Best Buys $10 And Under

#53 On The Wine Spectator's Top 100 Wines Of 2024!

93 points Wine Spectator
Richly savory on the nose, this fresh, sinewy red features a minerally underpinning of petrol, earth, iron and salt to the flavors of juicy dried cherry and cranberry, red licorice and mandarin orange peel. Opens nicely in the glass and on the palate, with the persistent finish showing aromatic herbs and spices, plus more mineral notes. Tempranillo, Garnacho, Graciano and Mazuelo. Drink now through 2031.

94 points Wine Advocate
The 2011 Viña Tondonia Reserva is darker and shows riper fruit, a rounder palate and some dusty tannins. A year of ripeness, concentration and tannin, the wine is powerful with the finesse of Tondonia. Tasting this next to the textbook 2010 Tondonia revealed how this has more muscle and a wider back and the 2010 epitomizes the finesse and elegance. 270,000 bottles produced. It was bottled in May 2019.

The top Barbera from the leading producer in the Colli Tortonesi (southeast Piemonte), and one of a handful of truly age-worthy Barberas. This wine, along with Sentieri and Fuso, demonstrates that Walter Massa is an able and versatile “Barberista”, in addition to having the magic touch with Timorasso.

Native yeasts. Aging in used barriques for about two years and at least an additional year in bottle. No filtration. All the classic Barbera cherry and raspberry fruit, with the grape’s high acidity honed into a tightly-knit complexity. One of the few Barbaras that age and become more complex.

Walter Massa is the real deal: a contadino (farmer) with deep family roots in his native Colli Tortonesi who’s usually plowing his vineyards or buzzing around his cellar when someone arrives for a visit. He’ll then stop to spend hours showing around, pouring wines for, and talking with the continual waves of journalists, sommeliers, importers, buyers, and just plain fans who make their way to his village of Monleale in the southeast corner of Piemonte. Massa is universally known as the Maestro of Timorasso — he rescued it from obscurity and near-extinction and now leads a mini-renaissance of the variety in the Colli Tortonesi. But he also produces amazing and distinctive reds from the local varieties Barbera, Croatina, Freisa, and Nebbiolo.