Dark reddish-purple with a clear garnet edge. I detect fresh, subtle mixed berries on the nose, blackberry over back notes of strawberry and blueberry with a touch of warm spice. Fresh acidity wakes the palate, with soft tannins adding structure to simple but pleasant ripe plum and berry fruit. On the rustic side, but there’s nothing wrong with that in a modest Italian table wine. Tannic astringency, not unpleasant, lingers after the fruit fades. The label’s midrange 13% alcohol statement seems about right.

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Clear, bright straw color, with a marked melon aroma, a mix of musky cantaloupe and more subtle honeydew. Fresh and tart flavors carry over the melon character and add a bright squirt of lemon. Medium-bodied, its texture becomes more evident as the wine warms in the glass, and a hint of pleasant peach-pit bitterness joins in on a very long finish. Its rather light 10.5 percent alcohol makes it an easy sipper. It’s fine now but will become even more appealing as spring returns and warms into summer.

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