This week marks the return of Reverdito’s Barbara D’Alba ’09, a superb everyday red from the family-run winery located in La Morra. The grapes are sourced entirely from the family vineyards on clay and limestone soils near the village. Intense, transparent red with pink rims, an enticing perfume of currants and red plum, with some notes of brioche interwoven with the fruit in the mouth and a lingering, lightly tart finish. $11.79/750ml. Classic everyday Piemontese wine!

Daniel Belda Ponsalet Monastrell Jove 2009 is another wonderful Spanish red that just gives and gives: dense ruby purple, earthy violet inflected perfume, very juicy in the mouth with boysenberry but underlying baked clay notes that add body and length. Grapes are grown in sandy loam with a lower layer of limestone providing good drainage. Climate is Mediterranean with cool nights and warm days, very characteristic of Spain’s Valencia region. An astonishing $7.99/750ml.

Gualdo del Re is located in the Maremma area of Tuscany in the Val di Cornia south of Florence and a short distance from the coast. The soil is is sandy with small stones and clay, ideal for growing red and white wine grapes. Vermentino does particularly well here. The Gualdo del Re Valentina 2010 Vermentino is golden yellow in the glass and packed with rich pear and honey flavors that wrap around the tongue and cling to the sides of the palate. This is no teddy bear, though: it has some very nice mineral notes to offset the plush fruit. Can’t beat that! $13.99/750ml. If you like what you taste, check out the red from this producer – the 2008 Elisio: 60% Sangiovese, 20% Cabernet, and 20% Merlot. $12.49/750ml.

Walter van Aalderen has been growing grapes just outside of Nizas in France’s Languedoc region since 1994. Le Cisso Tradition 2008 Vin de Pays d’Oc is a blend of Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon from a single vineyard. The finished wine is aged in old oak barrels for 18 months before bottling. Impenetrable purple in the glass. Intense cassis perfume with notes of cardomon. Chewy tannins with cassis, cardomon, and a hint of sage. Lasting and chewy at the end. $13.99/750ml.

In stock this week:

Clos Des Papes Chateauneuf du Pape 2009 "I tasted through various foudres of the 2009 Chateauneuf du Pape and it is unquestionably a top-flight wine for Clos des Papes that is seductive and forward by the standards of this estate. It reminded me of the precocious style of the 2003, and Avril told me the 2009 is less alcoholic than either the 2003 or 2007, and the pH is a normal 3.75. Yields were a very small 20 hectoliters per hectare, largely because of their selection process and the drought. Every foudre I tasted was beautifully pure displaying a deep ruby/plum color, sweet kirsch and black raspberry fruit, full body, decent acidity (they never acidify here) and sweet, velvety tannins. This should turn out to be a mid-90-point wine that will take a back seat to the 2007, possibly even to their monumental 2006, but will surpass what they did in 2008, 2005, 2004, 1999 and 1998. The 2009 is a beautiful success that should drink well for 15+ years. "

95 Points, The Wine Advocate $126.99/750ml.

Yann Chave 2009 Crozes Hermitage “…one of the finest I have tasted from Yann Chave. It reveals lovely elegance along with lush black cherry and black currant fruit interwoven with hints of incense, charcoal and roasted meats. Fresh, lush and full-bodied, it is ideal for drinking over the next 5-7 years. 89-92pts. The Wine Advocate $26.49/750ml.

Brooks 2007 Rastaban Willamette Valley Pinot Noir $46.79/750ml. I tasted this August 9^th. Very untypical of 2007. Deep purple with ruby edges; smokey perfume with black truffle and briar rose; big and meaty in the mouth: black truffle, charcoal, dark plum wrapped around a core of zingy acidity and satiny tannins.

Our tasting schedule this week:

• Friday, Aug. 12, 4:30 p.m. – Taste Owen Roe Ex Umbris Syrah 2009 and Abbot’s Table Red Blend 2009

• Saturday, Aug. 13, 5 p.m. – Try Left Coast Brewery brews.