The 2017 Pinot Nero Case Via is not exactly representative of the Burgundian grape. From a hot and dry vintage, this wine opens to ripe aromas with cherry skin and dark fruit roll-ups. The bouquet continues with cherry cough drop, natural rubber, soapy lavender and church incense. There is a slightly vegetal touch that recalls olive or Provence herbs in those little burlap sachets. Of these new releases from Fontodi, this Pinot Nero seems to have been hit hardest by the heat and drought of the vintage.

The 2016 Pinot Nero Case Via is a very special expression of the grape that shows darkness and increased concentration in this beautiful vintage. This wine offers a purely Tuscan take on Pinot Nero. It pours from the bottle with a dark garnet color, showing aromas of dried cherry, smoke, tar and road paving. The wine closes with a broad, mid-weight approach. This would be a nice bottle to open for a game dinner with roasted pheasant.

This is another fabulous – and completely out-of-the-box – wine from Tuscany's Fontodi. The 2014 Pinot Nero Case Via is absolutely characteristic of the variety with raspberry, violets and bitter almond. The mouthfeel is silky and polished with refined tannins and lingering freshness. Its hard-body texture is lean and firm. Only 4,000 bottles are produced.

The 2012 Pinot Nero is a gorgeous red wine from Tuscany that sings high praise for the grape. Rosewater, jasmine and tea leaf open the lady-like bouquet. Those delicate aromas come forth in tiptoe steps with lingering traces of spice and sweet almond. The whole experience is delightful.

Pinot Nero and Tuscany don’t always make comfortable bedfellows, but the 2010 Pinot Nero Case Via is one of the nicest expressions of this delicate grape in central Italy. The wine opens to enormous aromatic intensity with beautiful tones of forest berry, boysenberry, candied cherry, pungent red rose and cassis that pop straight from the glass. The purity and intensity of the perfumes are truly outstanding. Its shows smooth silkiness that caresses the palate with generous flavors of ripe berry and a dusting of spice that lingers for many long seconds. This is a fantastic wine that pays homage to Tuscany and to Pinot Nero in equal measure. Anticipated maturity: 2014-2028. Fontodi’s Giovanni Manetti has released one of the top Italian wines of 2010. His Flaccianello della Pieve (assembled from the best parcels of Sangiovese) is an expression of profound beauty and elegance. I tasted this wine early in my work for this issue and found myself returning to my note over and over again, comparing the other great wines of 2010 to Flaccianello. It became my benchmark for the vintage. Importer: Vinifera Imports; www.viniferaimports.com