The 2016 Montecucco Vermentino Melacce is a delightfully tangy and fresh white wine that would wash down with fried shrimp or calamari sprinkled with freshly squeezed lemon juice. Fruit is harvested on the early side specifically to maintain that irresistible brightness and nervous vein of acidity. The wine is fermented at low temperatures in stainless steel to enhance those aromas of citrus and honeydew melon. But it also ages on the lees to gain the mild textural creaminess you feel here. You get great value with this wine.

The 2011 Montecucco Vermentino Melacce possesses good depth in its varietal apricots and peaches. This juicy white is best enjoyed over the next year or two. It is a pleasing, soft and correct wine. Anticipated maturity: 2012-2014. Importer: Bedford International, Larchmont, NY; tel. (914) 833-2725

The 2010 Montecucco Vermentino Melacce is made in a soft, plush style. Sweet yellow stone fruit, smoke and minerals blossom beautifully in this inviting, supple Vermentino. Anticipated maturity: 2011-2013. These are some of the finest wines I have tasted from Colle Massari.Importer: Bedford International, Larchmont, NY; tel. (914) 833-2725

Made with organically grown fruit, Melacce (a pure expression of Vermentino) is one of the most successful examples of an easy-drinking white wine from Tuscany. It delivers tones of stone fruit, pear, dried hay and white almond.——M.L.(3/1/2012)—— 87

The 2009 Montecucco Vermentino Melacce is a pretty, mid-weight wine laced with melon, peaches, flowers and spices, all of which come together nicely in a soft, engaging style best enjoyed over the next year or two. Anticipated maturity: 2010-2012. Importer: Bedford International, Larchmont, NY; tel. (914) 833-2725