2001 Cantina Zaccagnini Montepulciano d'Abruzzo

I had leftover lasagne in the fridge, and on the way home really wanted another Italian wine. Luckily, I stumbled upon an old favorite: the 2001 Cantina Zaccagnini Montepulciano d'Abruzzo. (Say that six times fast!) Affectionately known as "twig wine" in some parts, because of their marketing tactic of using a reed to tie a piece of dried grape vine around the neck of the bottle, fastened underneath the front label. A cheesy bit of marketing, but it's way more classy than the wicker basket Chianti bottles.

This wine tastes incredible right now. Not sure how long it will age, but right now it's silky smooth and full of strawberry flavors and aromas. The tannins are soft, but there's a residual acidity that's fascinating on the tongue. It's hard to get a well-aged, five year old wine for $15. It went well with the lasagne also, and my dining companion loved the wine. I had most of a baguette left over from Sunday night, so I sliced it up and made bread pudding for dessert, topped with a little Godiva Chocolate Liqueur. It was either that or make Italian bread soup, but that seemed kind of redundant to have a starchy tomato dish along with lasagne. No, the pain perdu turned out to be a good idea.