Cellar Notes

Chiantis for Mid-Winter

By Al Spoler,

Published February 23, 2024 at 3:24 PM EST

Chianti. Arnaud 25, CC BY-SA 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons — Chianti

Al has turned up a trio of very affordable high-quality Chiantis with a ton of personality and promise.

Price key: $=less than $20 $$= $20-40 $$$=$40-60 $$$$=above $60
Quality key: * = decent wine ** = very good wine *** = superb wine ****= elite
VALUE = exceptional quality for the money

Poggio Alla Luna Chianti ’19 ** $ VALUE
(Dark, rich, earthy Chianti, perfect as an everyday Italian red)

Poggio Tondo Chianti (Biologica) ’20 **1/2 $ VALUE
(Saturday night dinner red, refined, smooth, complex)

WINE OF THE WEEK: Fattoria Rodano Chianti Classico ’19 *** $$
(A superb, dense, concentrated wine, ultra-smooth, complex, age-worthy)

All of these wines can be purchased at Kenilworth Wine and Spirits.

Cellar Notes

Al Spoler

Al Spoler, well known to WYPR listeners as the wine-loving co-host of "Cellar Notes" has had a long-standing parallel interest in cooking as well. Al has said, the moment he started getting serious about Sunday night dinners was the same moment he started getting serious about wine. Over the years, he has benefited greatly from being a member of the Cork and Fork Society of Baltimore, a gentlemen's dining club that serves black tie meals cooked by the members themselves who are some of Baltimore's most accomplished amateur cooks.

See stories by Al Spoler

Hugh Sisson

As General Partner of Clipper City Brewing Company, L.P., Hugh J. Sisson is among Baltimore's premier authorities on craft brewing and a former manager of the state's first pub brewery, Sissons, located in Federal Hill. A fifth generation Baltimorean, Hugh has been involved in all aspects of craft brewing.

See stories by Hugh Sisson