Bright red, with clean cherry fruit and a touch of earth. Not un-pinot-like. Spicy on the palate – very light, with not much acid and no real tannin to speak of. Minimal oak influence. Shortish finish, but despite the apparently negative notes not faulty, just a light quaffing Italian red in clean modern style.

Orangey-red. A rather fungal nose – earthy, barnyard. Some astringency on the palate, but in general a short, light wine.

Crimson red. Almost citric qualities on the nose, with even a touch of cinnamon or woodspice. Surprisingly light at this age, I find it a little woody and perhaps disjointed. Savoury, though. Hard to call – a wine requiring some time?

Very dark red. Pepper & sweaty saddle leap first to the nose, and they’re lifted and pronounced aromas. It’s tannin city on the palate, but at least even across the palate, with a long finish. A food wine, in the best sense of the word.

Clean cherry red colour. Perfumed strawberry aromas. Gently astringent on the palate, although quite light, the balance inclining towards the front palate. Pleasant, but not especially memorable.

Light red. Fruit aromas are very reticent – the nose is all of a light woodiness. The palate is dominated by warmth (alcohol?), with soft fruit and a pretty simple flavour profile. Ho-hum.

Pale-mid red. This presents aromas rather like a turbo-charged Australian pinot. Powerful stewed light red berry fruit. Medium weight on the palate, but it’s all tannin, albeit it soft and fast-fading ones. OK, but a bit one-dimensional.

Bright red. Very clean nose of indeterminate red berry fruits. The palate offers a bright acidic, zesty, wine – makes me wonder about any carbonic maceration techniques used in fermentation which could have given it such a lifted perfumed quality. Spicy flavours with plenty of acid. I liked it better tonight than at the cellar door 2 weeks previously.

Deep red. A meaty nose, but a bit muted. A dryish, spicy medium weight wine, with not much obvious fruit. I was expecting a bit better for the price I paid…

Deep red. Lots of blackberries and oak aromas. Tannins are unexpectedly soft – but give a pleasant dry finish. The balance is good, length pretty respectable – just misses somehow in the finish for me.

This offers a charry macerated nose of worked blackberries and oak spice. Very dry on the palate, and not much breaks through the wall of tannin. Not great just now – a bit hard to drink. Needs a few years, or more to show better. Great potential, though?

So much for sangiovese, then. Reddish, with some brick colour. Is this ‘brett?’ Strongly showing a funky earthy quality, with a bacterial hint perhaps slightly suppressing the fruit that seems to be lurking beneath! Still in one piece though – pretty good for Valpolicella!

Deep red. Clearly the darkest wine of the night – no sangiovese here! Surprisingly youthful nose all of primary blackcurrant fruit. It’s desperately tannic, though – I find this quite over-the-top, and am not sure that it will ever come round to be a balanced and satisfying wine…

Golden caramel colour. Very much crème brulee on the nose, carrying through with marmalade on the palate, but with very little acid left, to my taste. Another year or two, and this will be well into the ‘cloying’ category.

Deep gold. A marmalade-infused nose not unlike the Noble One, but with a less refined edge. This has softened as well and is a drink-now proposition. The flavours are pretty big, but the finish is quite short.