The flavors of this wine are quintessential sangiovese, like great berry flavors (raspberry, a touch of blueberry, even boysenberry) along with nice herbs and tasty oak. This Napa gem is packed with flavor without being over-the-top. It's bright and lively without being too acidic.

If this wine were a boxer, it'd be Sugar Ray Leonard (if Leonard was Italian-American): A solid middleweight, with both grace and power. Continuing with the comparison, it's versatile enough to take on any (edible) competitor - including all manner of pizza.

If someone says to you, "I like sangiovese," they'll like this wine. Hell, even if they don't say that, it's almost guaranteed that they'll dig on this. That certainly makes this a solid party wine*. But, if you're buying this bottle to bring to a party (say, a pizza party), it's such a perfect choice that it promotes this sangiovese to chimp wine** status. There may be better sangios out there, but it's hard to find a wine that everyone agrees on, and isn't vanilla-bland. Bravo, Flora Springs. Belisimo!

Ciao,
TSW

* - WoW's party wine designation is given to a bottle that you can bring to a party, and it'll make you look good, but won't leave you feeling devastated if you end up not getting any.

** - Chimp wine is a WoW designation signifying a no-brainer, must-buy wine (as in, "You'd have to be a chimp not to buy this wine.").

Pizza is an amazing thing. All pizza is made with pretty much the same four ingredients. (Okay, I'm guessing. It might be five or seven ingredients.) Yet, no two places (or people) make pizza the same. Few pizzas completely suck, but they all taste very different. So, if someone invites you to their house for dinner, and they're serving pizza (you asked what they were making because you wanted to bring wine because that's what you do because you're a nice person), how do you know what sort of wine to bring?

A Super Tuscan might overpower a lighter-style pie. A light sangiovese may not stand up to a bigger, bolder deep-dish. Primitivo may be too spicy for veggie supreme without onions and peppers. I tell ya, it's enough to make you throw up your hands and bring beer!

But never fear! While WoW firmly believes in the natural, symbiotic relationship between pizza and beer, we also believe in rising to a challenge (and in wine being appropriate for just about any occasion). We found a solution to this challenge with some help from Flora Springs and its wonderful sangiovese.