Not many wineries make Charbono anymore. It’s a bone-dry wine, strong in tannins and earthy, with a resemblance to Barbera. Summers’ 2008 is quite fine and elegant for the variety, with dried berry, currant, leather, coffee and spice flavors. It should slowly develop over the next dozen years, mellowing and sweetening.——S.H.(4/1/2011)—— 89

Charbono is a variety that used to be more widely planted. It’s always a rustic wine, but it ages forever, and can develop sweet complexities. In its youth, it’s fruity, soft and tannic, with ripe blackberry and chocolate flavors.——S.H.(6/1/2009)—— 87