Dessert wines with botrytis cinerea, the noble rot of Sauternes, Alsace, the Loire, and the Rhine, are something of a specialty of the estate, which pioneered their production in Emilia-Romagna, and two are offered in the 2001 vintage. The 2001 Arrocco, with aromas of honey, apricots, noble rot, and candied orange rind is the regular bottling, quite sweet but balanced and elegant at the same time and with a fresh, vigorous finish. I occasionally wonder if I should write about the wines of Cristina Geminani, the owner-winemaker of this estate, one of the most talented women in Italian wine. It is not so much for the fact that I have known her for close to twenty years, but due to the close working relationship I once had with her husband Alessandro Masnaghetti, a former nuclear engineer who has become one of Italy’s most serious and informed writers on wine. But I don’t think I have any problems of objectivity in this case, and about the quality of the wines there is little to discuss – this is the leading estate in Emilia-Romagna, has been so for fifteen years, and it cannot be ignored. Importer: A Christopher Cannan Selection, various American importers including Michael Skurnik, Syosset, NY; tel. (516) 677-9300 and Diamond Wine Merchants, Oakland, CA; tel. (510) 567-9897