2023 Poggio Le Volpi Roma Rosso

It should come as no surprise that the Roman countryside has been home to viticulture for nearly 3,000 years. It is surprising that the Roma DOC was only established in 2011, making it one of the more recently created Italian appellations. That said, there has been a buzz about the wines of the Lazio region for the last couple of decades, even as they continue to exist on the periphery of the Italian wine landscape. Poggio le Volpe is spent the last century trying to connect the dots between the ancient and the modern, and this wine is a shining new example. Broad strokes of fruit and structure are laid down by montepulciano and sangiovese, with the Lazio's most-prized cesanese etching out nuance and detail to this powerful, complete red. Southern food is the ticket here, whether American or Italian: barbecue, mac n cheese, collard greens; or, meatballs in a rich tomato passata, pecorino, and ciambotta.