meatiness along with a touch of purple SweetTarts. Tangy and juicy, with excellent acidity and a lovely floral earthy note that lingers in the finish. Demeter-certified biodynamic and Gold Regenerative Organic Certified. 12.6% alcohol. Score: between 8.5 and 9. Cost: $36. click to buy.

2018 Frescobaldi “CastelGiocondo” Brunello di Montalcino, Tuscany, Italy
Medium ruby in the glass with some brick color at the rim, this wine smells of cherries, prunes, and forest floor. In the mouth, dusty tannins coat the mouth as flavors of cherries, dried herbs, and citrus peel are juicy with excellent acidity. The tannins gradually squeeze the palate as a touch of alcoholic heat lingers in the finish along with dried herbs and dried citrus peel. 14.5% alcohol. Score: between 8.5 and 9. Cost: $70. click to buy.

2019 Canalicchio di Sopra Brunello di Montalcino, Tuscany, Italy
Medium ruby in the glass with coffee highlights, this wine smells of cherry and prunes. In the mouth, rich cherry and brown sugar notes mix with dried herbs and citrus peel as muscular tannins wrap around the core of the wine and coat the mouth with their fine-grained dusty texture. The tannins gradually stiffen and begin drying out the mouth as notes of molasses and oak linger in the finish. Ultimately it feels like this wine has a bit too much wood influence. 15% alcohol. Score: 8.5. Cost: $110. click to buy.

2019 Fanti “Vallocchio” Brunello di Montalcino, Tuscany, Italy
Medium ruby in the glass, this wine smells of earth, chocolate, and cherries. In the mouth, juicy flavors of cherries, sawdust, and dried herbs are wrapped in thick, fleecy tannins as juicy orange peel and dried flower notes linger in the finish. There’s the tiniest hint of heat that betrays the wine’s 15% alcohol, but it is generally very balanced and smooth. Wood tannins linger in the finish. Score: 9. Cost: $85. click to buy.

2018 Retro Cellars Syrah, Howell Mountain, Napa, California
Very dark garnet in color, this wine smells of blackberry, black cherry, and blueberries. In the mouth, blackberry and blueberry flavors are rich and dark, nestled into a velvety cushion of tannins that coat the mouth. Decent acidity keeps the wine from being too heavy, but this is dark, rich Syrah with some stony notes emerging in the finish. 14% alcohol. Score: 8.5. Cost: $60. click to buy.

2015 Retro Cellars “Los Abuelos Vineyard” Petite Sirah, Howell Mountain, Napa, California
Very dark garnet in color, this wine smells of blueberries and blackberry pie. In the mouth, rich blackberry and blueberry flavors mix with black licorice and a hint of dried flowers. Lightly grippy tannins stiffen with time. Decent acidity keeps the wine from being too heavy on the palate, but make no mistake, this is a brawny, dark, and rich expression of fruit. 13.6% alcohol. Score: 8.5. Cost: $60. click to buy.