Santa Christina `07 Sangiovese IGT (Not TJ's) $9.99 **

I only decided to review this wine because the chicken was beautiful and I may have a bit of OCD (ya think?).

Here's the problem... on paper, this wine is well pedigreed, Tuscan, from a good family, certified IGT etc., etc., etc.  Nice, with a fruity smell, a distinct taste of cloves and spiciness but nothing stood out. It has a rather long finish, with the requisite oakiness and tannins.  I could drink it, or I could drink something else. They tempered it by having it be 90% Sangiovese and 10% Merlot, but that blend just made it easy to drink, I didn't notice a distinct flavor profile that would ever let me call this a complex or interesting wine, it is simply a table wine.

Whatever you do, DON'T DECANT THIS WINE. Shudder.  Aeration highlights every imperfection. It makes it a "Furry" wine.  My tongue just barely forgives me. And aeration made the finish harsh and sharp.

Out of the bottle, perfectly drinkable, but you could do better for the price.

Tonight's dinner came from the cookbook Classic Techniques of Italian Cooking by Giuliano Bugialli.  It is a rather technical and historic cookbook, but boy does it produce some yummie food.

Menu:
Tuscan Chicken
Mashed potatoes
Fresh Torpedo Rolls

UPDATE in my mind, I've added a (*)
The next evening, after a long day at work....

I arrived home to see JPH experimenting at the cooktop.  Hmmm. I was curious... and there I saw the beginnings of Paella!  I squealed with joy on the inside and on the outside said "hmmmm".  Ok, so maybe I squealed in the kitchen, ran upstairs, changed out of my work clothes and joined him at the stove-top.  He had come across a picture he had taken while he and the family were vacationing in France and well, it inspired him. (see the picture within a picture on the right? JPH, S.& le june filles have GREAT food enhanced family vacations)
I jumped in as sous chef and cooking commenced.  There was leftover wine from the night before and as poured from the bottle, it was quite good.  Maybe a day had settled it, maybe I was being rather harsh last night, who knows?  But with Paella, I upped it a star to be a perfectly palatable table wine.