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Il Tarocco 2011 Chianti Classico

Chianti is an area in the Tuscan Hills of western Italy.  A wine designated as a Chianti Classico must be Sangiovese blended with a small percentage of other grapes.  A classico wine must meet certain criteria regarding color, flavor, tannins and alcohol content and also must display a symbol of a rooster somewhere on the bottle.

The Il Tarocco Chianti Classico  is made from 90% Sangiovese and 10% Canaiolo Nero.  It is aged in small french oak barrels for 12 months and 6 months in the bottle.  The A.C .= 13.5%.  Il Tarocco is available at Trader Joe's for $9.99. 

It has taken 3 bottles of this wine for me to be able to write this review and that is not a bad thing since I really like it.  I just had a difficult time discerning what I liked.  I would describe the wine as a medium body, medium cherry and berry fruit, with a medium long finish.  I know that sounds like a mediocre wine but it is not!  This wine has a lot of flavor and complexity.  It just seems to hit a midway point in many categories.  As such, I think it is a wine that will appeal to many wine drinkers and a wine that will pair with many foods.  If you are a Trader Joe's shopper, you should give this a try.

SC Wine Joe rating = 89





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