The 2006 Nero d’Avola Nerobufaleffi is one of the firmer wines in this line up. Here the ripe red fruit sits on a beautifully precise vein of minerality that gives the wine its phenomenal length and balance. Sweet flowers, licorice and anise add lift on the finish. This isn’t the richest Nero d’Avola from Gulfi, rather it is a wine where the structural elements play a key role in the wine’s personality, very much like Barolo or Barbaresco. Accordingly, another year or two in bottle will do the Nerobufaleffi a world of good. Anticipated maturity: 2012-2022. Gulfi is one of my go-to producers for fine Nero d’Avola. With the exception of the Nerosanlore’, these 2006s are well worth looking for. Importer: Selected Estates of Europe, Mamaroneck, NY; tel. (914) 698-7202

Nerobufaleffj delivers ripe fruit, blackberry and some distant tones of citrus and apple. It’s frank, easy and smooth on the close. ——M.L.(4/1/2012)—— 86